Tear gas and stone-throwing: Chaos erupts at Hezbollah demonstration in Beirut

Report by Toni Mrad, English adaptation by Yasmine Jaroudi

Despite Hezbollah's call for a peaceful protest on Beirut's Airport road Saturday afternoon, tensions quickly escalated into chaos.  

The demonstration, which began calmly, descended into disorder just minutes before the conclusion of a speech by Hezbollah's Deputy Head of the Political Council, Mahmoud Qomati. A tear gas canister, reportedly fired by the Lebanese Army, landed near the protesters, triggering panic, confusion, and cases of fainting among the crowd.  

Conflicting accounts emerged regarding the incident. 

According to LBCI sources, the army responded with tear gas after some protesters threw stones and attacked military vehicles. 

However, the deployment of the canister appeared to have been misdirected.  

On the other hand, eyewitnesses claimed that the army initiated the use of tear gas, prompting demonstrators to retaliate with stone-throwing, leading to injuries among soldiers.  

During the protest, Qomati delivered a fiery speech criticizing the Lebanese state.  

The unrest was short-lived, as demonstrators began leaving the scene after Hezbollah announced the end of the protest and reopened the airport road.