

Renewed protests in Lebanon despite lockdown and the death of Fawwaz al-Samman
On April 21st, dozens of protesters pour back onto the streets of many cities in Lebanon, furious at rising poverty and hardship. One week later, many shop and hair salon owners hold a sit-in in Tripoli demanding the government to allow them to go back to work. The protesters say that they are unable to feed their children due to the economic crisis, rising food prices and COVID-19 containment measures. Two days later, dozen Lebanese banks across the country are torched and vandalised during the second consecutive night of angry protests fuelled by frustration over the national currency's unfettered depreciation. Hundreds of demonstrators take to the streets from Beirut to southern Sidon along with Nabatieh, the Bekaa Valley, and Tripoli and Akkar in the north. In Tripoli, the army soldiers fire live ammunition, which resulted in the death of the 26th year old protestor Fawwaz al-Samman.