Middle East Newsletter: Crisis Deepens in Lebanon

Parts of Lebanon plunged into darkness over the weekend as two key power plants went offline, deepening a crisis in the country reeling from its worst financial meltdown in decades.

Electricity was due to be restored from one plant on Sunday, while water companies that were forced to shut down due to power shortages were also prepared to resume supply. That may be small consolation to the more than half of Lebanon’s population pushed below the poverty line and suffering from additional shortages in food and pharmaceuticals in what was, until recently, considered a middle-income country.