"I am here because I am disgusted by our politicians. We don't even have work these days," said Cherine Shawa, 32, an interior architect, in Beirut.The anti-government protests, fuelled by crippling economic conditions and anger at perceived government corruption, have fanned out across the country since Thursday. "We're here to say to our leaders 'leave'. We have no hope in them but we're hopeful that these protests will bring change," Hanan Takkouche, in her 40s and among a group of women in the capital. The IMF said the reforms were needed to stem a ballooning deficit and public debt it forecasts to reach 155 percent of GDP by year-end.

Source: Economic Times October 20, 2019 15:45 UTC