Protesters in Beirut smash banks as Lebanese pound spirals

Protesters in Beirut smash banks as Lebanese pound spirals

Value of the country’s currency hit a new low; banks remain shut for 10th day

A protester throws a brick at a bank after setting fire to tyres during a demonstration in Beirut on Thursday. — AFP

By AP Published: Thu 16 Feb 2023, 10:12 PM

Angry protesters in Lebanon on Thursday smashed windows and set tyres on fire outside two of the country's biggest banks in the capital city, as the value of the local currency hit a new low and poverty deepens.

Lebanon’s economic meltdown and unprecedented financial crisis erupted in 2019 following years of corruption and mismanagement by the country’s rulers. Over three quarters of Lebanon’s population of 6 million has been plunged into poverty, and the Lebanese pound lost about 97% of its value against the dollar.

Lebanon's struggling banks, which have restricted cash withdrawals since late 2019, were shuttered for a tenth day on Thursday in what they call an “open-ended strike”, following a court case that ruled in favor of a Lebanese depositor demanding their trapped savings.

Political paralysis has also made matters worse for the country, without a president since October 2022, and only with a caretaker government with limited functions. Gas shortages and rampant power cuts have also