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Conflict Incident Report

Protest against power line extension in residential area

Date of incident: 
September 6, 2017 to September 7, 2017
Death toll: 
0persons
Number of Injured: 
0persons
Actors/Parties Involved: 
Lebanese Civilians
 Residents of Metn district found workers installing controversial high-voltage power lines on the 6th of September morning, leading to a brief altercation with Internal Security Forces members. Residents of Ain Najem and Ain Saade in Mansourieh held a sit-in near a local school to protest the planned extension of high voltage power lines over the area; they tried to block the work by sitting on the cables being installed.
 
The residents were not against the extension of power lines in principle, but asked for the lines to be placed under ground for the 8-kilometer stretch of the area, as research has consistently found associations between residential magnetic field exposure and cancer.
 
On the 7th of September, Metn residents prevented work on high-voltage power lines, as their sit-in in protest over the construction of such lines in the residential area grew.
 
Plans for larger capacity lines have been in place for years, but locals are concerned about the health impact of high-voltage cabling near residential areas.

 

This security incident was mapped according to the closest possible location.
Primary category: 
Collective Action [inc. protests, solidarity movements...]
Classification of conflict (primary): 
Policy conflicts
Conflicts associated with political decisions, government or state policies regarding matters of public concern, such as debates concerning law reforms, electoral laws, and protests of the government’s political decisions, among others.