Covid-19: Lebanese tourist establishments want to reopen despite confinement

Protesters marched in Beirut on August 25, at the call of the Lebanese Tourism Federation, to demand more support from the government. Anwar Amro / AFP

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In Lebanon, the owners of tourist establishments, seriously affected by the economic crisis and the double explosion which destroyed part of Beirut on August 4, announced on Tuesday August 25 the reopening of their doors on Wednesday August 26, despite the re-containment decided to stop the spread of the coronavirus. This announcement comes as twelve deaths and 532 new cases of contamination have been recorded in 24 hours.

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With our correspondent in Beirut, Paul Khalifeh

In Lebanon, more than 1,400 of the 2,100 tourist establishments were damaged in Beirut and its suburbs in the disaster of August 4 , which left at least 200 dead and 6,500 injured. The president of the restaurant owners union qualified as a "  demagogic decision  " the partial or total closure of the country , acted to stop the spread of the Covid-19 epidemic. “  No one should bid on using the pretext of the coronavirus  ”, he insisted.

► To read also: Lebanon, a country on its knees

Authorities ready to crack down

The revolt in the tourism sector was greeted coldly by the authorities. Mohammad Fahmi denounced "  abusive positions against the state and government measures to stem the spread of the coronavirus  ". According to the Minister of the Interior, faced with the language of "  threat and challenge  ", the authorities will apply the law, which provides for penalties ranging from reports to legal proceedings.

The minister warned against the “  random reopening of economic sectors without a clear prevention plan  ”. After the double explosion of August 4, Covid-19 contaminations started to rise again. Tuesday, August 25, the official toll was 13,687 cases including 138 deaths, while on the eve of the tragedy of August 4, it stood at 5,062 cases including 65 deaths.

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  • Lebanon
  • Health and medicine
  • Coronavirus
  • Tourism

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