A man died after setting himself on fire in Lebanon, while two others attempted suicide through similar acts over the past seven days, as the country spirals deeper into economic crisis.
A Lebanese taxi driver set fire to his car and sat inside the vehicle last Wednesday, sustaining burns to his legs, a witness told The National.
He was taken to a nearby hospital in Burj Al Barajne, a southern suburb of Beirut.
Local media reported the man complained about financial concerns before the incident. He was treated by the Lebanese Red Cross.
Last Friday, a Syrian man died after setting himself on fire in the Bekaa Valley in eastern Lebanon.
The country's National News Agency reported he had serious financial problems.
Another man tried to set himself alight on Tuesday during a protest by bus and minivan drivers in Tripoli, after he said he had received a fine that he could not pay. Demonstrators stopped him just in time.
They were demanding to be allowed to work until the start of a more stringent lockdown on Thursday.
“We are receiving similar cases every day, not necessarily of people setting themselves on fire but people hurting themselves because of the economic crisis,” said Georges Kettaneh, secretary general of the Lebanese Red Cross.
Psychologists and NGOs said the mental health of many citizens and residents has been deteriorating since the onset of a severe economic crisis in 2019.
The deadly blast that struck Beirut port last August had intensified that distress for many.
Lockdowns are very difficult on individuals. There is loneliness, an economic impact, the fact that you cannot see loved ones
Lebanon entered a renewed lockdown this week, with 11 days of 24-hour curfew starting on Thursday.
The strict measures are set to compound the financial effects of the crisis as most shops will be forced to close, with supermarkets and restaurants operating on a delivery-only basis.
But the psychological effects of the crisis and the explosion have been met with a lack of government response, activist groups said.
Pia Zeinoun, a clinical psychologist and vice president of Embrace, an NGO that manages the country’s suicide prevention hotline, said the number of callers had increased in the past year.
"We have seen an increased number of calls after the August explosion and since the onset of the economic crisis," Dr Zeinoun told The National.
Between August and November 2020, the hotline received 2,239 calls, nearly triple the number it received in the same period of 2019.
The Embrace helpline is operated in collaboration with Lebanon's National Mental Health Programme, launched by the Ministry of Health with support from the World Health Organisation, the UN children’s fund and International Medical Corps.
The programme works with mental-health organisations to improve the well-being of Lebanese and ensure access to psychiatric medication and services.
Dr Rabih Chammay, who leads the NMHP, told The National that economic crises can weigh heavily on the public.
"People will feel so desperate that they may attempt to harm themselves," Dr Chammay said.
Almost 30 per cent of callers from August to November last year said they had either socio-economic concerns or were suffering distress from the blast.
Experts believe that new lockdown measures will affect more people.
"Lockdowns are very difficult on individuals," Dr Zeinoun said. "There is loneliness, an economic impact, the fact that you cannot see loved ones.
"The number of new cases during the previous lockdowns were not as high as they are today. Now, more people fear what is to come in Lebanon."
But the recent case of self-immolation and other attempts are uncommon, she said.
A new nationwide lockdown that began last week has not caused a significant surge in calls to the helpline so far, but Dr Zeinoun said people living in Lebanon are “definitely not OK".
Research by Embrace found that 55 per cent of 400 Lebanese surveyed declared themselves "sad" every day for one month after the blast.
Lebanon has been hit by a severe economic crisis since 2019, partly caused by a shortage of foreign currency and decades of widespread corruption and mismanagement.
As a result, 55 per cent of the nation's population has been pushed below the poverty line, almost double the rate of the year before, data released by the UN in August showed.
The country has been run by a caretaker government since August, when prime minister Hassan Diab resigned after the blast.
Leaders have stalled government formation over disagreements on posts in prime minister-designate Saad Hariri’s new government.
Politicians failed to draw up a plan to deal with Lebanon's financial collapse, leaving many people with no option but to leave the country or rely on NGOs for support.
Psychological help, financial aid and political reforms are needed to improve the mental health of Lebanese in the long term, Dr Chammay said.
"If you have a broken sidewalk and people are falling and breaking their legs, how do you help?" he asked.
"You have to fix the sidewalk while helping those who are already hurt. Neither solution works alone. The same applies for the situation in Lebanon."
Caretaker Finance Minister Ghazi Wazni said in a tweet on Monday that he gave instruction to allot 75 billion Lebanese pounds (equal to $8.6 million at the black market rate) to families facing severe hardships from the coronavirus lockdown.
During Lebanon's earlier lockdowns, Mr Diab had also promised poor families cash and food assistance, but Human Rights Watch said in a recent report that those efforts had failed.
