The Lebanese National Media Agency said that the state-owned Lebanese Middle East Airlines will only accept payment in dollars starting tomorrow, as the country suffers from a liquidity crisis of foreign exchange.
The decision, which was published late yesterday and confirmed by a source from the airline, met with Reuters today with criticism from the leader of the Free Patriotic Movement, Gibran Bassil, the former foreign minister who described it as illegal.
Parliament member Fouad Makhzoumi wrote in a tweet on Twitter that the decision "will put the Lebanese in house arrest" and "should cancel".
Lebanon is suffering from an unprecedented financial crisis that surfaced late last year as financial flows to the country slowed and protests erupted against the country's ruling elite because of corruption and poor governance.
Officials at the company, which is owned by the central bank, could not be reached to comment on the accusations that the decision was illegal.
The agency stated that the company will accept payment cards and bank checks "provided that the process is in hard currency".