Lebanon's cannabis king - wanted on '4,000 charges' - calls on protesters to continue

Nouh Zaiter, pictured, delivered a message to support the protesters, urging them out again today 

Nouh Zaiter, a hashish dealer on the run from Lebanese authorities, delivered a message in support of anti-corruption protests that have crippled the country.

Zaiter, the self-styled Lebanese Robin Hood, released a video on a local news site calling on protesters in the eastern Baalbek region to demonstrate on Thursday evening.

'I hope that everyone who goes to the protests brings a Lebanese flag with them,' he said, in an address laced with anger.

'I hope that every oppressed and deprived person goes to the square,' he said, wearing a baseball cap backwards, a hoodie and a chain around his neck.

The drug lord's words of support come the same day that the country's president, Michel Aoun, offered to meet the protesters whose week-old mobilisation has brought the country to a standstill.  

'I am ready to meet your representatives... to hear your demands,' Aoun said. 

Protests sparked on October 17 by a proposed tax on calls made through messaging apps like Whatsapp have morphed into unprecedented cross-sectarian street demonstrations. 

Workers cultivate plants at a cannabis plantation in the village of Yammouneh in Lebanon's eastern Bekaa Valley. In February Lebanese security forces seized 20 truckloads of Zaitar's hash from a farm in Beqaa, local media reported

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Demonstrators are demanding corruption be weeded out, as well as the overthrow of the entire political class.

In downtown Beirut, where tens of thousands have gathered daily, graffiti reading 'Nouh Zaiter for president' has been scrawled in at least one location.

Baalbek, a poor and somewhat lawless area close to the Syrian border, is affiliated with the Shiite militant group Hezbollah.

Protesters wearing ponchos and draped with the Lebanese national flag stand under the rain during a demonstration

20 tons of Zaitar's hashish was allegedly intercepted by Lebanese security forces, local media reported

It is known as the drug capital of Lebanon, with hashish grown openly.

Zaiter, who courts media attention, did not say if he would attend Thursday's protest but is wanted on 4,000 charges.

In February Lebanese security forces seized 20 truckloads of Zaitar's hash from a farm in Beqaa, local media reported.

Lebanese President Michel Aoun speaks regarding the ongoing anti-government protests as he attends a live broadcast, in Beirut, Lebanon. Aoun has said that he would be willing to meet representatives of the protesters to listen to their demands 

A Lebanese protester covers her head with a national flag as she listens under the rain to a televised speech by the president of Lebanon during a demonstration on the eighth day of protest against tax increases and official corruption, in Zouk Mosbeh, north of the capital Beirut

Lebanese protesters react following a speech by Lebanon's President Michel Aoun during a demonstration on the eighth day of protest in Jal El Dib north of Beirut

In 2014 a bullet grazed his shoulder during a shootout with the Lebanese army, a local newspaper reported.

During Aoun's televised address, he suggested that a government reshuffle might be needed, an option that Prime Minister Saad Hariri also hinted he was open to.

'It has become necessary to review the current government situation so that the executive authority can pursue its responsibilities,' Aoun said. 

Lebanese people take cover from the rain under umbrellas as they watch a televised speech by President Michel Aoun, during a demonstration on the eighth day of protests

Supporters of Lebanese President Michel Aoun carry his picture near the presidential palace in Baabda, ahead of his address to the nation, in Baabda, Lebanon 

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