Protesters gathered in north Lebanon on Monday evening, hours after the news that Ahmad Tawfiq had died weeks after being shot in Tripoli during a protest in November. Tawfiq’s death brings the direct death toll from the nationwide uprising that began on October 17 to two.
Demonstrators cut roads around the city on Monday, but the situation was calm on Tuesday despite calls for a “day of rage” on social media.
The young man in his twenties died on Monday afternoon, according to Nini Hospital in Tripoli, where he had undergone multiple operations since he was wounded in November. Protesters told The National that he was buried on Tuesday in his home town of Tal Hayat, in the region of Akkar.
This is the second death directly related to the protests, after Alaa Bou Fakhr, a 38-year old father of three, was killed by a member of the army intelligence at a road block on November 12. Four other people have died in accidents or in brawls related to the demonstrations since October 17.
In contrast with the outpouring of grief and solidarity that followed the death of Mr Bou Fakhr, no prominent Lebanese politician had commented on Tawfiq’s death on Tuesday afternoon.
The circumstances surrounding his injuries remain unclear.
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Lebanese security forces use water cannon to disperse protesters gathered in the heart of Beirut to stop a confidence vote for a new government, which they say fails to address their demands and cannot rescue the ailing country. AFP -
Lebanese protesters carry a man who was injured by a tear gas canister fired by army soldiers during clashes in downtown Beirut, Lebanon. EPA -
Riot police spray anti-government protesters with water cannons during a protest against a parliament session preparing a vote of confidence for the new government in Beirut, Lebanon. AP Photo -
Lebanese journalist Dima Sadek climbs a wall installed by authorities to block a protest against a parliament session vote of confidence for the new government, in downtown Beirut, Lebanon. AP Photo -
MPs were set to discuss the vote of confidence in the new administration amid a five-month national uprising. AP Photo -
Thousands began travelling to Beirut from across the country on Monday evening as security forces began reinforcing concrete barriers erected around the city centre. AP Photo -
Anti-government protesters run away from tear gas canisters fired by riot police in Beirut. AP Photo -
Protesters remove a concrete block from a wall that was installed by authorities. AP Photo -
Anti-government protesters hold placards as they try to block a road heading to parliament building. AP Photo -
Lebanese army special forces block a road in front of anti-government protesters. AP Photo -
An anti-government protester argues with Lebanese army special forces. AP Photo -
Anti-government demonstrators throw stones towards riot police. AP Photo -
Lebanese riot police spray water cannons to disperse anti-government protestors on the road leading to the parliament building in downtown Beirut, Lebanon. EPA -
A demonstrator is sprayed with a water cannon during a protest seeking to prevent MPs and government officials from reaching the parliament for a vote of confidence, in Beirut, Lebanon. REUTERS -
Riot police carry an anti-government demonstrator during a protest, against parliament giving a confidence vote to the cabinet, in the capital Beirut. AFP -
A demonstrator is given smelling salts after riot police used tear gas to disperse anti-government demonstrators during a protest, against parliament giving a confidence vote to the cabinet, in the capital Beirut. AFP -
A protestor tries to extinguish a tear gas during a protest seeking to prevent MPs and government officials from reaching the parliament for a vote of confidence, in Beirut, Lebanon. REUTERS -
Anti-government demonstrators prepare to throw stones toward riot police at a road leading to the parliament building, during a protest against a parliament session to vote of confidence for the new government, in downtown Beirut, Lebanon. AP Photo
His doctor, George Chelouhi, told The National that Tawfiq was hospitalised after a protest in late November outside the office of President Michel Aoun's Free Patriotic Movement in Tripoli.
According to media reports at the time, clashes erupted between the army and protesters who tried to storm the party office on November 27. At the time, the army arrested 16 people.
An activist from Akkar said that Tawfiq was injured by a bullet shot by the army, confirming local media reports. However, an army spokesperson denied the reports, saying they did not have knowledge of how Tawfiq was hurt.
“He was injured by shrapnel in his body,” said Tawfiq’s surgeon, Moustapha Allouche, who is also a member of the Future Movement, the party of former Prime Minister Saad Hariri. He refused to disclose further details about Tawfiq’s wounds, saying that he could only discuss these matters with the parents of the deceased.
Mr Allouche could not recall the exact day Tawfiq was injured but confirmed it was last November during protests. “He was a sweet person, from a sweet family,” he said.
The state-run National News Agency, which reported on Monday evening that Tawfiq was wounded on November 17, said that protesters gathered shortly after his death in the streets of Tripoli. People chanted that they will “continue their movement until the country is free from corruption.”
Lebanese protests have deeply divided political parties, with Mr Hariri stepping down shortly after they began on October 29, saying that he had “heard the voice of the people.”
However, Mr Aoun’s FPM has been less sympathetic to protesters. OTV, a television affiliated to the party, has accused them of being infiltrated by foreign countries.
Today, demonstrations have dwindled, with many Lebanese waiting to see how the new government of Prime Minister Hassan Diab will tackle the country’s worst financial crisis in decades – the initial spark for the protests.
Experts doubt that he will manage to garner much-needed international support. The new government was formed with the support from parties backed by Iran and Syria and boycotted by political parties close to the West.
On Tuesday, the speaker of Iran’s parliament, Ali Larijani, became the first foreign official to visit Lebanon since the new government was formed.
On the same day, a senior UK adviser to the British Ministry of Defence for Middle East Affairs reiterated Britain’s “continued support” for Lebanon.
Late January, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said that Lebanon would only receive international assistance if it was truly committed to undertake “tangible reforms”.
Close to $11 billion in soft loans was promised to Lebanon in April 2018 at a Paris conference, but Lebanon never pushed through with the promised reforms and the funds remain frozen.
