As the coronavirus lockdown eases, demonstrators in Lebanon respond to the country’s worst economic crisis since the civil war. The country plunges deeper into an economic catastrophe that has been years in the making.
As Lebanon begins to ease its coronavirus lockdown, the country’s anti-government protesters are returning to the streets. People want the entire political system to be replaced. They blame the political class for the corruption that plagues Lebanon, its stagnant economy and high levels of public debt, and the dire state of its public services.
While last fall’s demonstrations were characterized by music and dancing, protests turned violent. Angered by the collapse of the Lebanese pound and rising poverty, protesters across the country set fire to banks, shut down highways, and clashed with soldiers.
