By BASSEM MROUE Associated Press -- BEIRUT -- Lebanese security forces Wednesday fired tear gas to disperse hundreds of protesters, mainly retired soldiers, who tried to break through the fence leading to the government headquarters in downtown Beirut. The violence came amid widespread anger over the harsh economic conditions in the country, where mismanagement by the ruling class has been rampant for years, preceding the economic meltdown that started in late 2019. The retired soldiers and policemen demanding better pay clashed with riot police and troops. Several people suffered breathing problems from the tear gas. The protesters hurled stones at the officers protecting the government headquarters and repeatedly tried to break through the fence. There was no immediate information about any injuries during the violence. The protest was called for by retired soldiers and depositors who have had limited access to their savings after local banks imposed informal capital controls amid the crisis. The controls restrict cash withdrawals from accounts to avoid folding amid currency shortages. People with dollar accounts can only withdraw small sums in Lebanese pounds, at an exchange rate far lower than that of the black market.

Since early Wednesday, riot police and army special forces were deployed around the government headquarters, an Ottoman-era three-story building known as the Grand Serail of Beirut. Nearly two hours after the violence broke out, the protesters dispersed. The Lebanese pound hit a new low on Tuesday, selling for more than 143,000 pounds to the dollar before making some gains. The pound has lost more than 95% of its value over the past three years. The official rate is 15,000 pounds to the dollar. “My monthly salary is $40. How can I survive,” screamed a retired army officer. Most people in Lebanon get paid in Lebanese pounds and have seen the value of their salaries drop over the past years as the pound crashed.

BEIRUT (AP) — Lebanon will construct a $122 million terminal at Beirut’s Rafik Hariri International Airport to be operated by a leading Irish airport company when it’s completed in four years, officials said Monday. Lebanon’s only international airport had a major facelift after the country’s 1975-90 civil war and has been working at full capacity for years. The airport has not undergone an expansion since 1998. Caretaker Minister of Public Works and Transport Ali Hamie said Terminal 2 will bring in private sector investments worth $122 million and will handle 3.5 million passengers annually when operations begin in 2027. It will add six docking stands as well as remote ones, he said in a ceremony at government headquarters to announce the launch of the new terminal. Terminal 2 will be built where the airport’s old cargo building used to stand, according to Hamie. The project comes as Lebanon is in the throes of its worst economic and financial crisis in its modern history, rooted in decades of corruption and mismanagement by the country’s political class.

“The project opens more horizons for air aviation between Lebanon and the world,” caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati said. He added that it will help in solving several problems, including crowding at the current terminal. The project will create 500 direct jobs and 2,000 related jobs, Hamie said, adding that Terminal 2 will be for chartered and low-cost flights. Hamie said once Terminal 2 is ready it will be operated by leading European company daa International, an airport company in Ireland. Ireland’s Minister of State James Browne attended Monday’s ceremony in Beirut and was quoted in a statement released by the Lebanese prime minister’s office as saying that the contract signed will deepen business relations between the two countries. The airport currently handles 8 million passengers a year, and the plans are to reach 20 million in 2030, according to the website of national carrier Middle East Airlines.

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