Are people right to call this man a hero?
Polls
17th August 2022
A MAN who took hostages in a bank, demanding to be given his own money, has become a public hero.
The incident took place in Lebanon, where there’s a serious economic crisis. The cost of living is soaring and there are food and medicine shortages. As a result, banks have placed strict limits on how much money people can take out.
The man, Bassam al-Sheikh Hussein, entered the Federal Bank in Beirut, Lebanon’s capital city, armed with a gun and a can of petrol and threatened to set himself on fire. He demanded his money to pay for his dad’s hospital bills. Hussein held at least six bank employees hostage for six hours, and fired three warning shots, but nobody was hurt.
As word spread, cheering crowds quickly gathered outside and began chanting: “You are a hero,” and “Down with the rule of the banks!”
After hours of negotiations, Hussein accepted an offer from the bank to receive part of his savings. He then released his hostages and surrendered to police.
However, a lawyer who took part in the negotiations said Hussein didn’t receive any of the money from the bank. The man’s brother told journalists that Hussein “is not a scoundrel, he is a decent man”.
20 Comments
ninja_don · 2 years ago
He is not a hero because he held 6 people hostage
mxm0 · 2 years ago
It's hard, because people do need money. But to do SO much for it? It just seems a little bit over-exaggerating to take hostages and shoot, but since nobody was hurt I think he didn't intend to kill/injure anyone or he would have just shot them first. I don't think he's a hero, but I also don't think what he did was anything more than just, really.
aces10 · 2 years ago
I am moving to Lebanon next year, and I know what an awful economical state the country is in. Although holding people hostage is, of course, wrong, he did it to make a point, and to raise awareness so that people across the world know how terrible the country’s money problem is. Plus, he released the hostages afterwards and didn’t injure anyone, meaning no harm was done.
max1234 · 2 years ago
I said yes, though I think both have made mistakes. The bank should have given the money straight away to the man, and he didn’t have to demand and hold people hostage. At least he didn’t hurt anyone
luckywolf · 2 years ago
This wouldn’t really count as a hero because he still held people hostage even though he’s trying to help. Seriously, this is just the next level for helping to pay the bills!
ivansp2011 · 2 years ago
Using hostages for money is not the right thing to do in this situatuion
dolphin26 · 2 years ago
No, he is not because he threatened with a gun, and that is not a hero thing
uniquestar · 2 years ago
He held people hostage and used a gun
That is not hero-like behaviour
pandagem · 2 years ago
He should not have done it that way, but he was demanding the right thing
mistywater · 2 years ago
He is because he only did it because he wants his own money that he earned and deserves but can't have it.
annalls · 2 years ago
I mean how can people call someone a hero for threatning to kill himself? It would of been said it would be the bank's fault if he was hurt. Even so he did do it to pay for doctor bills.
aadhya_sha · 2 years ago
I agree 👍🏻
candyapple · 2 years ago
Not really because he did hold people hostage, and he did threaten to kill himself. However, he needed to pay for his dad's hospital bills, so he was doing it for his dad.
robro · 2 years ago
Although, he stood up for his country and what he thought was right, he could have done it in a less violent way.
ginny09876 · 2 years ago
It’s wrong to take hostages. He’s not a hero
candyflos · 2 years ago
Although he did it with good interests at heart, he handled it the wrong way, especially as it’s not the security guards fault
l1lysg · 2 years ago
YES because people should have the right to get there money when they want and he had a good reason to do so: pay for his father's hospital bills.
NO because he took for hostage 6 employees. He probably didn't intend to injure or kill anyone but it seems a little exaggerated to go that far.
athenakid · 2 years ago
I don’t think this man is a hero. But I see how many people do believe that he is. Gun threats, bank robberies and taking people hostage, dont exactly appeal to me as heroic acts.
tiger.star · 2 years ago
It was a very extreme thing to do, but I believe that some of what he did was needed, although I don't think there was any need for a gun or a can of petrol. Banks must give the money people ask for to them, especially in a crisis.
allegrag · 2 years ago
I guess he could be a hero to some people. But also I’d say the bank rules aren’t that good.