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Lebanese government resigns amid ongoing protests in wake of Beirut blast

Protests that started in mid-October have intensified significantly due to the Beirut port blast, with Prime Minister Hassan Diab announcing the government's resignation Monday evening.
BEIRUT, LEBANON - AUGUST 09: People make their way toward a a clash happening between two separate factions of protestors during a protest at Martyrs Square on August 9, 2020 in Beirut, Lebanon. Large protests continued for a second day as the Lebanese capital reels from this week's massive explosion that killed more than 150 people, wounded thousands, and destroyed wide swaths of the city. Residents are demanding accountability for the blast, whose suspected cause was 2,700 tons of ammonium nitrate stored

BEIRUT — Lebanon's government has resigned following a weekend of massive protests demanding justice for the victims of the Aug. 4 explosion in Beirut which left over 150 dead and thousands injured.

Under the slogan “Judgment Day,” thousands of protesters took to the streets of the Lebanese capital Aug. 8 — from Riad al-Solh to Martyrs’ Square in the downtown area — calling for punishment of those responsible for the explosion of 2,700 tons of ammonium nitrate in Warehouse 12 in the port of Beirut. The blast ripped through Beirut and destroyed a huge part of the port's surrounding neighborhoods — like Gemmayze, Mar Mikhael, Martyrs’ Square and Ashrafieh — killing hundreds and injuring more than 6,000 according to the latest figures released Aug. 8 by the Information Office of the Ministry of Public Health. 

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