Lebanon: Armed man demanding frozen money takes hostages at bank
Lebanese banks are limiting withdrawals of hard currency amid the country's three-year financial meltdown
An armed man who took a number of hostages on Thursday at the Federal Bank of Lebanon, demanding deposits frozen by his bank, released the hostages and turned himself into authorities after the bank agreed to release some of his funds.
The gunman took the hostages and threatened to set himself ablaze after employees of the bank refused to give him any of his $209,000 in hard currency.
After an hours-long hostage situation, the bank agreed to give him $30,000.
Lebanese banks are limiting withdrawals of hard currency for most depositors amid the country’s three-year financial meltdown, which has left more than 75 percent of the population struggling.
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The man entered the bank in the Hamra neighborhood in west Beirut with a firearm and flammable material.
“He demanded access to around $200,000 he had in his bank account, and when the employee refused, he began screaming that his relatives were in the hospital. Then he pulled out the gun,” the security source said.
Some customers in the bank managed to flee before the armed man shut the doors on the rest, according to the source, who was not able to specify how many hostages were in the bank.
At least one elderly man was released due to his age, and government negotiators were deployed to begin talks with the hostage-taker, Lebanon’s Interior Ministry said.
Lebanese media station Al-Jadeed said at least two shots were fired during the incident. The Lebanese Red Cross told Reuters that they deployed an ambulance on site, but have not treated anyone.
A crowd gathered outside the bank, many of them chanting, "Down with the rule of the banks!"
Since Lebanon’s financial crisis took hold in 2019, many commercial banks froze clients out of their hard currency through informal capital controls.
They cap monthly cash withdrawal in US dollars and allow other limited amounts to be withdrawn in Lebanese pounds at a rate much lower than the parallel market rate – resulting in a significant cut in the original value of the deposits.