Lebanon protest teach-ins revive pre-war landmarks

The Lebanese capital's iconic egg-shaped cinema looming large behind him, Jamil Mouawad lectured around 20 students on the politics of public space, as demonstrations swelled in the streets below. "It's a political act to be able to teach here," said the professor of political science at the American University of Beirut (AUB), perched on a rectangular base underpinning the bullet-ravaged and long-abandoned building. "This is a place where knowledge and practice can meet," he said, as chants against the ruling elite echoed upwards -- part of a days-long protest that has forced public access to this and other Beirut landmarks.