At least six people were shot dead in Beirut on Thursday as demonstrations related to a probe into last year’s catastrophic port blast prompted Lebanon worst civil violence in years.
The latest bloodshed adds to the woes of a country suffering one of the world’s worst ever economic meltdowns.
Here’s what you need to know about the Lebanon crises:
THE PROBE
Thursday’s shooting erupted as protesters headed to a demonstration called by Hezbollah and its ally Amal to demand the removal of the judge investigating the port blast.
Political tensions have been building over the probe into the explosion, which killed more than 200 people and devastated swathes of Beirut.
The judge has sought to question a number of senior politicians and security officials, including Hezbollah allies, suspected of negligence that led to the explosion, which was caused by a huge quantity of ammonium nitrate.
All have denied wrongdoing.
ECONOMIC COLLAPSE
The latest bloodshed takes place against the backdrop of one of the world’s sharpest economic depressions , which spiraled from the meltdown of its financial system in 2019.
The collapse, which has driven some three quarters of Lebanese into poverty and sunk the currency by 90%, was caused by decades of financial mismanagement and corruption by the sectarian elite.
The new government of Prime Minister Najib Mikati has vowed to revive negotiations with the IMF to secure a rescue package.
But Lebanon must first agree on the size of vast losses in the financial system and how they should be shared out – something the government, banks and central bank failed to do last year.
In the meantime, Lebanon’s collapse is driving ever more people to emigrate, in a braindrain across the sectarian spectrum which economists say will set back Lebanon for years.
