© Reuters
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The whole of Lebanon was left without electricity today and the crisis could last for several days. The reason is that the two main power plants in the country have run out of fuel, Reuters reported, citing a government official.
The power grid was shut down because al-Zahrani and Deil Amar ran out of diesel fuel, and electricity production fell below 200 megawatts.
The state-owned electricity company will try to temporarily use the army’s fuel supplies for the two plants, but this is unlikely to happen soon. Many Lebanese rely on private diesel generators, but this fuel is scarce.
Iranian fuel supplies have been coordinated by Hezbollah since August as shortages began to become dangerous and exacerbate the already severe economic crisis. This has drawn criticism that the Tehran-linked Shiite group will further increase its influence in the country.
On Friday, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdolahiyan said during a visit to Beirut that his country would continue to supply Lebanon with fuel and hoped an agreement would be reached. “At the moment when the Lebanese government formally and in the context of fraternal relations requests, Iran is ready to send oil products,” the minister added at a press conference.
But Prime Minister Najib Mikati, who met with him the day before, said it was a violation of US sanctions on the Iranian oil trade. The shipments, organized by Hezbollah, arrive in the Syrian port of Baniyas and are then transported by tanker to Lebanon. Syria is also under US sanctions.
Since 2019, the national currency has depreciated by 90%, and the UN claims that three quarters of the population lives below the poverty line. The country is listed among the most corrupt in the world, and the Pandora Files currently define it as the country with the most (346) offshore companies described in the documents. According to 91% of Lebanese, corruption is widespread in the public sector.
The collapse of the economy has been identified by the World Bank as one of the three most catastrophic since the mid-19th century.
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