Lines outside of bakeries in Lebanon on July 13, 2022. (Courtesy of Muntasser Abdallah)
BEIRUT — Long queues formed Wednesday morning in front of bakeries, both in the north and south of Lebanon, the day after Eid al-Adha, as the country reels from a severe bread crisis, our correspondent in the region Muntasser Abdallah reported.
Here’s what we know:
• In North Lebanon, locals queued in front of bakeries, both in Tripoli, Minieh and Akkar, according to Abdallah. Two people were wounded Tuesday as a result of a gunfight over who gets a bread bundle first while waiting in a line in front of the Ridani bakery in al-Beddawi, Tripoli.
• In South Lebanon, long queues formed in front of bakeries which are selling the bread bundles between LL12,000 and LL15,000, while only a few people showed up at the bakeries selling the same quantity of bread for LL20,000.
• Long queues were seen at bakeries throughout the country since Friday, one day before Eid al-Adha celebrations. Arabic bread bundles have been at the heart of a dispute between bakeries and caretaker Economy Minister Amin Salam for several weeks.
• The situation has worsened due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the breadbasket of the world, with the consequences already being felt across the globe.
• Faced with these shortages, the head of Lebanon’s Mills Association Ahmad Hoteit told Reuters Tuesday that nearly 35,000 tonnes of wheat from Ukraine and Russia will arrive in Lebanon this week, in a move that may temporarily ease wheat shortages in the country.