In pictures: Violence and chaos at protests in Lebanon

Anti-government protesters watch as tear gas canisters land nearby after being pushed back from the Downtown area to the corner of Martyrs’ Square on 14 December (MEE/Sam Tarling)

Riot police stand in formation in front of anti-government protesters on the corner of Martyrs’ Square. Internal Security Forces and members of the parliamentary police force had beaten and detained several protesters on 14 December. The Lebanese Civil Defence said 54 people were treated for wounds (MEE/Sam Tarling)

A group of men from Tripoli assemble on the steps of Beirut’s Mohammad al-Amin Mosque and chant in support of fellow protesters from other parts of the country, having journeyed from the northern city on 15 December to lend their weight to protests in Beirut (MEE/Finbar Anderson)

Three elderly men chat in front of the al-Omari grand mosque in Downtown on 14 December. Sunday night’s protests - against the possible reappointment of Saad Hariri as prime minister and the excessive use of force by security forces the night before - initially had a jovial atmosphere (MEE/Finbar Anderson)

A man balances his young daughter on his shoulders to enable her to get a better view of the protests on 15 December. The crowd, attempting once again to gain access to Nejmeh Square, where the parliament is located, was tightly packed into Waygand Street just north of the square (MEE/Finbar Anderson)

Protesters flee clouds of tear gas as Internal Security Forces deploy gas, rubber bullets and water cannon to disperse the crowds on 15 December (MEE/Finbar Anderson)

Protesters throw back tear gas canisters as they are gradually driven back towards Martyrs’ Square on 15 December (MEE/Finbar Anderson)

Protesters in downtown Beirut take cover behind plastic barriers, flowerpots, and other objects on the street during clashes with Internal Security Forces on 15 December. This exclusive area of the Lebanese capital, normally one of the best maintained parts of the city, was left in chaos (MEE/Finbar Anderson)

Security forces watch as a water cannon, attempting to disperse supporters of the Amal Movement and Hezbollah, is attacked with a barrage of fireworks during the early morning of Tuesday, 17 December. Supporters of the groups took to the streets of Beirut en masse Monday evening after a video surfaced online of a man, claiming to be from Tripoli, insulting senior Shia religious figures and the leaders of the two parties (MEE/Finbar Anderson)

Firemen battle to put out a burning car in the early hours of Tuesday, 17 December. The Amal Movement and Hezbollah supporters burned a car after it attempted to ram into them at high speed, and then set alight another car - pictured - around an hour later (MEE/Finbar Anderson)

Security forces, hemmed in by Le Grey hotel on the north western corner of Martyrs’ Square, attempt to reclaim the square from protesters on 15 December (MEE/Finbar Anderson)

Security forces push up towards the Ring Bridge, a location that has taken on strategic importance since protests began two months ago. Internal Security Forces and the Lebanese Army eventually regained control of the Ring at 2:30 am on Tuesday morning (MEE/Finbar Anderson)