'They're Tired': Police brutality is alive and hurting the Lebanese community

Lebanese people are tired. They are tired of being governed by the same leaders decade after decade, tired of being robbed by their own country, tired of having their country robbed by its rulers. Yet, the country's interior minister thinks it's OK to justify the beating of peaceful protesters by saying the police are tired. 

On Jan. 15, Lebanon's riot police violently attacked, beat, and arrested protesters and journalists. In a report published by the Human Rights Watch, it was revealed that at least 57 were arrested that night. A committee of lawyers defending the demonstrators said a total of 101 people had been detained this week. It is worth noting that those arrested on Wednesday had met in front of a police station in the country, demanding the release of 57 protesters who had been arrested the previous night. The irony. 

Riot police also beat at least eight media workers and briefly detained three, as stated in the HRW report. Following the attacks by the police, which included teargas, batons, and brutal arrests, Lebanon's Interior Minister Rayya El Hassan addressed journalists, shamefully justifying the attacks by claiming the police officers are tired and not sleeping properly. She then reiterated that it does not mean that justifies the use of force ... but then why say it?

"The Interior Ministry should promptly hold law enforcement officers accountable for using excessive force," HRW said in the aftermath of the attacks.

Videos and photos taken during the violent assaults began circulating online this week. In them, protesters and journalists can be seen being forcefully beaten by police. HRW revealed the details of some of the beatings. In one case, a protester said she was beaten on her head and kicked repeatedly as soon as she arrived at the scene. The officer only stopped after another officer told him to. The beatings left her neck injured and her head was in need of five stitches. 

Another protester, Rafif Souni, also suffered a blow to the head by riot police, leading to temporary memory loss and suffering from vision problems. 

"These past two nights, they (police) were really barbaric," said Cynthia Sleiman, a charity worker who also ended up in the hospital after the violent attacks, in a statement to Reuters. 

"I had just arrived and was looking for my friends when the policeman grabbed me, hitting me on the head and neck. I fell to the ground and blood was streaming out," she explained.

Alongside protesters, 15 journalists were attacked, one of whom is a Reuters video journalist who ended up in the hospital for head injuries. He's since been released. 

Following the attacks and backlash, the Internal Security Forces chief issued an apology to journalists "for what happened to them as they covered protests on Wednesday."

However, similar clashes took place mid-December, during which Rayya El Hassan said that "investigations would be launched into any violations committed on part of security officials." It seems her words last month were closer to empty promises than anything else as the police brutality this week was very much still ongoing.

A collage of a man being beaten and smothered by police force juxtaposed next to a scene from Game of Thrones also made the rounds online. People couldn't help but criticize the country's interior minister for her poor handling of the situation. 

On Thursday, Lebanon's security forces released most of the anti-government protesters that had been detained. But neither the release of the detainees nor the interior minister's words has stopped people from voicing their anger and frustration online. 

"Rayya El Hassan: The police used force because they were tired.

Me: Protesters attacked the banks because they are tired."

"You look familiar. Have I hit (or sent someone to hit) you before?"