Know Why This Lebanese Woman Robbed A Bank With Toy Gun

A Lebanese woman robbed a bank using a toy gun and retrieved her own savings to pay for her sister’s cancer treatment. On September 14, she brandished a toy gun and took 13,000 dollars (10 lakh rupees) in cash from her account.

The woman, identified as Sali Hafiz took matters into her own hands after withdrawals were limited to 16,000 rupees to 32,000 rupees per month due to an economic crisis. The banks in Lebanon locked most depositors out of their savings accounts since an economic crisis took place three years ago.

The interior-designer Hafiz stormed the Beirut branch of the Blom Bank with the plastic gun and demanded that her money be handed to her. She is currently on the run from the authorities for forcing a bank to release her savings at gunpoint.

Hafiz spoke to Reuters and said she was not a criminal. She said that she was in the country of mafias, and "if you are not a wolf, the wolves will eat you".

The bank robberies have been met with support and cheers from the crowds that gathered outside the banks. Hafiz said, "Maybe they saw me as a hero because I was the first woman who does this in a patriarchal society where a woman's voice is not supposed to be heard."

Lebanese Woman Robs Bank With Toy Gun

Sali Hafiz was assisted by men from a group known as Depositors Outcry Association, which advocates for Lebanese citizens with savings stuck at banks. A source at the group told Reuters that the group took responsibility for the incident.

A video of Hafiz brandishing a pistol and demanding her money went viral. Reportedly, Hafiz live-streamed the incident on Facebook and said, “I did not break into the bank to kill anyone or set the place on fire. I am here to get my rights.”

Hafiz later conducted an interview with Al Jadeed News and revealed that the gun she brandished at the bank was actually a plastic toy that she borrowed from her nephew. She added that she resorted to robbing the back to help pay for her sister’s medical bills for cancer treatment.

Her mother said, “If we hadn’t done this, my daughter could have died.” She added, “My daughter was forced to take this money – it’s her right, it’s in her account – to treat her sister.”

A statement at Blom Bank confirmed that the hostage situation had ended, but did not give further details on the amount of money taken.

This marks the second incident to take place in Lebanon in a month, in August, a man held up a commercial bank to withdraw his funds to pay for his sick father’s treatment. In the previous incident, the accused was arrested and later released without charge after the bank dropped the lawsuit.

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