Protesters Rally in Central Beirut, Block Road outside BDL

Civil society activists on Sunday staged a new demonstration in central Beirut to protest the country’s dire economic situations.

The demo started at Martyrs Square before moving to the nearby Riad al-Solh Square where the government’s headquarters is located.

“We Want a Social Justice and Public Freedoms State” and “We’re Here to Regain the Looted State and Hold Accountable the Ruling Mafia”, read two banners carried during the rally.

Organizers later announced the end of the demonstration but a group of protesters marched towards Hamra Street where they blocked the road outside Banque du Liban.

MP Paula Yacoubian took part in the central Beirut demo, where she lamented that “the government has so far been a failure.”

“It has not made any remarkable achievement. We have become in the middle of the presidential tenure. Where is reform and change? Where are the rest of the political forces?” Yacoubian added.

Lebanon has witnessed several similar demos in recent weeks, amid fears of a dollar shortage and possible price hikes.

Parliament in July passed an austerity budget aimed at rescuing an economy crumbling under massive debt and unlocking billions of dollars in international aid.

In recent weeks, fears of a dollar shortage have sparked anxiety over a possible devaluation of the Lebanese pound and price hikes, with banks and money exchange houses rationing their sales of dollars, which are used alongside the pound in daily transactions.

Central Bank Governor Riad Salameh has denied that the country is facing a currency reserve crisis, but it has become very difficult to withdraw dollars from ATMs in Beirut.

Economic growth in Lebanon has plummeted in the wake of repeated political deadlocks in recent years, compounded by eight years of war in neighboring Syria.

Lebanon's public debt stands at around $86 billion -- more than 150 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) -- according to the finance ministry.

Eighty percent of that figure is owed to Lebanon's central bank and local banks.

The small country has promised donors to slash public spending as part of reforms to unlock $11 billion in aid pledged at a conference in Paris last year.