BEIRUT – In Lebanon’s capital, Beirut, a person took bank staff hostage to get his money. Those in similar situations organized a protest in front of the bank.
In the Hamra district of Beirut, where most of the banks are headquartered, a gunman named Bassim Sheikh Hasan took the Federal Bank personnel hostage with gasoline and a shotgun at noon. At first, there was a brawl at the bank entrance, but then the police and the army pulled a security strip around the bank. Due to the severe economic crisis in Lebanon, many people cannot access their money in the bank.
According to the statement made by the negotiator who entered the bank, it was stated that the bank management offered to pay 10 thousand dollars to the person who could not withdraw his money, but this offer was rejected. Hasan allegedly has $200,000 in savings in his bank account.
On the other hand, due to the currency crisis, Lebanese people cannot reach their dollar account in the bank. Many people think their money has been confiscated by banks and the government. Many people complaining about similar problems are holding protest demonstrations while the negotiations continue.
Castro Abdullah, Secretary General of the Lebanese Federation of Trade Unions, speaking to the newspaper Wall, said that ‘the incident was not a surprise’: “We knew that this happened and would happen. Banks do not do people justice, especially those with smaller savings. After the uprising in October two years ago, the government is blaming the public for the economic crisis. It does not make an effort to give people’s money back, it almost throws their savings and rights into the sea. For three years now, we’ve seen cartels helping the government and government forces. Cartels prevent people from reaching their rights with monopolies in areas such as grain, fuel and health.”
A similar incident took place in the Beka region in the past months. Unable to get the money in his account, a person attempted to set himself on fire in the bank. Then the bank took a step back and allowed him to withdraw the money from his account. The person who entered the bank with gasoline took the money and gave it to his wife and surrendered to the police. However, since the money in question belonged to him, the incident was not considered theft and the Lebanese judicial authorities issued a fine simply for ‘use of force’.
Many services are unavailable due to the economic crisis in Lebanon. Especially the depletion of reserves in the Central Bank and the great depreciation of the Lebanese lira against the dollar cause many problems.