Announcing he had “reached a dead end,” Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri said in a televised speech as he resigned his post Tuesday evening in Beirut after nearly two weeks of unending civil protests. “No one is bigger than the nation,” he said.
Lebanon’s Prime Minister Saad Hariri resigns, giving in to demands of protesters who have paralyzed the country for nearly two weeks https://t.co/jGQEri4gaH pic.twitter.com/rYtjGM5tbi
— CNN Breaking News (@cnnbrk)
Hariri tendered his resignation to President Michel Aoun shortly after. If accepted, ministers will be tasked with choosing a new prime minister, who will then be asked to form a new cabinet.
Saad Hariri forwards his resignation
to the President, Michel Aoun.If accepted, the mnisters should choose a new Prime Minister that would form a new cabinet. https://t.co/bWTinvH34p
— Hussein – Justiça, ainda que tardia (@HusseinBrasil)
Reaction to the news was swift, but mixed, with some people crying and others handing out biscuits. Still others were singing in the streets and waving flags. In Riad Al Sohl and Martyrs’ Square, protesters were celebrating the news.
People handing out biscuits to celebrate the PM’s resignation. Some are crying. pic.twitter.com/DoQrcyQzJb
— Josie Ensor (@Josiensor)
When the announcement of Hariri’s resignation was first made public, numerous sources – including Naharnet and Beirut-based photojournalist Hasan Shaaban of The Daily Star and Reuters reported hundreds of supporters of Hezbollah and the AMAL Movement attacked anti-government protesters and journalists in Beirut. There were tear gas attacks as well, but it was not clear whether they were aimed at the protesters or at Hezbollah and AMAL.
: Day 13 of the . thugs attacked protesters and journalists in .
This shows me being kicked in the ribs by those thugs. pic.twitter.com/OKKq5xmipg— Hasan Shaaban (@hasanshaaban)
Lebanese Army forces were deployed along the Ring Road in the capital in an attempt to address some of the violence but the effort did little to reduce the clashes.