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The Jerusalem Post

Protesters near US embassy in Beirut sprayed with water cannon, teargas

 
People take part in a pro-Palestinian protest, after hundreds of Palestinians were killed in a blast at Al-Ahli hospital in Gaza that Israeli and Palestinian officials blamed on each other, in Amman, Jordan, October 18, 2023 (photo credit: REUTERS/ALAA AL SUKHNI)
People take part in a pro-Palestinian protest, after hundreds of Palestinians were killed in a blast at Al-Ahli hospital in Gaza that Israeli and Palestinian officials blamed on each other, in Amman, Jordan, October 18, 2023
(photo credit: REUTERS/ALAA AL SUKHNI)

Demonstrators, who blame Israel for Tuesday's blast at the Gaza hospital although Israeli officials say it was a misfired rocket from a Palestinian group, were prevented from reaching the embassy.

Lebanese security forces used teargas and water cannon to repel scores of protesters demonstrating on Wednesday near the US embassy in Beirut against what they said was Israel's attack on a hospital in Gaza that killed hundreds of Palestinians.

The United States has been targeted for criticism across the region for pledging ironclad support for Israel in its war in Gaza after Palestinian terrorist group Hamas carried out a deadly cross-border attack into Israel on Oct. 7.

Demonstrators, who blame Israel for Tuesday's blast at the Gaza hospital although Israeli officials say it was a misfired rocket from a Palestinian group, were prevented from reaching the embassy's boundary by barricades blocking roads hundreds of meters (yards) from the mission in a north Beirut suburb.

A boy holds a flag as Hezbollah supporters attend a protest, after hundreds of Palestinians were killed in a blast at Al-Ahli hospital in Gaza that Israeli and Palestinian officials blamed on each other, in Beirut's southern suburbs, Lebanon October 18, 2023. (credit: REUTERS/MOHAMED AZAKIR)
A boy holds a flag as Hezbollah supporters attend a protest, after hundreds of Palestinians were killed in a blast at Al-Ahli hospital in Gaza that Israeli and Palestinian officials blamed on each other, in Beirut's southern suburbs, Lebanon October 18, 2023. (credit: REUTERS/MOHAMED AZAKIR)

How peaceful are the protests?

Some protesters waved Palestinian flags while others hurled stones at the security forces, who pushed them back with water cannon and volleys of teargas. Television footage from the scene showed flames licking up from a building near the barricades.

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Elsewhere in Beirut, thousands of protesters gathered in south Beirut at a demonstration called by Iran-backed Hezbollah, which fought a war with Israel in 2006. Hezbollah officials denounced Israel and the United States for the hospital blast.

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