Beirut: Thousands of supporters of Lebanon's Hezbollah-led opposition paralysed parts of central Beirut yesterday on the second day of a campaign to topple the US-backed government.
Scores of tents sprung up overnight as protesters occupied parking lots, squares and streets leading to the government's headquarters bringing Beirut's normally bustling commercial district to a standstill.
Restaurants and cafes, usually packed with people on weekends, were shut. Many banks also stayed closed.
Hundreds of thousands of opposition supporters rallied on Friday to demand the resignation of the Western-backed government, but Prime Minister Fouad Siniora insisted his government would not be toppled through demonstrations.
"Going out on the streets will not yield a result and we won't reach a solution except if we sit behind ... the negotiating table," Siniora told reporters.
The Siniora government pledged not to bow to the opposition led by the Syrian- and Iranian-backed Hezbollah.
Parliamentary majority leader Sa'ad Hariri, the slain premier's son, vowed that "the Siniora government will not fall because of pressure from the street. However long they continue their protest, it will not fall."
