Depositor storms bank in Lebanon to take trapped savings

By Stephanie Radi

BEIRUT, Lebanon (AA) - A Lebanese depositor stormed a bank in the capital Beirut on Monday and retrieved his trapped savings.

The depositor held the manager of the Banque Misr branch hostage to demand the withdrawal of his savings, a sum of $6,500, said the Depositors' Outcry Association, a group that follows incidents of holdups in Lebanon.

The depositor, who was identified as Omar al-Awar, later surrendered to security forces after retrieving his savings.

There was no comment yet from the Lebanese authorities on the report.

In September, Lebanese banks closed nationwide for a week-long period to protest holdups by depositors demanding the withdrawal of their frozen money.

Banks have imposed restrictions on the withdrawal of savings in US dollars amid a shortage of foreign currencies in Lebanon.

Lebanon has been grappling with a severe economic crisis since 2019, leaving most people locked out of their bank accounts due to informal capital controls imposed by lenders.

*Writing by Ahmed Asmar in Ankara