Injuries as Lebanese Military Scuffles with Protesters near Tripoli

The Lebanese army said it fired gunshots into the air after a clash at a protest road-block near the northern city of Tripoli on Saturday, injuring several people.

The army said it had intervened to break up a skirmish between protesters and people trying to drive their cars on the road. Stones and fireworks were thrown at soldiers, injuring five of them, it said in a statement.

After using tear gas, the army said it then fired into the air and also used rubber bullets, injuring several people.

A witness said soldiers shot into the air after trying to re-open a road out of Tripoli that some protesters had been blocking, near the Beddawi Palestinian refugee camp.

LBCI television said eight people were wounded, two were in critical condition.

As part of the tenth day of unprecedented protests demanding the government resign, people have closed routes across Lebanon with makeshift barriers and sit-ins for days.

Reuters TV footage showed soldiers and young men throwing stones at each other.

The Lebanese Red Cross said on Twitter that three people were injured there and vehicles were being sent to the scene.

The army said it brought reinforcements and the situation had quieted down.

Television footage showed the protesters eventually embracing the officers, putting an end to the tensions.

Prime Minister Saad Hariri’s office said he has asked the army’s commander to investigate the incident.