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Lebanon Headed Back to the Stone Age
(Ha'aretz) Zvi Bar'el - The court system in Lebanon is on strike, as judges and prosecutors wait for state funding that would enable them to return to work. The Lebanese pound has lost more than 90% of its value since the economic crisis began in 2019. The monthly salary of judges, based on the black-market exchange rate, is now $150, compared to $4,500 before the crisis. Moreover, the courtrooms aren't being maintained, the cleaners aren't coming, there is no electricity and the bathrooms have no running water. Public school teachers have announced a week-long strike, but it may last longer. The teachers live on $130 a month. Three tankers have been anchored in Beirut Port for three weeks with fuel meant for the Lebanese electric company's power plant. The cause of the delay in unloading the ships is lack of money to pay for the fuel.