Lebanon’s army is appealing to world powers for aid to assist it to survive the country’s economic collapse, which has left soldiers “suffering and hungry”. The pound has lost 90% of its value since 2019, wiping out soldiers’ salaries and therefore the army’s budget. A donor conference hosted by France isn’t being asked for funds but rather food, fuel, medicine, and spare parts. The army is one of the few institutions seen as a unifying and stabilizing force within the deeply divided country. It has a reputation for neutrality and enjoys broad support among all of the 18 recognized religious groups, also because of the many political factions. Western powers also view the military as a counterweight to the powerful, Iran-backed militant Shia Islamist movement, Hezbollah, which refuses to disarm. The Lebanese army is that the pillar in Lebanon and ensures that the protection situation within the country doesn’t degenerate so it’s an instantaneous interest to assist them to perform their mission,” an officer at the French military ministry told reporters. France organized Thursday’s donor conference after Lebanese army chief General Joseph Aoun made headlines in March by warning his soldiers were “suffering and hungry just like the remainder of the people”. He also openly criticized Lebanon’s political leaders, who are unable to agree on the make-up of a replacement cabinet since caretaker Prime Minister Hassan Diab’s resigned after the devastating explosion at Beirut’s port last August. “Where are we going? What does one will do?” he asked them. In a speech on Tuesday, General Aoun said: “We are forced to show to allied states to secure aid, and that I am able to attend the top of the globe to acquire assistance in order that the military can remain its feet.” AFP news organization cited a source near the French defense minister as saying the Lebanese army had “very specific needs” for milk, flour, medical supplies, fuel, and spare parts for military equipment. The US said last month that it’d increase its funding for the military for this year by $15m to $120m. The World Bank recently warned that Lebanon was enduring a severe and prolonged economic depression that was possibly one amongst the three worst seen by the planet since the mid-19th Century. It estimated that Lebanon’s real gross domestic product (GDP) had shrunk by 20.3% in 2020, on the rear of a 6.7% contraction in 2019, and was projected to shrink another 9.5% this year. The depreciation of the pound had resulted in surging inflation, which averaged 84% last year, it said. More than 1/2 the population is believed to be living below the national personal income, with the majority of the labor force full of plummeting purchasing power. And an increasing share of households is facing difficulty in accessing basic services, including healthcare. A regular soldier within the Lebanese army earns about 1.25m Lebanese pounds a month. that’s worth $800 (£574) at the official rate of exchange, but only about $80 at the black market rate. That has caused low morale within the army, which saw its overall number of personnel fall by over 3,000 to 80,874 at the beginning of the year, in keeping with Aram Nerguizian of the Carnegie geographical region Center. Related Topics
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