BEIRUT: Some residents in Tripoli protested Tuesday the ongoing raids in the northern city, as a prominent Salafish sheikh warned that "something big will happen" if the Army fails to return two cars confiscated from his convoy.
Protesters briefly blocked the roads in the city’s vegetable market, Souk al-Qameh and al-Hara Berranieh, urging authorities to end the raids that are part of a security plan aimed at restoring security across Lebanon’s second largest city.
Unidentified assailants also threw three bombs into the Abu Ali River to protest the detentions in the city while gunfire was heard during the raids.
Security forces then confiscated two vehicles from the convoy of Salafist sheikh Dai al-Islam al-Shahhal, who went down to see the protests.
Shahhal supporters later blocked the Beddawi- Tripoli road leading to Akkar asking for the return of the two cars.
Shahhal lashed out in a phone call to al-Jadeed television at the Army and urged them to bring back the cars “immediately” and apologize.
“I am still on the street and I am waiting for them to come and bring back the cars and apologize,” he said. “If they don’t, something big will happen.”
The Salafist sheikh said he came down to the protest to listen to the people’s complaints and that he was shocked by the Army’s behavior.
“We will not accept injustice in the city,” he said.
The Army launched last week a security plan in Tripoli to end three-year long intermittent clashes in the city linked to the Syrian crisis.
No comments:
Post a Comment