In Lebanon, unemployment is soaring, prices are skyrocketing, and hunger is spreading as the nation grapples with its most severe economic crisis in modern history. “There’s no food. No work. No medication,' said Mohammad Kekhia.
A young girl runs past the curtains that make up Mr. Kekhia's front door. This neighborhood is poor even for Tripoli, where 45 percent of the population are estimated to live below the poverty line.In just over a month, the currency has lost 60 percent of its value. Kekhia hasn’t found any work in eight months.
The wealth disparity was pronounced before the crisis. Sports cars zipped around Beirut in areas packed with tourists. Facebook is flooded with people trying to barter clothes, furniture and other items so that they can get baby formula, cooking oil and other basics.“My whole life has been my work and my house, sacrificing for my kids. I used to dream of giving them a good future, but that dream is dead now,” 42-year-old Mohammad Ghannoum said as he picked up a box of food from a charity in Beirut.
Like many here, he has gone from living comfortably to receiving food aid. His life savings have disappeared. In an unusual move, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah said last week that Hezbollah would be open to receiving help from the U.S. despite calling it “an enemy” of Lebanon. There is little optimism for the future of the IMF talks, which have not even agreed on the balance of losses, let alone the negotiations and have now been stalled.
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