BEIRUT: A Lebanese activist group on Thursday vowed to organize more bank heists to help people retrieve their locked savings as the country’s years-long economic crisis continues to worsen.
Activists from Depositors’ Outcry group accompanied Sali Hafez into a Beirut bank branch on Wednesday, and she was able to retrieve some $13,000 in her savings to fund her sister’s cancer treatment.
Hafez carried a toy gun when she walked into BLOM Bank on Wednesday, while the activists who accompanied her poured about gasoline, threatening to set the bank on fire if she did not get her money out.
The group told AP that they had also coordinated with a man who tried to take some of his money from a bank in the mountainous town of Aley. Local media said he carried an unloaded shotgun.
Lebanon’s cash-strapped banks have imposed strict limits on withdrawals of foreign currency since 2019, tying up the savings of millions of people. About three-quarters of the population has slipped into poverty as the tiny Middle East country’s economy continues to spiral.
Alaa Khorchid, the head of Depositors’ Outcry, said there is now no other choice for Lebanese bank depositors but to “take matters into their own hands.” He spoke at a press conference in Beirut.
“BLOM Bank issues a statement saying that this is a pre-orchestrated operation. Yes it is, what were you thinking?” Khorchid told reporters, referring to the bank’s statement condemning Hafez and the activists.
“And we’re organizing more than this, and you have no choice. People’s rights are sacred,” he added, addressing banks in general.
“The real beginning of the revolution started yesterday, when Sali Hafez entered the bank, and there is no turning back,” Ibrahim Abdullah, a member of the Depositors’ Outcry group said at the press conference. “This revolution is against all the banks.”
Several groups advocating and protesting for Lebanese depositors have emerged since 2019, with some — like the one named the Depositors’ Union — opting to file lawsuits against banks to help depositors retrieve their money.
Wednesday’s heist occurred weeks after a food delivery driver broke into another bank branch in Beirut and held 10 people hostage for seven hours, demanding tens of thousands of dollars in his trapped savings. Many Lebanese hailed him as a hero.
The standoff and public sympathy for those taking matters into their own hands to get their savings has exposed the depths of people’s despair in Lebanon’s economic crisis, which has pulled over three-quarters of the country’s population into poverty, unable to cope with skyrocketing food, electricity, and gasoline prices.
Meanwhile, Lebanese officials struggle to implement structural reforms for an economic recovery plan approved by the International Monetary Fund to unlock billions of dollars in loans and aid to make the country viable again.
After heist, Lebanese activists promise more bank raids
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After heist, Lebanese activists promise more bank raids
- Alaa Khorchid, the head of Depositors’ Outcry, says there is now no other choice for Lebanese bank depositors
- The Lebanese activist group says it also coordinated with a man who tried to take some of his money from a bank
Jordan condemns Israeli strike on Gaza’s European Hospital
- Attack left medical facility inoperable, killed at least 28 people
AMMAN: Jordan strongly condemned on Friday Israel’s targeting of the European Hospital in Khan Younis this week, which left the medical facility inoperable and killed at least 28 people, the Jordan News Agency has reported.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates described the strike as a “blatant violation” of international humanitarian law, international legal norms, and the 1949 Geneva Convention on the Protection of Civilians in Time of War.
Sufian Al-Qudah, the spokesperson for the ministry, reiterated Jordan’s firm opposition to Israel’s ongoing military operations in Gaza.
He condemned what he described as the systematic targeting of civilians and vital infrastructure, and accused Israel of using blockade and starvation tactics to forcibly displace Palestinians.
Al-Qudah also warned of the grave implications Israel’s actions could have on regional security and stability.
He urged the international community to uphold its moral and legal responsibilities by putting pressure on Israel to end its military campaign in Gaza, allow the delivery of humanitarian aid through open crossings, and recognize Palestinians’ right to establish an independent state based on pre-1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital.
The strike drew international condemnation after British doctor Tom Potokar released footage from inside the hospital showing the aftermath of the attack.
The consultant plastic surgeon, who is working in Gaza, told the BBC that six bombs hit the hospital, which resulted in a scene of “absolute mayhem.”
Israel threatens Houthi leaders after striking Yemen ports
- Israeli strikes hit Hodeida, a key entry point for aid, and Salif further north
- Netanyahu warns there is “more to come” despite US agreement
HODEIDA Yemen: Israel threatened to target the leadership of Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis after the air force struck two Yemeni ports on Friday, following repeated Houthi missile attacks in recent days.
The Houthis agreed earlier this month to stop firing on international shipping in the Red Sea after the United States stepped up air strikes on Houthi-held areas with British support.
But the Houthis vowed to keep up their strikes on Israel despite the deal and fired three missiles in as many days this week that triggered air raid warnings in major cities.
The Houthis’ Al-Masirah television reported strikes on the Red Sea port city of Hodeida, a key entry point for aid, as well as the port of Salif further north, without immediately mentioning any casualties.
Israel’s military confirmed striking the two ports, saying it “dismantled terrorist infrastructure sites” belonging to the Iran-backed Houthis.
It noted that prior warnings had been issued to civilians in both areas.
“These ports are used to transfer weapons and are a further example of the Houthi terrorist regime’s systematic and cynical exploitation of civilian infrastructure in order to advance terrorist activities,” a military statement said.
The Houthis, who have controlled large swathes of Yemen for more than a decade, began firing at Israel-linked shipping in November 2023, weeks after the start of the Israel-Hamas war.
They later broadened their campaign to target Israel, saying it was in solidarity with the Palestinians in Gaza.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned the Houthi leadership there was “more to come” after Friday’s strikes.
