Demonstrators in Lebanon destroy banks, demand

Global Courant

People are demanding the return of their savings and demand that officials involved in corruption be held accountable.

Protesters in Lebanon have attacked several bank buildings, burned tires and smashed windows to demand their money back.

The angry demonstrations took place in a suburb outside the capital Beirut on Thursday, targeting the branches of Bank Audi, Bank of Beirut and Byblos Bank in Sin el-Fil in Mount Lebanon Governorate.

The protesters were angry about financial controls that have destroyed many people’s savings.

People demanded the return of their money and also called for officials involved in corruption, including central bank governor Riad Salameh, to be held accountable.

“We’re done with them. We’ve waited too long, it’s enough,” one protester told Al Jazeera.

Another said they messaged the banks.

“We will not lose our rights, not today and not in 100 years. This is a message they need to understand,” he said.

A protester shouts outside Byblos Bank during a protest demanding depositors release their savings, in Beirut, Lebanon (Hussein Malla/AP)

Lebanon has been hit by a crushing economic crisis since 2019, one of the worst in modern history, according to the World Bank.

The country’s currency, the Lebanese pound, has lost more than 98 percent of its value against the US dollar since the start of the crisis.

Experts say the country’s crisis is rooted in decades of corruption and mismanagement by a political class that has ruled Lebanon since the end of the 1975-1990 civil war.

Salameh is one of the political class officials caught up in corruption scandals and has been accused of causing the crippling crisis.

Last month, an Interpol warrant was issued against him after France issued an arrest warrant as part of its investigation into whether the governor had embezzled hundreds of millions of dollars in public funds.

Salameh denies the allegations.

Thursday’s protests came after the Lebanese parliament – for the 12th time – failed to elect a president and break a political deadlock that has gripped the country for months.

A police officer walks through Byblos Bank, which was damaged by angry protesters (Hussein Malla/AP)

Demonstrators in Lebanon destroy banks, demand

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