A road is blocked by demonstrators in protest of the depreciation of the Lebanese lira, in Beirut on Jan. 24, 2023. (Credit: Hussam Shbaro)
BEIRUT — Angry demonstrators blocked several roads in Beirut and Tripoli on Tuesday to protest the continued collapse of the Lebanese lira, which was trading at more than LL54,000 against the dollar on the parallel market, according to L’Orient Today’s correspondent and the state-run National News Agency.
In Beirut, protesters blocked the Saifi road, at the northern entrance to Beirut, for some time.
Demonstrators also temporarily blocked Al-Salumi road, in the Metn, in protest against the deteriorating economic conditions and the dollar's rise, the state-run National News Agency reported.
In the neighborhood of Chiyah to the south of Beirut, "young demonstrators" earlier blocked the road in the late morning, according to the NNA. They were protesting the deteriorating economic situation in tandem with the depreciation of the lira.
In North Lebanon, the main highway was blocked in both directions just outside Tripoli, the city poorest in Lebanon.
Our correspondent reported that the Lebanese Army was able to clear the road and that the demonstrators were acting "against the rapid rise of the dollar on the parallel market and its negative consequences on all living conditions, the rise in prices of fuel, medicines and food.”
In South Lebanon, a road was briefly blocked with burning tires at the roundabout of Kanaya, according to our correspondent Mountasser Abdallah.
Other protesters blocked the Saida-Sur highway at the Babliyah-Saksakieh bridge in protest against harsh living conditions.
In more than three years of economic crisis in Lebanon, the national currency has lost more than 97 percent of its value. Meanwhile, the Lebanese authorities continue to stall in adopting the necessary reforms to halt the country's economic and financial collapse.
Additional reporting by Michel Hallak.