The President of Syndicate of Owners of Restaurants, Cafes, Night-Clubs and Pastries in Lebanon, Tony Ramy, affirmed: “We had previously proclaimed a state emergency regarding tourism sector a short time ago, due to a diesel scarcity, but our concerns went in vain.”

“All officials appear to be refusing to provide us with electricity and preventing us from having a backup plan. We are unable to ensure legitimate diesel and we are receiving it from the black market in vulnerable quantities that are barely sufficient for hours, as restaurants and bars in tourist neighborhoods do not rely on generators. Rather, I must subscribe to a line of generators, and here is a policy: either cancel the membership or pay 3 million Lebanese pounds for 5 amps,” Ramy added in a statement.

“In order to avoid a severe closure, international restaurants will close 50% of their branches,” Ramy revealed. “We’re going through difficult days we’ve never witnessed before, and we’ve crossed all the red lines, but we’re still standing by and drowning in crises every day.”