Beirut, Lebanon, AFP — A week of unprecedented Lebanese street protests against the political class showed few signs of abating Wednesday, with thousands again gathering across the country, braving rain and a heavy military deployment.

Protests sparked on October 17 by a proposed tax on calls made through WhatsApp and other messaging apps have morphed into a cross-sectarian street mobilisation against a political system seen as corrupt and beyond repair.

Embattled Prime Minister Saad Hariri has presented a series of reforms, including cutting ministerial salaries, but the rallies have continued, crippling the capital Beirut and other major cities.

Protesters have vowed to stay on the streets until the entire government resigns.

On Wednesday, Hariri held meetings with security and military leaders, stressing the need to “maintain security and stability and to open roads and secure the movement of citizens,” according to the state-run National News Agency.

A senior military official confirmed they had orders to reopen main roads, with the army deploying in increased numbers in several areas, including the main road north of Beirut.

Groups of protesters again gathered to block them, sparking fears of the kinds of clashes seen during the first two days of the demonstrations.

But protesters facing the soldiers began singing the national anthem and chanting “peaceful, peaceful”.

A video of one soldier seemingly in tears at the emotion of the scene was widely shared online.

“We saw the tears of soldiers standing in front of us,” said Eli Sfeir, a 35-year-old demonstrator. “They are following orders and not happy about breaking up demos.”

The Lebanese army is one of the most universally supported institutions in an often divided country.

In the southern city of Nabatieh, a Shiite stronghold of the Hezbollah and Amal movements, police tried to disperse protestors by force, leaving several injured, according to the NNA.

A demonstrator there told AFP protestors had also come under attack from Amal and Hezbollah supporters before the army intervened, forming a human wall to separate them.

Fresh demonstrations had begun from lunchtime, with thousands again taking over main squares in Beirut and other major cities, though numbers were lower than recent days, partly impacted by the arrival of major storms.

Banks, schools and universities remain closed.