NICOSIA, Cyprus (AFP) — From organizing mass protests in Baghdad and Beirut to coordinating rescue missions amid grinding conflict in Syria, WhatsApp has become an indispensable connector for millions across the Arab world.

In Lebanon, where telecommunications are highly regulated and expensive, citizens have increasingly relied on WhatsApp for free calls.

When the government announced a tax on these calls on 17 October, it sparked protests that grew to an unprecedented scale.

After more than a week of demonstrations, protesters have rejected the term “WhatsApp revolution,” saying the phrase diminishes what is a demand for drastic political change.

But they acknowledge the technology is instrumental in mobilizing rallies that have attracted hundreds of thousands from a population of about six million.

Yasmine Rifaii, 24, a protest organizer from Tripoli in northern Lebanon who works at a local non-government organization, said WhatsApp was operating as a virtual “backstage for the revolution.”

“We are connected to all of these WhatsApp groups — Lebanon is a small country; everyone knows someone else from another city. We are reaching out across religions and locations,” she told AFP.

Over the border in Syria, Whatsapp can be the difference between life and death.

Mustafa al-Hajj Younes, who heads a group of first responders in Idlib province, said civilians use group chats to appeal for help from rescue teams.

“We coordinate on these groups whenever there is a need for our services,” he said.

WhatsApp is especially useful because of weak telecommunications infrastructure in areas under opposition control. “People can only contact us through WhatsApp or cell phones,” he said.