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An armed man in Lebanon is holding hostages at the Federal Bank of Lebanon while demanding the bank give him deposits, according to a security source and a witness.
The man entered the bank before noon on Thursday, according to the security source. Some customers inside the bank were able to escape the building before the armed man shut the bank’s doors. It is not clear how many people are still inside the bank, the source told Reuters.
“He demanded access to around $200,000 he had in his bank account and when the employee refused the request, he began screaming that his relatives were in the hospital,” the security source said. “Then he pulled out the gun.”
ISRAEL AND PALESTINIAN MILITANTS AGREE TO CEASEFIRE
A witness was able to see a bearded man wearing a black shirt behind the bank’s gated entrance talking to a few men in plain clothes outside the bank. At least one older man has been released from the bank due to his age, and government negotiators have been deployed to begin talks with the armed man, the security source said.
At least two shots were fired during the hostage situation, according to Al Jadeed, a Lebanese television station. The Lebanese Red Cross said it deployed an ambulance on the site and has not yet had to treat anyone for injuries.
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A crowd gathered outside the bank, with many chanting, “Down with the rule of the banks!” Media outlets on-site have been interviewing people outside the bank, with people saying they hope the armed man “gets his money,” according to a British-Lebanese freelance journalist.
https://twitter.com/OzKaterji/status/1557683640489885700?s=20&t=051rqQoZqA_dgNjjZiiAcg
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Al Jadeed reported that the Federal Bank offered the armed man a certain amount of money, but the man rejected it because it was too little. The man is asking for a large amount from his $210,000 deposits in order to pay for his father’s surgery, according to the National News.
https://twitter.com/Joyce_Karam/status/1557699771585921024?s=20&t=ZtP7BcMElRpuvmmPANADBQ
Many of Lebanon’s commercial banks froze the currency of their clients after the country experienced a financial crisis in 2019. The banks say they will make exceptions in some cases, such as hospital care, though depositors told the outlet that such exceptions are rare.
