Crowds of protesters have thronged Lebanese cities for days, cutting main roads and paralysing the country with school and bank closures
Crowds of protesters have thronged Lebanese cities for days, cutting main roads and paralysing the country with school and bank closures AFP / Ibrahim CHALHOUB

Tensions rattled Lebanon's nine-day protest movement Friday, with a powerful Shiite leader seeking to diffuse them by calling his supporters away from the streets.

The demonstrators -- who have thronged towns and cities across Lebanon -- have been demanding the removal of the entire political class, accusing many across different parties of systematic corruption.

The chief of powerful Shiite movement Hezbollah, Hassan Nasrallah, Friday warned that any cabinet resignation would lead to "chaos and collapse" of the economy.

"We do not support the resignation of the government," he said in a televised speech, Lebanon's national flag -- instead of his party's colours -- positioned behind him.

Hezbollah is a major political player in Lebanon and with its allies holds the majority in the cabinet.

Lebanese protestors have roundly condemned the entire political system as corrupt
Lebanese protestors have roundly condemned the entire political system as corrupt AFP / JOSEPH EID

Nasrallah also called on his partisans to leave the streets after scuffles broke out in Beirut between them and other anti-graft protesters.

Unprecedented protests have erupted in some Hezbollah strongholds, but a number of its supporters have also taken offense to slogans against their leader.

In the capital's main square, protesters fell silent to listen to Nasrallah's speech broadcast on loudspeakers.

Each morning, Lebanese volunteers have been clearing up the plastic bottles, cigarette ends and other rubbish discarded during their nightly protest raves
Each morning, Lebanese volunteers have been clearing up the plastic bottles, cigarette ends and other rubbish discarded during their nightly protest raves AFP / ANWAR AMRO

As it neared its end, the police moved in to separate Hezbollah supporters from the rest of the demonstrators, an AFP correspondent said.

Before they retreated, Hezbollah backers threw rocks, plastics bottles and branches at the other demonstrators, who responded in kind chanting "Revolution".

'All of them'

After night fell in the northern city of Tripoli, hundreds held up their mobile phones with their lights on, waving them as if at a concert.

Lebanese anti-government protesters listen to a televised speech by Hassan Nasrallah, the head of the powerful Shiite Hezbollah movement who has warned of "chaos" if the cabinet resigns
Lebanese anti-government protesters listen to a televised speech by Hassan Nasrallah, the head of the powerful Shiite Hezbollah movement who has warned of "chaos" if the cabinet resigns AFP / Patrick BAZ

Among them, 33-year-old engineer Bilal Hussein said he was not surprised Nasrallah wanted the current cabinet to stay put.

"We realise that Nasrallah is the one controlling Lebanon," he said.

Protesters have blocked roads as they press with their demands for an overhaul of Lebanon's political elite
Protesters have blocked roads as they press with their demands for an overhaul of Lebanon's political elite AFP / Mahmoud ZAYYAT

"He is defending the government and the president's rule because their fall would mean the end of his political plan."

The Iran-backed Hezbollah, which is considered a terrorist organisation by Israel and the United States, is the only movement not to have disarmed after Lebanon's 15-year civil war.

After initially welcoming the protests as spontaneous, Nasrallah on Friday insinuated that the protesters were being manipulated.

AFPTV / Kamal Mehanna

Numbers have declined since Sunday, when hundreds of thousands took over Beirut and other cities in the largest demonstrations in years, but could grow again over the weekend.

Lebanon's largely sectarian political parties have been wrong-footed by the cross-communal nature of the largely peaceful protests.

Waving Lebanese flags rather than the partisan colours normally paraded at demonstrations, protesters have been demanding the resignation of all of Lebanon's political leaders.

"All of them means all," has been a popular slogan.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urged the authorities to exert maximum restraint and solve their problems through dialogue.

In attempts to calm the anger, Prime Minister Saad Hariri has pushed through a package of economic reforms, while President Michel Aoun offered Thursday to meet with representatives of the demonstrators to discuss their demands.

'We want to stay'

But those measures have been given short shrift by demonstrators, many of whom want the government to resign to pave the way for new elections.

"We want to stay on the street to realise our demands and improve the country," one protester, who asked to be identified only by his first name Essam, told AFP.

"We want the regime to fall... The people are hungry and there is no other solution in front of us," said the 30-year-old health administrator.

On Friday morning, protesters had again cut some of Beirut's main highways, including the road to the airport and the coastal road towards second city Tripoli and the north.

The army in a statement urged demonstrators to refrain from such measures and "respect of freedom of circulation".

Rights group Amnesty International called on Lebanese authorities to "refrain from trying to forcefully disperse peaceful assemblies".

On Thursday, scuffles had already broken out in central Beirut, injuring one protester.

Persistent deadlock between them has stymied efforts to tackle the deteriorating economy, while the eight-year war in neighbouring Syria has compounded the crisis.

More than a quarter of Lebanon's population lives in poverty, according to the World Bank.

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