Lebanon

BEIRUT, Jan. 21 (Xinhua) -- Lebanon's Prime Minister Hassan Diab announced on Tuesday the formation of a new cabinet of 20 ministers around one month following his appointment, local TV channel LBCI reported.

"The new cabinet will exert all its efforts to save Lebanon. We ask the Lebanese expatriates and all citizens to contribute in saving the country and restoring its prosperity," Diab said during a speech from Baabda Palace.

BEIRUT, Jan 20 (NNN-NNA) – Clashes between protesters and riot police continued on Sunday evening, in Lebanon’s capital, Beirut, leaving 70 injured, local TV channel reported.

Among the injured, 30 people were transported by the Lebanese Red Cross to nearby hospitals, said the report.

Protesters attempted to break into parliament by throwing stones at security forces, who used water cannons to disperse them.

BEIRUT, Jan. 19 (Xinhua) -- Clashes between protesters and riot police continued on Sunday evening in Lebanon's capital Beirut, leaving 70 injured, the LBCI local TV channel reported.

Among the injured, 30 people were transported by the Lebanese Red Cross to nearby hospitals, said the report.

Protesters attempted to break into the parliament by throwing stones at security forces who used water cannons to disperse demonstrators.

BEIRUT (AP) — Police fired volleys of tear gas and rubber bullets in Lebanon’s capital Saturday to disperse thousands of protesters amid some of the worst rioting since demonstrations against the country’s ruling elite erupted three months ago. More than 150 people were injured.

Thick white smoke covered the downtown Beirut area near Parliament as police and protesters engaged in confrontations that saw groups of young men hurl stones and firecrackers at police who responded with water cannons and tear gas. Some protesters were seen vomiting on the street from inhaling the gas.

BEIRUT, Jan. 14 (Xinhua) -- Protesters vowed on Tuesday to escalate their demonstrations if the newly appointed prime minister Hassan Diab fails to form a cabinet of independent ministers within 48 hours, MTV local TV Channel reported.

The protesters organized a march from Beirut's downtown to the house of Diab to voice their demands.

They vowed to force the prime minister to resign if the new cabinet is not formed within 48 hours.

BEIRUT, Jan 14 (NNN-NNA) – Five people were injured on Monday, in clashes between protesters and the Lebanese army, during demonstrations in the southern city of Sidon.

Thousands of protesters took to the streets in different areas of the country, including the capital Beirut and Tripoli, to insist on their demands “which were totally neglected by the political ruling class.”

People blocked roads while chanting slogans against politicians and the central bank, holding them responsible for the financial and economic deterioration in the country.

BEIRUT (AP) — Unidentified planes struck targets in Syria near the border with Israel on Friday, reports said, triggering “a huge explosion” amid soaring tensions in the region between the U.S. and Iran.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the planes targeted positions belonging to pro-Iran militias in the Boukamal area, near the border with Iraq. The Britain-based organization which documents the war in Syria through a network of activists on the ground said the planes struck among other targets weapons depots and vehicles belonging to the militias.

BEIRUT (AP) — Nissan’s fugitive ex-boss Carlos Ghosn made his first public appearance since being smuggled out of Japan , saying Wednesday he fled a “nightmare” that would not end and vowed to defend his name wherever he can get a fair trial.

Ghosn spoke to a room packed with journalists for more than two hours in the Lebanese capital, where he arrived last week after jumping $14 million bail despite supposedly rigorous surveillance — a bold and improbable escape that embarrassed Japanese authorities and has allowed him to evade trial on charges of financial misconduct.

BEIRUT (AP) — When Syrian President Bashar Assad made a rare visit to Tehran last year, the powerful Revolutionary Guard commander Qassem Soleimani was there to greet him, along with Iran’s supreme leader and president. Iran’s foreign minister wasn’t, and he resigned in protest at being excluded from talks with a crucial ally.

It was a telling episode on who controls Iran’s policy in Syria.

BEIRUT, Jan. 5 (Xinhua) -- Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah urged on Sunday its fighters to attack U.S. soldiers in the region in retaliation for the assassination of Iranian top commander Qassem Soleimani by the United States.

"The resistance should force American soldiers to leave Iraq and our region. This is the least that can be done in retaliation for this awful crime," Nasrallah said during a Beirut memorial for Soleimani and the others who were killed in a U.S. drone strike in Iraq on Friday, Al Manar local TV channel reported.