Lebanese army intelligence says, “A fake cleric has been arrested after he was seen distributing money from an unknown source among demonstrators in Beirut.” RNA – On October 22, the Lebanese military command announced that it had arrested a fake cleric, Mohammad-Ali Tarshishi.
According to a statement from the Lebanese army cited by al-Manar, the aforementioned person distributed the money among the demonstrators. The source of this money is unclear and the relevant agencies are investigating.
al-Nahdah News reported that this false clergyman was in Beirut’s Riyadh al-Solh Square on October 22 and was rebuffed by a number of demonstrators.
The Tarshishi story began when a video was aired of him distributing money from a bag full of $100 bills. The date on the video was September 24, 2019.
The Lebanese website “Ya Sour” wrote in a statement that the Supreme Islamic Shi’ah Council had earlier issued a statement in which they included the name “Tarshishi” along with several other names and said they were fakes clerics and aren’t competent to take charge of religious affairs or otherwise.
Some social network users have also claimed that they received the money from parties in the Persian Gulf states.
Protesters in Lebanon have taken to the streets for a seventh consecutive day to voice discontent with rising inflation and living costs, despite an economic emergency package recently unveiled by the government.
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