Protesters smashed windows of banks in the Lebanese capital Beirut this past week as the currency hit a new low against the dollar. The Lebanese lira has lost about 97 percent of its value, and more than 80 percent of the population live below the poverty line. Millions of people are struggling to make ends meet amid the financial turmoil. FRANCE 24's Beirut correspondents Rawad Taha and Serge Berberi met two such families in the once-wealthy neighbourhood of Ashrafieh.
Meanwhile, Israel is being rocked by some of the largest protests in its 75-year history. At stake is the independence of the judiciary. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government is seeking a major overhaul the legal system, which critics say amounts an attack on Israel's democratic institutions like the Supreme Court. If passed, the legislation would indeed allow parliament to overturn decisions made by the Supreme Court. For more on these controversial reforms, we speak to correspondent Jordana Miller in Jerusalem.
On February 20, a 6.4-magnitude earthquake rocked southern Turkey and northern Syria, just two weeks after a massive tremor killed around 45,000 people in the same region. The new quake claimed several more lives and sparked panic in communities still reeling from the devastation earlier this month. One such place is Nurdagi, a once-bustling city near the epicentre, which now lies in ruins. Our colleagues from France 2 report, with FRANCE 24's James Vasina and Olivia Bizot.
