Protesters staged a sit-in at the entrance of Tripoli’s Serial, demanding that the Economy Minister “control foodstuffs stores because they did not reduce the prices of goods in conjunction with the decline in the lira-to-dollar exchange rate.”

Here’s what we know:

• Food shop owners are “achieving huge illegal profits at the expense of citizens,” the state-run National News Agency quoted the protestors as saying. Tripolitans also asked for authorities to “oblige the private generator owners to install meters for subscribers and adhere to official pricing.”

• From his part, Economy Minister Amin Salam denounced claims that the “Consumer Protection Directorate is incompetent, adding that such accusations are unacceptable in a press conference on Tuesday.

• “Recovery begins with the Consumer Protection Directorate for its important role, entrusted with legislative reforms, and we refuse to say that the directorate is powerless,” he said.

• On Monday, Hani Bohsali, head of the food importers’ syndicate, said in a statement that “food importing companies have begun to introduce new prices in line with the lira-to-dollar exchange rate.”