Police brutality in Lebanon

by Nadim Houry September 10, 2015

written by Nadim Houry September 10, 2015

Greg Demarque | Executive

The images of police and soldiers violently repressing demonstrators gathered in downtown Beirut on August 22 to protest the garbage crisis and political corruption sent shock waves through Lebanese society. Security forces beat unarmed protesters, turned water cannons on journalists, and fired rubber bullets towards fleeing crowds. The security forces even shot live bullets into the air, sending terrified families back home. The next day, as a new round of protests was called, a small group of angry protesters attacked the security forces with stones – eventually leading the security forces to respond with more teargas canisters, rubber bullets and water cannons. Since then, there have been almost daily confrontations in downtown Beirut between protesters and security forces. The Beirut protests, like many social movements, pose a challenge for security forces, who have a dual responsibility – to protect the basic right to protest while also maintaining order. Even in

Nadim Houry

Nadim Houry is the executive director of the Arab Reform Initiative (ARI). Prior to ARI, Nadim was at Human Rights Watch (HRW) for 13 years where he started and ran HRW’s Beirut office for a decade before taking on the role of director of HRW’s Terrorism and Counter-terrorism Program. During his time at HRW, he worked across the MENA region, particularly on Lebanon, Syria, Egypt, Iraq, and Jordan on a range of human rights issues ranging from freedom of expression to abuses by security forces to labour rights. He has conducted extensive research in conflict zones and his writing often focuses on the themes of governance and accountability. A passionate advocate for change in the region, he has addressed the Security Council and the European Parliament on challenges in the Arab world. A lawyer by training, Nadim worked in the UN as Deputy Counsel for the Volcker Commission which conducted investigations into allegations of corruption into the Oil-for-Food Program in Iraq and was previously a lawyer.

Police brutality in Lebanon

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