Watch: Fistfight over Soleimani poster at Beirut fair

Cairo: A violent fistfight had erupted at the Beirut book fair, sparked by a tiff over a poster of Iran’s ex-top general Qasem Soleimani.

An online video showed a crowd of people punching each other over the poster displayed at the fair by a publishing house linked to pro-Iran Lebanese Hezbollah movement.

One angry protester initially attacked the image as he shouted out: “Beirut is free, free. Iran must get out!” In response, a Soleimani loyalist attempted to stop the protester from destroying the poster, triggering a brawl that drew in others from both sides, reports said.

Soleimani, the one-time commander of Iran’s Jerusalem Force, was killed in a US drone strike near the Baghdad airport in January 2020, stoking tensions between Tehran and Washington.

He was widely regarded as the architect of Iran’s regional influences.