A KEY road has reopened in the Lebanese capital following clashes between rival groups.
The confrontations began when protesters blocked the street and were attacked by supporters of the two main Shiite political parties, Hezbollah and Amal.
Both sides threw stones at each other for hours as security forces formed a barrier separating them.
Lebanon’s massive protests against corruption and mismanagement by the country’s political elite are now in their second month.
In Lebanon, one person has been killed by security forces during the protests, although there have been six other deaths related to the protests since the demonstrations began on October 17, including two deaths yesterday. A man and his sister-in-law burnt to death inside their car after it hit metal barriers placed by protesters to block a highway.
MEANWHILE, Hong Kong’s pro-democracy opposition won a stunning landslide victory in weekend local elections in a clear rebuke to city leader Carrie Lam over her handling of violent protests that have divided the semi-autonomous Chinese territory.
Wu Chi-wai, leader of the city’s biggest pro-democracy party, said that the bloc swept nearly 90% of 452 district council seats, which will help it take unprecedented control of 17 out of 18 district councils. The results were based on official tallies announced by election officials. The result of the elections could force the central government in Beijing to rethink how to handle the unrest, which is now in its sixth month.
ELSEWHERE, a measles epidemic sweeping through Samoa continues to worsen with the death toll rising to 25, all but one of them young children.
“We still have a big problem at hand,” Samoa’s director general of health Leausa Take Naseri said in a video statement.
He said more than 140 new cases of people contracting the virus had been recorded within the past day, bringing the total to about 2200 cases since the outbreak began last month.
He said there are about 20 critically ill children who remain in hospital intensive care units.
Samoa declared a state of emergency nine days ago, closing all its schools, banning children from public gatherings and mandating that everybody get vaccinated.
FINALLY, sympathy strikes across Finland’s transport sector have brought Helsinki to a virtual standstill and prompted flag carrier Finnair to cancel almost 300 flights.
Buses and ferries in the Finnish capital were also being affected by the strikes, which are aimed at showing support to some 10,000 postal workers.
Finnair said its flight cancellations will impact 20,000 customers.
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