This archive report was first published on 15 December 2019.
Lebanon has been gripped by unprecedented nationwide protests since October 17, with demonstrators demanding a complete overhaul of the country's political class, deemed inept and corrupt.
As the government stepped down on October 29, political parties have failed to agree on a new premier, with talks planned for Monday.
On Saturday, clashes erupted at the entrance to the street leading to parliament, which was blocked by security forces.
Anti-government protesters attempted to break through metal police barricades, with officers firing tear gas and beating them, according to images broadcast by local TV channel LBC.
Protesters overturned heavy flower pots and shouted slogans hostile to the security forces and parliament speaker Nabih Berri.
Clashes also broke out in Martyrs Square, the epicentre of protests since October, and on a bridge in the city centre, according to an AFP photographer.
Security forces fired rubber bullets, while protesters threw stones, the photographer said.
Protesters were injured by batons, and others passed out due to the intensity of tear gas fumes, with members of the security forces also wounded, the photographer said.
The Lebanese Red Cross reported that it had taken 10 people to hospital and provided care to 33 people on the ground, treating people for breathing difficulties, fainting, and injuries caused by stones.
