from ZeroHedge:

Lebanese banks are limiting account holders to withdrawing a mere $100 of their own money at a time (and just $200 total a week) after the country’s banking crisis due to eroding liquidity and central bank’s looming default have been at the center of mass anti-corruption street protests since October of last year.

“There is a lot of anger,” one Lebanese protester told the AFP on Thursday. “You have to go to the bank twice to withdraw just $200.”

Banks and ATMs are now being targeted for vandalism and destruction by demonstrators who have declared a “week of wrath” — specifically in major cities like Beirut. It’s now been two months since commercial banks have enacted severe controls preventing large money transfers abroad and restricting clients’ access to their deposits.

These latest imposed capital controls now include limiting withdrawals to less than $200 a week, according to Lebanon’s Daily Star.

Violent clashes between mostly young protesters and policed have raged in the upscale commercial hub of Hamra district in Beirut over the last two nights. Local reports described the scene as looking like a war zone, with burning tires in debris and glass strewn streets — much of that glass from smashed bank windows.

Several bank fronts attacked by enraged protesters prevented from accessing their accounts amid a broader political and financial crisis:

The Daily Star reports the crowd attempted to storm the Central Bank building in the district:

After a month of rain, Tuesday’s protests saw the highest turnout in weeks. Following an extended stand-off in front of the headquarters of the Central Bank, protesters came into conflict with security forces that resulted in at least seven wounded.

…Several people attempted to storm the Central Bank building, breaking through the outer fence and calling for “the fall of the rule of the bank” and the resignation of Central Bank Governor Riad Salameh.

A reported 59 were arrested during the mayhem, which is likely set to continue, and has for months witnessed frustrated Lebanese physically attacking bank fronts in their efforts to get their own money out.

#Lebanon‘s protesters can no longer be called peaceful. They block vital roads & highways. They destroy bank windows & ATMs as well as throw rocks & firecrackers at security forces. And then when they get arrested, their friends are rioting in front of the police station. pic.twitter.com/oEqz78GLEN

— Walid (@walid970721) January 16, 2020

Protest leaders have consistently accused the national and commercial banks of “theft” while the bankers attempt to defend against a massive run on currency, especially the dollar.

“What happened yesterday was a response from people who are hungry, whose money is being stolen, and economic policies that have directly led us to this crisis for years now,” Ayman, a 27-year old present for the Hamra protests told the Lebanese Daily Star.

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