Beirut, Oct 5 (Petra) -- Lebanese lawmaker Cynthia Zarazir ended a protest at a bank on Wednesday after obtaining the funds she needed from her frozen savings to pay for surgery, her lawyer said, in the latest in a series of stand-offs between individuals and lenders.

Zarazir, who was elected in May to represent Beirut, entered the Antelias branch of Byblos Bank unarmed on Wednesday morning with two lawyers, and staged a sit-in for four hours as a 'last resort' to access her money, Reuters cited her lawyer as saying.

Fouad Debs, one of the lawyers, confirmed that Zarazir got access to the $8,500 she needed.

Cases of bank hold-ups and protests have snowballed across Lebanon recently as depositors have grown exasperated over informal capital controls that banks have imposed since an economic downturn began in 2019.

Depositors can only withdraw limited amounts in U.S. dollars or the Lebanese pound, which has lost more than 95% of its value since the crisis began.

//Petra// AF

05/10/2022 22:28:36