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LEBANON

ABL announces suspension of its strike starting Wednesday


ABL announces suspension of its strike starting Wednesday

A barricaded bank in Beirut. (Credit: Magaly Abboud / L'Orient Today)

BEIRUT — In a statement issued Tuesday evening, the Association of Banks in Lebanon (ABL) announced that starting Wednesday morning, they will suspend their strike for an indefinite period of time.

This decision to reopen banks was taken "on the occasion of the beginning of the month of Ramadan and to facilitate the operations of citizens, in light of the ongoing contacts" to address the judiciary procedures launched against some banks.

"The ABL has decided to suspend its strike and continue contacts with relevant officials. It will make a decision based on the material results of these contacts," the statement said.

This suspension of the strike came as Banque du Liban announced earlier in the day an "open and continuous operation of purchase of Lebanese lira bills and sale of dollars in cash at the Sayrafa rate," which was increased to LL90,000 to the dollar. An intervention in the market was made by BDL to regulate the free fall of the Lira which had reached LL140,000 to the dollar in the early afternoon, before recovering slightly.

Launched in early February to defend the demands of the banking sector, which include the adoption of a capital control law and to protest against legal proceedings against some institutions, the bank strike had been suspended for the first time for two weeks between late February and early March. This came at a time when the majority of employees in the private and public sectors withdrew their salaries.

The temporary suspension of the strike also came after the Bank of Lebanon raised the exchange rate of its Sayrafa platform.


BEIRUT — In a statement issued Tuesday evening, the Association of Banks in Lebanon (ABL) announced that starting Wednesday morning, they will suspend their strike for an indefinite period of time. This decision to reopen banks was taken "on the occasion of the beginning of the month of Ramadan and to facilitate the operations of citizens, in light of the ongoing contacts" to address the...