Hundreds of thousands of Lebanese took to the streets over the weekend in mass protests against corruption, austerity measures, government deadlock and the basic inability of people to find work and make ends meet.

They were not alone.

Anti-government protesters light flares and shout slogans in Lebanon's capital, Beirut, this week. Credit:AP

In Hong Kong, hundreds of thousands of protesters defied a ban on assembling and marched to demand government reforms and freedoms; police responded forcefully with tear gas and blue dye-filled cannons, the latter a new tactic in the months of unrest.

In Chile, at least eight people were killed and hundreds arrested over the weekend in demonstrations against economic inequality, sparked by a transit fair hike last week.