Lebanon marks 76th year of independence from France amid parallel rallies
Lebanon marks 76 years of self-rule, with protesters kicking off festivities nationwide instead of a military parade to mark what they say is a first year of"real independence."
Protesters gathered for alternative independence celebrations, converging by early afternoon on Martyrs' Square in central Beirut, which used to be the traditional location of the official parade. The demonstrations that began on October 17 against proposed taxes on WhatsApp calls turned into a condemnation of the country's political elite, who have run the country since the 1975-90 civil war.
A post-war accord sought to share out power between Lebanon's various religious communities, but the country remained deeply divided along sectarian lines.Hundreds waved Lebanese flags and sang the national anthem, while marches set out from different neighbourhoods in the capital toward the square, the epicentre of the protests, facing the waterfront and near the government headquarters and parliament.
The protesters are calling for a new government and elections outside of the traditional sectarian-based power-sharing agreement.
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