Lebanon for more than three years has been mired in a deep financial, economic and social crisis, aggravated by a political deadlock.<\/P>
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Here is a recap since turmoil broke out in October 2019.<\/P>
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Protests erupt<\/P>
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Mass protests follow a government announcement on October 17, 2019 of a planned tax on voice calls made over messaging services such as WhatsApp.<\/P>
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In a graft-plagued country with poor public services, many see the tax as the last straw, with demonstrators demanding “the fall of the regime”.<\/P>
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The government of prime minister Saad Hariri scraps the tax the same day.<\/P>
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But protests continue over the ensuing weeks, culminating in demonstrations calling for the overhaul of a ruling class in place for decades and accused of systemic corruption.<\/P>
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Hariri’s government resigns in late October.<\/P>
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First default<\/P>
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Lebanon, with a $92 billion debt burden equivalent to nearly 170 percent of its gross domestic product, announces in March 2020 that it will default on a payment for the first time in its history.<\/P>
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In April, after three nights of violent clashes, then-prime minister Hassan Diab says Lebanon will seek International Monetary Fund help after the government approves an economic rescue plan.<\/P>
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But talks with the IMF quickly collapse.<\/P>
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Catastrophic blast<\/P>
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A massive explosion on August 4, 2020 at Beirut port devastates entire neighbourhoods of the capital, kills more than 200 people and injures at least 6,500.<\/P>
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Revelations that the pile of volatile ammonium nitrate that caused one of the biggest non-nuclear explosions ever recorded had been left unsecured in a warehouse for six years, further enraging the Lebanese public.<\/P>
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Political impasse<\/P>
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Diab’s government resigns in the wake of the blast, a little more than seven months after taking office.<\/P>
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Diplomat Mustapha Adib is named new premier but bows out after less than a month, and Hariri, who already served as prime minister three times, is named in October.<\/P>
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One of worst crises<\/P>
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Amid runaway inflation, authorities announce in February 2021 that bread prices will rise further.<\/P>
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In June, the World Bank says Lebanon’s economic collapse is likely to rank among the world’s worst financial crises since the mid-19th century.<\/P>
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New government<\/P>
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After nine months of political negotiations, Hariri steps aside on July 15 saying he is unable to form a government.<\/P>
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Billionaire Najib Mikati, Lebanon’s richest man and already twice prime minister, forms a new government on September 10 after a 13-month vacuum.<\/P>
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Bloody clashes<\/P>
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But the new government is shaken by demands from the powerful Hezbollah movement for the judge investigating the Beirut blast to be removed on grounds of political bias.<\/P>
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Tensions come to a boil on October 14 when a shootout kills seven people following a rally by Hezbollah and its ally Amal demanding Tarek Bitar’s dismissal.<\/P>
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Accord with IMF<\/P>
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On January 24, 2022 the IMF launches talks with Lebanese officials.<\/P>
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Mikati’s government meets for the first time after months of negotiations between rival factions.<\/P>
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On February 11 the IMF calls for fiscal reforms to ensure Lebanon can manage its debt load as well as measures to establish a “credible” currency system.<\/P>
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On April 7, the lender says it has reached a staff-level agreement to provide Lebanon with $3 billion in aid over four years.<\/P>
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Hezbollah and its allies lose their parliamentary majority in May 15 legislative elections. Mikati is appointed on June 23 to form a new government. He has not yet succeeded.<\/P>
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Leaderless<\/P>
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Political deadlock deepens on October 31 when Aoun’s mandate expires without a successor in place. The divided parliament has met 10 times in a bid to appoint a new president but each attempt has failed.<\/P>
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In an interview published on Friday, French President Emmanuel Macron calls on Lebanon to “get rid” of its entrenched political leadership who have blocked reforms vital to saving the bankrupt economy.<\/P>
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Source: National News Agency – Lebanon<\/P>
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