Lebanon is still under the threat of a flour crisis due to the Ukrainian crisis and the lack of sufficient warehouses to store large quantities of wheat if imported, after the destruction of the granaries in the port of Beirut.

In this context, the head of the General Labor Confederation, Bechara Asmar, called on officials to “solve the flour file radically, away from quarrels, because the loaf revolution will not have mercy on anyone, and may lead to security and political turmoil that will affect the upcoming constitutional elections.”

He pointed out in a statement that: “President Mikati’s reference in the Council of Ministers to an exaggeration in fabricating the flour crisis, and that the quantities in the market are large, monopoly operations and illegal behavior taking place in the markets, and importation exceeds Lebanon’s need, is a serious matter, and should be considered as news to the Financial Public Prosecution to move towards deterring the perpetrators, the monopolists, the concerned merchants, and the smugglers, because of the importance of this issue in terms of securing the livelihood of workers, the poor, and those with low incomes.

Asmar called on the government to “expose the perpetrators and those involved, and to import wheat and secure its access to Lebanon, in cooperation with the mills or individually, and by identifying flour merchants and the quantities delivered duly and legally to the bakeries as needed, to prevent monopoly and smuggling,” stressing that “vigorous follow-up to this file avoids the country the risk of loaf outage, and its repercussions on the poor and those with limited income.