Long queues, owners waiting to get subsidized bread, after great trouble, this is the usual picture now in the streets of Lebanon.
At a time when many Lebanese are groaning in the shadow of the devastating economic collapse, the lack of subsidized bread has exacerbated the hardship and sparked many quarrels outside bakeries, some of which turned into shooting incidents in the air.
The problem has intensified since the outbreak of the “Ukraine War”, which disrupted wheat supplies from Lebanon’s main grain supplier.
But the bread crisis is also linked to the complications of the Lebanese financial crisis, which lost the local currency more than 90% of its value within three years.
The Lebanese government announced the unloading of 49,000 tons of wheat at Beirut port this week, which should continue for a month and a half, according to Lebanon’s Economy Minister Amin Salam.
He pointed out that the House of Representatives approved a $150 million loan from the World Bank to purchase grain, adding that the security forces are intensifying monitoring of wheat shipments to prevent thefts.
The cause of the crisis
Lebanon’s Economy Minister, Amin Salam, attributed the recent supply crisis to the theft of flour by wheat traders last month.
In statements to “Archyde.com”, Salam also blamed the recent shortage on the displaced Syrians, accusing them of buying surplus loaves to send to Syria or selling them on the black market.
In response to a question by Archyde.com, he said, “With regard to the issue of the displaced Syrians, of course they put a great deal of pressure, and it is unfortunate that they do not use their needs for self-sufficiency. Rather, they are taking extra bundles and selling them on the black market or sending them to Syria. This is the problem.”
He added, “For us, the Syrian, like the Lebanese, is a person who needs food. There is no human discrimination in us, but there is exploitation. The (displaced Syrian) stands for the first time and takes a tie and then returns and takes a second tie, sends his whole family, and the ties are smuggled and sold. on the black market or smuggling it.
A security source said that fistfights erupted as Syrians and Lebanese stampede in front of a bakery in Beirut.
Civil War memorial
The crisis of long bread queues for the Lebanese brought back memories of the civil war that took place in Lebanon from 1975 to 1990.
Citizens said that the bread crisis in Lebanon did not happen in this way, even in light of the civil war that the country experienced.
The loaf, a staple food for many, is produced using imported flour at subsidized exchange rates, creating an environment highly conducive to corruption and generating a black market where bread is sold at double prices.
International support for Lebanon
“In this extremely difficult situation, we are witnessing an increase in tensions between different communities,” UNHCR said in a statement sent to Archyde.com.
“UNHCR is also concerned that practices that place discriminatory restrictions and measures are being applied on the basis of nationality, affecting, inter alia, refugees,” she added.
She added that continued international support for Lebanon is critical to ensuring safe access to food and other basic needs.
Lebanon has hosted Syrian refugees since the start of the war in 2011, estimated at 1.5 million.
Najat Rushdie, the United Nations Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Lebanon, issued a statement last week in which she noted the increasing public debate in Lebanon about the return of Syrian refugees to Syria and called on everyone “to refrain from fueling negative sentiments and hatred in the media and social media.”
Bread prices in Lebanon
Bakery owners say the authorities do not provide enough subsidized flour, which the Economy Ministry denies.
Citizens say that bread is available on the black market, but at four times the official price of 13,000 Lebanese pounds, or about 44 cents at the market exchange rate.
Every day, the Lebanese citizen spends at least three hours waiting for bread.
The bread crisis in Lebanon is one of the old and renewed crises plaguing the country.
In the recent period, the queues and clashes between customers in front of the bakeries have significantly worsened, amid a severe economic crisis and a significant shortage of wheat stocks since the explosion of the port of Beirut.