Protests in Lebanon

Protesters in Beirut, Lebanon, blocked roads and burned debris on March 16 after the value of the Lebanese pound reached record lows, losing a third of its value within two weeks and trading at LBP15,000 to US$1.

In addition to the crippling inflation, Lebanon also faces high unemployment as well as a food shortage that was caused when a storage building holding most of the country’s grain stockpile, located in Beirut’s port, exploded in August 2020. That explosion led to the resignation of Lebanon’s government. The new prime minister has not formed a government since being appointed in August 2020.