Violence Breaks out in Lebanon’s Tripoli over Economic Crisis

A man rides his scooter through the burning, that were set on fire by protesters to block a road, in Beirut, Lebanon, Thursday, June 24, 2021. (AP)
A man rides his scooter through the burning, that were set on fire by protesters to block a road, in Beirut, Lebanon, Thursday, June 24, 2021. (AP)
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Violence Breaks out in Lebanon’s Tripoli over Economic Crisis

A man rides his scooter through the burning, that were set on fire by protesters to block a road, in Beirut, Lebanon, Thursday, June 24, 2021. (AP)
A man rides his scooter through the burning, that were set on fire by protesters to block a road, in Beirut, Lebanon, Thursday, June 24, 2021. (AP)

Gunmen took to the streets in the northern Lebanese city of Tripoli on Wednesday, firing in the air and at times throwing stones at soldiers amid rising anger at power cuts, fuel shortages and soaring prices.

The anger was fueled by rumors that a young girl died after electricity cuts stopped a machine that supplied her with oxygen. A Lebanese security official denied the rumors and reports on social media about the girl. He spoke on condition of anonymity in line with regulations.

Tripoli, Lebanon’s second largest and most impoverished city, has witnessed acts of violence in recent days linked to the country’s severe economic and financial crisis. The World Bank has described the crisis as one of the worst the world has witnessed over the past 150 years. It is coupled with a political deadlock that has left Lebanon without a government since August.

The economic crisis has been the most serious threat to Lebanon’s stability since the 15-year civil war ended in 1990. Tens of thousands of people have lost their jobs since October 2019 in the small nation of 6 million, including a million Syrian refugees.

Lebanon’s 20-month economic and financial crisis has led to severe shortages in fuel, medicine and medical products. Electricity cuts last for much of the day and lack of diesel has led the owners of some private generators to cease supplying power.

After the rumors spread in Tripoli on Wednesday, armed men deployed in the streets of some poor neighborhoods and opened fire in the air. Soldiers briefly pulled out from some areas, apparently to avoid a clash with the gunmen.

Later in the day, the army patrolled the areas that witnessed gunfire, state-run National News Agency reported.

A Tripoli resident told The Associated Press that he closed his shop and went home when the shooting started, adding that it lasted for about four hours. Later in the afternoon, shooting was heard again in the city.

Hundreds of people have tried to migrate to Europe from northern Lebanon due to harsh economic conditions over the past two years and some have died before reaching their destination.

In the capital Beirut, protesters closed several roads Wednesday to express their anger over harsh living conditions.

Riots in Tripoli over the weekend left at least 20 people injured, half of them soldiers.

The army on Sunday said rioters on motorcycles threw stun grenades at troops in Tripoli injuring nine soldiers, while another was injured when hit by a rock. Protesters attacked several state institutions in the city.

In recent years, Tripoli has witnessed rounds of fighting between supporters and opponents of Syria’s government.



US Says Israel Must Improve Gaza's Humanitarian Situation or Risk Aid

 People attempt to extinguish a fire at the site of an Israeli strike on tents sheltering displaced people, amid the Israel-Hamas conflict, in Deir Al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip. REUTERS/Ramadan Abed
People attempt to extinguish a fire at the site of an Israeli strike on tents sheltering displaced people, amid the Israel-Hamas conflict, in Deir Al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip. REUTERS/Ramadan Abed
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US Says Israel Must Improve Gaza's Humanitarian Situation or Risk Aid

 People attempt to extinguish a fire at the site of an Israeli strike on tents sheltering displaced people, amid the Israel-Hamas conflict, in Deir Al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip. REUTERS/Ramadan Abed
People attempt to extinguish a fire at the site of an Israeli strike on tents sheltering displaced people, amid the Israel-Hamas conflict, in Deir Al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip. REUTERS/Ramadan Abed

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said Israel must take urgent steps to improve the humanitarian situation in Gaza to avoid legal action involving US military aid, according to news reports on Tuesday.

"We are writing now to underscore the US government's deep concern over the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Gaza, and seek urgent and sustained actions by your government this month to reverse this trajectory," they wrote in an Oct. 13 letter to their Israeli counterparts, posted by an Axios reporter on X, according to Reuters.

The State Department and Pentagon did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Representatives for Israel's government also could not be immediately reached for comment.

The report comes as Israeli forces expand operations into northern Gaza amid ongoing concerns about access to humanitarian aid throughout the enclave and civilians' access to food, water and medicine.

US officials earlier this year said Israel may have violated international humanitarian law using US-supplied weapons during its military operation in Gaza.

This week's letter cited Section 620i of the Foreign Assistance Act, which restricts (prohibits) military aid to countries that impede delivery of US humanitarian assistance.

It also cited a National Security Memorandum that US President Joe Biden issued in February that requires the State Department to report to Congress on whether it finds credible Israel's assurances that its use of US weapons does not violate US or international law.