Families of Islamist prisoners in Lebanon carry a portrait of hardline Sunni cleric Ahmad al-Assir, who is in jail, during a protest demanding that Islamist prisoners be part of a discussed general amnesty, in front the government palace in central Beirut, Lebanon, Sunday, Jan. 21, 2018. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)
The Associated Press
BEIRUT (AP) - Hundreds of protesters have rallied in the Lebanese capital demanding that Islamist prisoners be part of a discussed general amnesty.
The rally in central Beirut Sunday was attended by hundreds of families of Islamist prisoners. They were pressing the government to include their relatives in a general amnesty expected to come ahead of the country's first election in ten years. The elections are scheduled for May. Lebanon had one general amnesty after the end of the civil war in 1990.
Lebanese authorities have rounded up hundreds of Sunni Islamists over the last years, including some who clashed with the military, following clashes between Sunnis and Shiites in northern Lebanon. They also include extremists believed to belong to al-Qaida-linked groups and the Islamic State group.
Families of Islamist prisoners in Lebanon stand under a banner that shows the bodies of incarcerated men who they claimed died while under army investigation, during a protest demanding that Islamist prisoners be part of a discussed general amnesty, in front the government palace in central Beirut, Lebanon, Sunday, Jan. 21, 2018. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)
The Associated Press
Families of Islamist prisoners in Lebanon carry a banner with Arabic that reads, "Being an agent to Israel is a misdemeanor, while being a Sunni is terrorism," as they march during a protest demanding that Islamist prisoners be part of a discussed general amnesty, in front the government palace in central Beirut, Lebanon, Sunday, Jan. 21, 2018. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)
The Associated Press
Families of Lebanese Islamist prisoners and their supporters attend a protest demanding that Islamist prisoners be part of a discussed general amnesty, in front the government palace in central Beirut, Lebanon, Sunday, Jan. 21, 2018. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)
The Associated Press
Families of Lebanese Islamist prisoners and their supporters attend a protest demanding that Islamist prisoners be part of a discussed general amnesty, in front the government palace in central Beirut, Lebanon, Sunday, Jan. 21, 2018. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)
The Associated Press
Families of Islamist prisoners being held in Lebanon hold an Islamic flag and shout slogans, as hundreds of supporters attend a protest rally demanding that Islamist prisoners be part of a discussed general amnesty, in front the government palace in central Beirut, Lebanon, Sunday, Jan. 21, 2018. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)
The Associated Press
A relative of an Islamist prisoner being held in Lebanon takes a picture, as hundreds of supporters attend a protest rally demanding that Islamist prisoners be part of a discussed general amnesty, in front the government palace in central Beirut, Lebanon, Sunday, Jan. 21, 2018. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)
The Associated Press