Social media videos shared on Thursday, show grocery shoppers in Lebanon fighting over basic commodities. This is as the country’s economic crisis deepens, and Lebanon’s currency plunges. The coronavirus pandemic has further strained the country’s already volatile economy.

Al Arabiya reports that in one video, a woman could be seen shouting at employees of a grocery store after trying to purchase a certain amount of powdered milk. The man she was accompanied by could then be seen grabbing the product from an employee’s hands, following which a scuffle ensued between customers and employees.

In another video, two men were seen snatching products out of the carts of shoppers who were waiting to pay. Cooking oil was among the basic products hijacked from shoppers’ carts.

According to Al Arabiya, Lebanon has not had a fully functioning government since last August. Demonstrators have been protesting since Tuesday, blocking off roads in several cities and towns, including outside of Beirut.

Umm Muhammed Umar