Still battling for independence, Lebanon to mark national day

A Lebanese flag hangs from a building in downtown Beirut, Lebanon, November 21, 2017. REUTERS/Aziz Taher

BEIRUT (Reuters) - Lebanon marks its independence on Wednesday with its sovereignty as compromised as ever by the agendas of foreign states that have shaped its history since the French mandate ended in 1943.

The crisis ignited by Saad al-Hariri's sudden resignation as prime minister is unprecedented even by the standards of a country where loyalties have been split between countries such as Iran and Saudi Arabia regionally and the United States, France and Russia globally.