In pictures: Violence in Beirut

A Sunni supporter of parliamentary majority leader Saad Hariri burns tires to block the highway linking Beirut with coastal village of Jiyeh, Lebanon,

Violence has erupted in Lebanon's capital, Beirut, with clashes between government supporters and the Hezbollah-led opposition.

Lebanese soldiers patrol in Beirut's Corniche al-Mazraa district on May 8, 2008

The fighting started after Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah said he would "cut off the hand" that tried to dismantle the telecommunications network - a move announced by the government.

Lebanese ride their motorcycles around mounds of earth blocking the main road leading to Rafiq Hariri International Airport in Beirut on May 8, 2008

Beirut has been largely paralysed by roadblocks set up by opposition supporters.

Lebanese supporters of the government loyalist Future Movement set up a road block of burning tyres on the road from Beirut to Saida

Protesters threw stones, barricaded streets and set tyres and vehicles on fire.

Lebanese soldiers patrol in Beirut's Corniche al-Mazraa district on May 8, 2008

The army fired tear gas to disperse protesters, and patrolled in armoured personnel carriers.

A Lebanese elderly man crosses a street past a Lebanese soldier sitting atop an armoured personnel carrier in Beirut's Corniche al-Mazraa district on May 8, 2008.

The United Nations has appealed for calm, and Sunni leader Saad Hariri has called on Hezbollah to work towards a solution to the conflict.

Smoke billows from burning tyres as a Lebanese boy flashes the victory sign at a blocked road leading to Rafiq Hariri International Airport in Beirut on 8 May, 2008.

The government and opposition have been locked in a 17-month power struggle, which has meant Lebanon being without a head of state for the past five months.

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