“We are not willing to sit on the sidelines and let the Houthis attack us. We will hit them far more, including their leadership and all the infrastructure that allows them to hit us,” Netanyahu said in a video statement.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz warned Houthi leaders that if the missile attacks continue, they face the same fate as Hamas leaders slain by Israel in Gaza.
“If the Houthis continue to fire, we will also hit the heads of the terror groups, just as we did to (slain Hamas military chief Mohammed) Deif and (the) Sinwars (Hamas Gaza leader Yahya Sinwar and his brother Mohammed Sinwar) in Gaza,” Katz said in a post.
“We will also hunt down and eliminate the Houthi leader, Abd Al-Malek Al-Houthi.”
In early May, a Houthi missile struck an area at Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion airport, gouging a hole near its main terminal building and wounding several people in a rare penetration of Israeli air defenses.
Israel retaliated by striking the airport in Yemen’s Houthi-controlled capital Sanaa and three nearby power stations.
The UN special envoy for Yemen, Hans Grundberg, said the exchange marked a “dangerous escalation” and was a reminder that the war-torn country is “ensnared in the wider regional tensions.”
British lawmakers praise Jordan’s role in regional peace efforts
- Politicians stress value of Jordanian-British relations, necessity of strategic partnership
- “Jordan plays an important role in consolidating stability in the Middle East,” said MP Hamilton
DUBAI: British lawmakers have applauded Jordan’s role in maintaining regional stability and providing aid to the Gaza Strip.
The comments came in an interview with the Jordan News Agency’s correspondent in London.
The visit was at the invitation of the British Group of the Inter-Parliamentary Union, and was headed by MP Zuhair Khashman of the Jordanian delegation.
British politicians stressed the value of Jordanian-British relations and the necessity of their strategic partnership.
“Jordan plays an important role in consolidating stability in the Middle East,” said MP Fabian Hamilton, chairman of the BGIPU.
Hamilton added that there were three key reasons for its role in helping to stabilize the Middle East: its vital geographical location, its political stability, and the leadership of King Abdullah II.
Baroness Gloria Hooper, a member of the House of Lords, said a two-state solution in the region was essential to securing lasting peace. She also made note of the UK’s public opinion on the war in Gaza.
She added: “Despite growing pressure in Parliament on the British government to take more measures to stop the Israeli war on Gaza, we need to increase and redouble these efforts.”
MP Alistair Carmichael, chairman of the All-Party Parliamentary Jordan Group, said: “The situation in Gaza is continuously deteriorating, making support for Jordanian humanitarian efforts a top priority.”
MP Bambos Charalambous said that “the humanitarian tragedy in Gaza cannot be dealt with by individual efforts or through a single country alone, but through broad international partnerships.”
Gaza, Sudan most at risk as global starvation approaches 300m: Report
- Populations of both face ‘starvation, death, destitution and high rates of acute malnutrition’
- War, aid cuts, climate among issues causing food shortages in Yemen, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Somalia
LONDON: Almost 300 million people face death from starvation, with the most at risk in war-torn Gaza and Sudan, the latest Global Report on Food Crises has warned.
The report said 295.3 million people have been identified as facing “high levels of acute food insecurity” after a sixth consecutive year of the global number growing, with people in South Sudan, Yemen, Somalia, Afghanistan and Pakistan also noted as being at particular risk.
Cuts to humanitarian aid budgets and escalating conflicts were highlighted as having pushed as many as 13.7 million people into chronic food insecurity over the past 12 months.
The report noted that the number of people most at risk of food shortages as defined by the UN-backed Integrated Food Security Phase Classification had more than doubled in that period, and that 95 percent of those were in Gaza and Sudan.
It added that the populations of both face “starvation, death, destitution and high rates of acute malnutrition.”
More than half of Gaza’s approximately 2.1 million people face “catastrophe,” while Sudan has as many as 24 million people suffering food insecurity. Famine has been officially declared in the African country.
“Intensifying conflict, increasing geopolitical tensions, global economic uncertainty and profound funding cuts are deepening acute food insecurity,” the GRFC said.
“Following the closure of all crossings into the Gaza Strip in early March, and the collapse of the two-month ceasefire, food access has been severely restricted.”
The GRFC said 19 other countries are suffering from worsening food security “aggravated” by drought, highlighting Somalia, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Ethiopia and Kenya.
War is also increasing several other countries’ food security, especially Nigeria and Myanmar.
UN peacekeepers attacked by civilians in Lebanon, no casualties reported
- The troops used non-lethal force to protect themselves and those present, according to UNIFIL
- The Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) were notified and arrived shortly after the incident
DUBAI: A large group of civilians wielding metal rods and axes attacked a patrol of UN troops in southern Lebanon on Friday, causing damage to UN vehicles but no injuries, a United Nations peacekeeping force said.
The UN troops used non-lethal force to protect themselves and those present, according to the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), adding the patrol had been on a routine operation between the villages of Jmayjmeh and Khirbat Silim.
The Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) were notified and arrived shortly after the incident, escorting the patrol back to base.
UNIFIL said the patrol had been pre-planned and coordinated with the LAF.
The UN peacekeeping mission stressed that its mandate, under UN Security Council Resolution 1701, guarantees freedom of movement in its area of operations with or without LAF accompaniment.
On Wednesday, UNIFIL said that direct fire from the Israeli army had hit the perimeter of one of its peacekeeping positions in south Lebanon. UNIFIL said the incident on Tuesday was the first of its kind since Israel and Iran-backed Lebanese militant group Hezbollah agreed to a ceasefire last November.
