in Lebanon, electricity has become a luxury item

Beirut is an extinct city which sinks more and more as the days go by. At 8 p.m., the capital of Lebanon is plunged into darkness. The state is bankrupt and it can no longer provide any electricity. Electricity has become a luxury item for those who can afford private generators. A mechanic spends almost all of his salary to have five amps per day, or 10 hours per day of electricity. This operation costs him 860 euros per month, double the minimum wage in Lebanon, which explains why many survive as best they can.

For another Lebanese couple, they have to be satisfied with candles and a lamp that recharges with the sun during the day. The husband is a house painter who lost his job in the explosion in the port of Beirut. He explains that the laundry has piled up everywhere in the apartment for more than a week: “We can’t wash it, the machine is full for nothing. We no longer feel anything, we get used to this hassle, this humiliation. If only we could leave this country.” Power plants are dry, inflation is skyrocketing. The largest hospital in the city has only three days of fuel reserves to run its six generators. Concern is mounting. The Prime Minister has one priority: to urgently negotiate aid from the IMF.