Banque du Liban headquarters in Beirut. (Credit: João Sousa/OLJ)
BEIRUT – Dozens of depositors gathered in Beirut on Friday morning to demonstrate against banks’ severe restrictions on customers accessing their money, imposed since the onset of the economic crisis in 2019.
Here’s what we know:
• According to the National News Agency, members of both the groups Cry of the Depositors and Muttahidoun, or ‘United’, participated in the demonstration that started in front of the Mohammad al-Amin mosque in Downtown Beirut.
• The head of Cry of the Depositors, Alaa Khorchid, called on the authorities to “return the money stolen from depositors…The responsibility lies with the three presidents [president, prime minister and parliament speaker] and the central bank Governor Riad Salameh.”
• Some demonstrators shouted slogans against Salameh who is accused by many of being responsible for the economic collapse.
• The demonstrators then headed to the headquarters of Bank of Beirut.