Lebanese security forces have fired tear gas and water cannon on Wednesday to try to break up stone-throwing protesters in Beirut.

Some protesters tried to climb over barbed wire and fencing to storm a heavily barricaded part of central Beirut that includes parliament.

Unrest in the capital this week has deepened the multi-faceted crisis sweeping Lebanon as it grapples with financial strains that have sunk the currency, pushed up prices and driven banks to impose capital controls.

Prime Minister Hassan Diab said Wednesday the the country is facing catastrophe after his newly unveiled cabinet held its first meeting to tackle the twin challenges of a tenacious protest movement and a nosediving economy.

Diab, the successor to Saad Hariri who quit as prime minister in late October amid widespread protests, vowed to meet demands from the street, but demonstrators were unconvinced.