BEIRUT, Lebanon — A local official for a Lebanese political party was shot dead by soldiers trying to open a road closed by protesters in southern Beirut late Tuesday, the army reported, marking the first death in 27 days of nationwide protests.

An army statement said the man was shot in the Khaldeh neighborhood after an altercation during which a soldier opened fire to disperse the crowd, hitting one person. It said the army command had opened an investigation.

The killing was sure to inflame tensions already running high in the country, which has been engulfed by nationwide protests since Oct. 17. The leaderless, economically driven protests were triggered by new proposed taxes and have quickly evolved into the most sustained that Lebanon has seen in years.

The victim was identified as a local official with the Progressive Socialist Party headed by Walid Jumblatt, political leader of Lebanon’s Druze community. It was confirmed by the party’s Al-Anbaa newspaper.