Article Author:
Associated Press
Kareem Chehaib
BEIRUT (AP) — A Lebanese man armed with a shotgun broke into a bank in Beirut on Thursday, took employees hostage and set it on fire. threatened to release Security officials said he could not receive gasoline unless he received his trapped savings.
A man who entered a Federal Bank branch in Beirut's busy Hamra district had a canister of petrol and held hostage six or he seven bankers. , the official said on condition of anonymity. in regulation.
The man also fired three warning shots, officials said. Local media reported that he owed about $200,000 to the bank.
Since late 2019, Lebanese cash-strapped banks have implemented strict withdrawal limits on foreign currency assets, effectively evaporating the savings of many Lebanese. Today the country is suffering from the worst economic crisis in modern history, with her three-quarters of the population plunged into poverty and the value of the Lebanese pound has fallen by more than 90% against the US dollar.
