Lebanon’s caretaker Transportation Minister Ali Hamieh announced on Thursday that the government is scrapping its controversial plan to expand Beirut’s international airport, according to multiple Lebanese news reports. The reversal comes as military retirees protested outside major banks over the stifling economic crisis. 

Background: Last week, Hamieh announced a $122 million agreement with the Irish company daa International to build a new terminal at Beirut's Rafic Hariri International Airport. The announcement was made during a ceremony in Beirut attended by Irish Minister of State James Browne. The airport has not been renovated since 1998 and Hamieh said the project would create more than 2,500 new jobs. 

Many Lebanese have criticized the lack of a public bidding process, with a foreign contractor apparently awarded the contract before Lebanese firms had a chance to bid. 

Naharnet reported that Hamieh made the decision following a “request” from the Lebanese Shiite Islamist group Hezbollah. The Christian Kataeb party said Hamieh canceled the project after its parliament member Salim Sayegh proposed forming a parliamentary commission to investigate the agreement, according to the official National News Agency.