"They took everything. We have nothing left." Al Jazeera live broadcast from Beirut on January 18, 2020 gives an impression of the atmosphere among the protesters and the reasons for the uprising:

"We are in a economical crisis. Everybody will get hungry and eat their leaders soon enough."

The same night the most violent clashes since the beginning of the protests in October 2019 took place, with 400 injured and dozens of arrests.