Pro-Palestine protestors set fire to US embassy in Beirut forcing security to use tear gas to disperse the crowd

The US Embassy in Lebanon witnessed a fire incident as hundreds of pro-Palestine demonstrators took to the streets to criticize Israel’s ongoing airstrikes on Gaza. The bombing was authorized in response to the massacre of thousands of Israelis on October 7 by Hamas fundamentalists.

To disperse the protestors, US military groups used smoke and gas, following an attack on a hospital in Gaza. Subsequently, the State Department issued a travel advisory. As the protests continued, the announcement disclosed the authorization of the voluntary, temporary departure of family members of US government personnel and some non-emergency personnel from US Embassy Beirut due to the unpredictable security situation in Lebanon.

Pro-Palestine demonstrations have erupted in the Middle East after a hospital blast that resulted in the deaths of at least 500 people. Iran-backed Hezbollah called for a day of unprecedented anger in Beirut, in response to the attack.

Americans were advised to avoid the borders with Syria and Israel as well as refugee settlements due to terrorism and armed conflict. Thousands of Lebanese protesters, some brandishing Palestinian flags, congregated outside the US embassy. They were seen scaling a barb-wire-topped fence to replace a US flag with a Palestinian version and a fire was set near the complex. Later, footage captured gas being sprayed at the protestors to scatter them.

It remains unclear if any protestors breached the perimeter fence or if any embassy personnel were harmed. Furthermore, it’s ambiguous whether the protesters are marching on the old embassy in Lebanon or the new one, which commenced construction in April 2017, a 43-acre compound that has sparked controversy in the country. Objectors criticized the embassy’s hefty $1 billion price tag and its size, considering the low number of Americans traveling to Lebanon.