Tens of thousands of Lebanese protesters have formed a human chain running north to south across the entire country to symbolise national unity amid a civil disobedience campaign against the government.
Demonstrators joined hands from Tripoli to Tyre, a 170-kilometre chain running through the capital Beirut, as part of an unprecedented cross-sectarian mobilisation.
On foot, by bicycle and on motorbikes, demonstrators and volunteers fanned out along the main north-south highway.
“The idea behind this human chain is to show an image of a Lebanon which, from north to south, rejects any sectarian affiliation,” Julie Tegho Bou Nassif, one of the organisers, said.
It marked the eleventh day of anti-government protests which began on 17 October.
Tension has mounted in recent days between security forces and protesters, who are blocking roads and bringing the country to a standstill to press their demands for a complete overhaul of the political system.
Lebanon’s reviled political elite has defended a belated package of economic reforms and appeared willing to reshuffle the government, but protesters who have stayed on the streets since October 17 want more.
People have been demonstrating against the handling of a severe economic crisis, and there have been clashes with security forces.
In the northern city of Tripoli, where more than half the population lives under the poverty line, some had painted the Lebanese national symbol of a cedar tree on their faces, according to the media reports.
While, in the southern city of Tyre, protesters standing in a line held the edges of a long Lebanese flag, local television showed.
The protests have been remarkable for their territorial reach and the absence of political or sectarian banners, in a country often defined by its divisions.