"The government’s plans to provide food assistance never materialised and it repeatedly delayed promised financial relief, succumbing to political bickering over how to distribute the meagre aid,” the report said.
Embrace opened a clinic in Beirut in August that receives more than 200 people a month, but local NGOs say that more government action is needed to provide further support.
“Other governments have offered stimulus packages, unemployment benefits," Dr Zeinoun said.
“People need all of these things. They need housing, food, education. This will help to remove a lot of stress.”
While government action is crucial to address the issue in the long run, experts stressed that raising awareness and reaching out to loved ones in distress is vital to detect and prevent self-harm and suicide.
"There is no easy solution," Dr Chammay said.
"We have to talk to people around us who are unwell and encourage them to speak to trusted others about their difficulties and emotions or call the national lifeline and ask for guidance, encourage them to reach out. We all have a role to play."
The Embrace suicide prevention hotline can be contacted on 1564 inside and outside Lebanon
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
if you go
The flights
Air Astana flies direct from Dubai to Almaty from Dh2,440 per person return, and to Astana (via Almaty) from Dh2,930 return, both including taxes.
The hotels
Rooms at the Ritz-Carlton Almaty cost from Dh1,944 per night including taxes; and in Astana the new Ritz-Carlton Astana (www.marriott) costs from Dh1,325; alternatively, the new St Regis Astana costs from Dh1,458 per night including taxes.
When to visit
March-May and September-November
Visas
Citizens of many countries, including the UAE do not need a visa to enter Kazakhstan for up to 30 days. Contact the nearest Kazakhstan embassy or consulate.
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Wenger's Arsenal reign in numbers
1,228 - games at the helm, ahead of Sunday's Premier League fixture against West Ham United.
704 - wins to date as Arsenal manager.
3 - Premier League title wins, the last during an unbeaten Invincibles campaign of 2003/04.
1,549 - goals scored in Premier League matches by Wenger's teams.
10 - major trophies won.
473 - Premier League victories.
7 - FA Cup triumphs, with three of those having come the last four seasons.
151 - Premier League losses.
21 - full seasons in charge.
49 - games unbeaten in the Premier League from May 2003 to October 2004.
Zidane's managerial achievements
La Liga: 2016/17
Spanish Super Cup: 2017
Uefa Champions League: 2015/16, 2016/17, 2017/18
Uefa Super Cup: 2016, 2017
Fifa Club World Cup: 2016, 2017
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
MATCH DETAILS
Manchester United 3
Greenwood (21), Martial (33), Rashford (49)
Partizan Belgrade 0
RESULTS
6.30pm UAE 1000 Guineas Trial Conditions (TB) US$100,000 (Dirt) 1,400m
Winner Final Song, Christophe Soumillon (jockey), Saeed bin Suroor (trainer).
7.05pm Handicap (TB) $135,000 (Turf) 1,000m
Winner Almanaara, Dane O’Neill, Doug Watson.
7.40pm Handicap (TB) $175,000 (D) 1,900m
Winner Grand Argentier, Brett Doyle, Doug Watson.
8.15pm Meydan Challenge Listed Handicap (TB) $175,000 (T) 1,400m
Winner Major Partnership, Patrick Cosgrave, Saeed bin Suroor.
8.50pm Dubai Stakes Group 3 (TB) $200,000 (D) 1,200m
Winner Gladiator King, Mickael Barzalona, Satish Seemar.
9.25pm Dubai Racing Club Classic Listed Handicap (TB) $175,000 (T) 2,410m
Winner Universal Order, Richard Mullen, David Simcock.
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
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Innotech Profile
Date started: 2013
Founder/CEO: Othman Al Mandhari
Based: Muscat, Oman
Sector: Additive manufacturing, 3D printing technologies
Size: 15 full-time employees
Stage: Seed stage and seeking Series A round of financing
Investors: Oman Technology Fund from 2017 to 2019, exited through an agreement with a new investor to secure new funding that it under negotiation right now.
How to watch Ireland v Pakistan in UAE
When: The one-off Test starts on Friday, May 11
What time: Each day’s play is scheduled to start at 2pm UAE time.
TV: The match will be broadcast on OSN Sports Cricket HD. Subscribers to the channel can also stream the action live on OSN Play.
2025 Fifa Club World Cup groups
Group A: Palmeiras, Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami.
Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.
Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.
Group D: Flamengo, ES Tunis, Chelsea, (Leon banned).
Group E: River Plate, Urawa, Monterrey, Inter Milan.
Group F: Fluminense, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan, Mamelodi Sundowns.
Group G: Manchester City, Wydad, Al Ain, Juventus.
Group H: Real Madrid, Al Hilal, Pachuca, Salzburg.
