Last week, protests resumed as the authorities eased the lockdown imposed to reduce the spread of COVID-19, which has claimed 24 lives in Lebanon and infected a total of 710 people.
Thousands of protesters on Friday took to the streets across Lebanon against increasing unemployment in the country and also cabinet policies on the occasion of Labor Day.
The protests took place near the labour and social affairs ministries and the central bank of Lebanon.
Demonstrators called upon the current government to recuperate stolen public funds and activate the different productive sectors in the country to provide citizens with job opportunities instead of adopting policies that encourage them to immigrate.
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Unemployment in Lebanon has increased to unprecedented levels after the nationwide protests started on October 17, 2019, but were interrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
These events led several companies to shut their doors down, laying off thousands of employees, with others paying only half salaries to their workers.
Earlier this week, some 30 people were injured, including a man who has later died after clashes broke out between protesters and soldiers during a demonstration against the country’s worsening economic crisis, which has been exacerbated by its coronavirus-related lockdown.
Labour Minister Lamia Yammine announced on Friday that around 30 per cent of companies have closed in Lebanon and 20 per cent of labourers were paid half their regular salaries.
Banks have been a frequent target of attacks since Lebanon’s economic crisis began in October, with people angry that they are unable to access their savings as the currency has collapsed in value against the US dollar and prices have soared, said the BBC report.
People have also taken to the streets to demand an overhaul of the entire Lebanese political system, which they blame for the country’s problems; the formation of an independent, non-sectarian cabinet; and an end to government corruption.
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