New government urged in Lebanon as country in turmoil

BEIRUT — Lebanon’s caretaker prime minister warned Saturday that the country was quickly headed toward chaos and appealed to politicians to put aside differences in order to form a new government that can attract desperately needed foreign assistance.

Hassan Diab, who resigned as prime minister almost seven months ago, threatened to suspend his caretaker duties if that would increase pressure for a new Cabinet to be formed.

He spoke in a terse address to the nation as the currency continued its rapid collapse against the dollar, trading at nearly 11,000 Lebanese pounds on the black market for the first time in its history. Angry protesters have blocked streets and highways across the country with burning tires for days, as the pound slid to record lows.

The crash in the local currency has resulted in a sharp increase in prices as well as delays in the arrival of fuel shipments, leading to more extended power cuts around the country, in some areas reaching more than 12 hours a day. The crisis has driven nearly half the population of the small country of 6 million into poverty, wiped out savings and slashed consumer purchasing power.

“The dollar is 10,500 (pounds) and everyone has four or five children on their neck, including their parents. They (corrupt politicians) need to feed us,” cried one protester.

“They vaccinated themselves from corona but they opened the country so that people could die,” he added, referring to a group of lawmakers who inoculated themselves in parliament last month without approval, a move that led the World Bank to consider suspending its financing of vaccines in Lebanon.

Another protester who identified himself only by his first name, Ali, said he was frustrated that other Lebanese were still sitting at home.

“Where are the Lebanese people? The dollar is now 10,500 (pounds) and it will reach to 15, or 20 (thousand). Why are we in homes? We have to go down!”