Inmates in the yard of Roumieh prison. (Credit: archive OLJ)
BEIRUT — Several companies supplying food to inmates in prisons threatened on Friday to suspend delivery to some facilities if the state does not pay them starting next week, said a statement relayed by local channel LBCI and addressed to the Internal Security Forces (ISF).
"We have requested several times since January 2023 the change of food prices for prisoners in Roumieh, Baabda women's prison, Tripoli and Zahle prisons, and have had no response," the companies said in the statement. They also cited that the delay in the repayment of food bills, "creates great losses," in a Lebanon where the national currency continues to collapse against the dollar.
"For all these reasons...we announce the end of food deliveries to prisons in a week from today," the statement concludes. When contacted, a spokesperson for the ISP said he was not aware of this information.
Last August, six companies sent a similar ultimatum to the outgoing Minister of the Interior Bassam Maoulaoui. They demanded the payment of amounts that were then due to them for seven months. The situation is indicative of a state that is unable to operate its institutions.