Lebanese protesters injured in clashes with army at Beirut highway

The Lebanese army says alleged that protesters have pelted soldiers with stones at a highway south of Beirut, injuring several soldiers.

The army said in a statement on Tuesday that one of the protesters in the town of Naameh fired bullets the night before. It says that made the troops fire in the air to disperse the protesters.

Protests have been held  across Lebanon since 17 October,  demanding an end to widespread corruption and decades of political mismanagement.

Read more: 'We are one': Lebanese rally against Iraq's crackdown on protesters as death toll increases

At the start of the revolution, protesters urged the army to join them in paving a better way for the country.

Videos of members of the army crying after feeling inspired by the protests were shared widely on Lebanese social media.

Protesters have resorted to road closures and other tactics to pressure politicians into responding to their demands for a new government after Prime Minister Saad Hariri resigned more than a month ago, meeting a key demand of the demonstrators.

Lebanon's protests have brought together people of all ages from across the political spectrum, tired of what they describe as sectarian politics three decades after a civil war.

UN human rights experts and Amnesty warned last week that Lebanese authorities were failing to protect protesters, following attacks on demonstrators by government supporters.

The authorities have "failed to adequately protect protesters from violent attacks by others", said a statement signed by a group of independent rights experts affiliated with the United Nations.

Read also: US ends freeze on Lebanon military aid

In the latest show of unity, a festive mood had reigned Sunday afternoon as Lebanese came together in public spaces across the country on the second day of the weekend.

North of the capital women prepared traditional salads to share, while a group of men danced on a beach south of the city, state television footage showed.

The Free Patriotic Movement party that Aoun founded is now led by his son-in-law, outgoing foreign minister Gibran Bassil, one of the most reviled figures in the protests.

Hezbollah is the only party not to have disarmed after the 1975-1990 civil war and plays a key role in Lebanese politics.

Agencies contributed to this report.

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