After Beirut blast, foreign workers beg to go home

After struggling first through Lebanon's economic crisis and then the coronavirus pandemic, Ethiopian worker Tarik Kebeda said the deadly blast that ripped through her Beirut home was the final straw.

Inside the small house she shares with four friends, she pointed to the window frames covered by sheets, because the glass was smashed out by the August 4 explosion.

They had already lost their jobs -- as domestic workers, or in supermarkets or restaurants -- but now their home too is at risk.

"I'm scared to sleep here," the 22-year old said, showing the deep cracks running down the bedroom's walls, saying she feared the building "will collapse on top of us".

Thousands of foreign workers were already stranded in Lebanon, after months of dollar shortages and then the coronavirus pandemic.

English | August 24, 2020

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