INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Media playback is unsupported on your deviceMedia captionLebanon protesters: "We can make a change"Protests raged for a second day in
voice calls made through WhatsApp and other apps
But it scrapped the plans hours later amid clashes between security forces and protesters
Thousands have protested, calling on the government to step down over its handling of an economic crisis.Dozens were reported injured on
Thursday as protesters burned tyres and security forces fired tear gas
The demonstrations were the biggest seen in Lebanon for years.Image copyrightReutersImage caption
Protesters are calling
on the government to step down
On Friday, Lebanon's Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri said the country was going through an
"unprecedented, difficult time" but stopped short of resigning.He issued a 72-hour deadline to his "partners in government" to stop blocking
Why are people protesting in Lebanon?Thousands of Lebanese people have taken to the streets amid an economic crisis that many blame on the
"I was sitting at home and I saw the people on the move and so I came out," Cezar Shaaya, an accountant protesting in Beirut, told Reuters
"I am married, I have mortgage payments due every month and I am not working
It's the state's fault."Image copyrightEPAImage caption
Protesters have gathered around the government headquarters
Chants of "the people want to topple the regime" echoed around Beirut's Riad al-Solh square on Thursday
Many also expressed anger over perceived inaction by authorities to tackle the country's worst wildfires in decades
What about the WhatsApp tax? On Thursday, the government announced a new daily tax for calls made via voice-over-internet-protocol (Voip),
which is used by apps including WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger and Apple's FaceTime.The government backtracked hours later, but the protests
continued."We are not here over the WhatsApp, we are here over everything: over fuel, food, bread, over everything," said Abdullah, a
