A hostage confrontation in which the shooter demanded withdrawal of trapped savings from a Beirut bank to pay for his father's medical bills came seven hours later on Thursday. It ended with the man surrendering.No injuries reported.
According to authorities, 42-year-old Bassam Al-Sheikh Hussein broke into a bank branch with a shotgun and a canister of gasoline and fired three warning shots, killing up to 10 people. He threatened to lock himself in with the hostage and turn himself in. Unless he is allowed to take out the money, he will fire.
He did not actually receive the money, according to the lawyers involved in the negotiations.
Her wife Mariam Chehadi, who was standing outside her, told reporters after her arrest that her husband had "done his duty."
The hostage crisis in the city's busy Hamra district is the latest heartbreaking episode of Lebanon's economic plunge, now in his third year. Since 2019, the cash-strapped country's banks have imposed severe restrictions on withdrawals of foreign currency assets, tying up the savings of millions.
George Al-Haj, head of the Bank Employee Syndicate, told local media that seven or eight of his bank employees were taken hostage along with two of his customers. said.
Hussein has his $210,000 in the bank and is having trouble withdrawing money to pay his father's medical bills, said the head of the Lebanese Depositors' Association. said Hassan Moghnieh, who participated in the negotiations.
Hussein's brother Atef, who was standing outside the bank, told his Associated Press during the standoff that if the bank would give him money to help with bills and other household expenses, said his brother would be happy to appear.
"My brother is not a scoundrel. He is a decent man," said Atef al-Sheikh he Hussein. "He takes what he has out of his pocket and gives it to others."
Lebanese soldiers, internal security force police and intelligence agents surrounded the area.
Dozens of protesters gathered during a standoff, chanting slogans against the Lebanese government and banks, hoping the shooter would receive his savings. Some bystanders hailed him as a hero.
Lebanon is facing the worst economic crisis in modern history. Three-quarters of his population fell into poverty and the value of the Lebanese pound fell against the US dollar as he fell more than 90%.
"What has brought us to this point is the state's inability to resolve this economic crisis, the actions of banks and central banks, and people spending their money like weekly pocket money. We can only take part of the money," he said. Dina Abou Zor, a lawyer for the advocacy group Depositors' Union, who was one of the protesters. "And this has led people to take matters into their own hands."
In January, a coffee shop owner trapped in a Lebanese bank held his employees hostage. and withdrew $50,000 after threatening to kill him.
