https://morningstaronline.co.uk/
Protesters in Beirut ahead of the 35 per cent fuel price hike
PROTESTS erupted across Lebanon on Monday ahead of today’s 35 per cent fuel price hike, as the country faces severe shortages and electricity cuts.
The Energy Ministry announced the rise, which effectively cut subsidies on petrol, saying it was necessary to alleviate the crisis and avoid shrinking Lebanon’s foreign currency reserves.
A currency crisis has seen the Lebanese pound lose 90 per cent of its value in just 18 months. Officially pegged to the dollar at 1,507 since 1997, it is now stands as low as 18,000 to the dollar on the black market.
Prices of all goods rose by a third overnight on Sunday, and private fuel providers that power generators relied on by hospitals and businesses warned that they are running short.
The European Union and the United States have threatened sanctions against those they deem responsible for the crisis and Lebanon remains without a government after the entire cabinet resigned in the aftermath of last year’s Beirut port explosion.
Talks to establish a government have reached an impasse, with Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah seen by many as a potential mediator.
He has said that the logistics are in place to receive oil from Iran, in defiance of US sanctions, having negotiated an agreement with Tehran.