BEIRUT – Lebanon is to default on a foreign debt payment for the first time in its history as the country struggles with a major financial crisis.
Prime Minister Hassan Diab said Lebanon would not be making a bond payment of $1.2bn (£900m) due on Monday.
“The debt has become bigger than Lebanon can bear, and bigger than the ability of the Lebanese to meet interest payments,” Diab said.
Lebanon has been struggling since the value of its currency plummeted.
The Lebanese pound has been losing value against the dollar for months, in part because the country’s banks have been reluctant to convert local pounds to dollars – leading to an increase in demand for the latter.(BBC)
