Actor Georges Khabbaz Urges Lebanese to Join Protests

The Lebanese parliament voted last month to extend its term, which was supposed to end on Thursday, for an additional 17 months.

A public demonstration is set to happen tomorrow at Nejmeh Square in downtown Beirut and some big names are getting behind the effort. In a video posted to YouTube on Tuesday, Lebanese actor and director, George Khabbaz, calls on the public to join him in the protest.

“I don’t blame our deputies for the extension,” he says sarcastically.” We would’ve voted them back anyway,” he adds, in a reference to the continual re-election of the same party leaders year after year in Lebanon.

“Of course I’m against parliament’s extension because it’s against our freedom of expression. I want to tell people that you have the right to change. Change because they’re raping our decisions in just ten minutes to extend their mandate.”