The Lebanese Central Security Council decided forming a joint operations room of army and security forces to maintain security during expected demonstrations Saturday evening.

The measure was meant to prevent chaos, secure protesters and safeguard public and private property.

The council reviewed security conditions in the country.

The interior minister has given directives to all security leaderships to take all needed precautionary measures to maintain security.

The council said demonstrations and freedom of expression should be governed by the law.

The protests have been driven by anger over garbage piling up on the streets of Beirut, following the closure of a main landfill. The government's failure to resolve the crisis has evolved into wider protests against a political class that has dominated Lebanon since the end of the country's civil war in 1990 and is widely seen as dysfunctional.

Source: MENA