Tension Between Aoun's Bloc and Lebanese Forces Could Disrupt Formation of Hariri Gov't

by the dailystar.com.lb -- The rift between the Free Patriotic Movement and the Lebanese Forces appeared to have widened over the weekend, with officials from both sides engaging in a backhanded Twitter debate. The issue began with an ambiguous Friday tweet from caretaker Information Minister Melhem Riachi that was interpreted by many to have been directed at caretaker Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil, who heads the FPM. “A stubborn [person] thought that he can do whatever he wants, get whatever he wants, monopolize everything to him and doesn’t even share bread with his siblings,” the LF politician wrote. His tweet sparked a backlash from some FPM officials, including Bassil. The FPM head seemed to interpret Riachi’s tweet as a continuation of recent accusations by the LF that there have been attempts to isolate the party from major political posts and obstruct its chances of getting key ministries in the upcoming government. “They have started to resort to [claims of] isolation, in order to call for sympathy and make political gains,” Bassil said in a tweet Saturday. Those LF complaints took a new turn after last week’s Parliament session, held to elect a speaker, deputy speaker and other members of the secretariat.

LF MP Fadi Saad, who was running to be one of two Parliament secretaries, reportedly withdrew after he was made aware of alleged attempts to isolate the LF. Former LF MP Antoine Zahra was a secretary in the previous Parliament. But the FPM’s Alain Aoun and Progressive Socialist Party MP Marwan Hamadeh ended up taking the seats in last week’s election. It has also been reported that the LF is asking to head key ministries given that its parliamentary bloc now consists of 15 MPs, a major gain from its eight-seat presence in the previous Parliament. The LF is in particular seeking to retain its control over the deputy prime ministership. But it seems that the FPM is now vying for the post as well. “There is no isolation, everyone should be satisfied with the size of their representation and they will be represented. Their demands, meetings, complaints and nagging will not benefit them,” Bassil added.

Caretaker Justice Minister Salim Jreissati, affiliated to the FPM, was more direct in his tweet. “To the Information Minister [Riachi], with all honesty, search for a stubborn person and you will find him under the ceiling of your house,” he said. But Riachi expressed surprised over the FPM reactions, writing on Twitter Saturday: “It is weird that a tweet that was unrelated [to domestic politics] was interpreted as an domestic [message]. It is really very weird.” The LF and FPM were once foes, but an understanding between LF leader Samir Geagea and FPM founder Michel Aoun brought Lebanon’s two main Christian parties together. Signed in 2016, the agreement paved the way for Aoun to be elected as president later that year. But the relationship between the two has remained rocky over their different approaches to key issues in government, including how to resolve the country’s electricity crisis. This article has been adapted from its original source. The Daily Star

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How giving feedback can backfire

by Guy Itzchakov and Avraham N. (Avi) Kluger --- Giving performance feedback is one of the most common ways managers help their subordinates learn and improve. Yet, research revealed that feedback could actually hurt performance: More than 20 years ago, one of us (Kluger) analyzed 607 experiments on feedback effectiveness and found that feedback caused performance to decline in 38% of cases. This happened with both positive and negative feedback, mostly when the feedback threatened how people saw themselves. One reason that giving feedback (even when it’s positive) often backfires is because it signals that the boss is in charge and the boss is judgmental. This can make employees stressed and defensive, which makes it harder for them to see another person’s perspective. For example, employees can handle negative feedback by downplaying the importance of the person providing the feedback or the feedback itself. People may even reshape their social networks to avoid the feedback source in order to restore their self-esteem. In other words, they defend themselves by bolstering their attitudes against the person giving feedback. We wanted to explore whether a more subtle intervention, namely asking questions and listening, could prevent these consequences. Whereas feedback is about telling employees that they need to change, listening to employees and asking them questions might make them want to change. In a recent paper, we consistently demonstrated that experiencing high quality (attentive, empathic, and non-judgmental) listening can positively shape speakers’ emotions and attitudes.

For example, in one laboratory experiment, we assigned 112 undergraduate students to serve as either a speaker or a listener and paired them up, sitting face-to-face. We asked speakers to talk for 10 minutes about their attitudes toward a proposal for basic-universal income or a possible requirement that all university students must also volunteer. We instructed the listeners to “listen as you listen when you are at your best.” But we randomly distracted half of the listeners by sending them text messages (e.g., “What event irritated you the most recently?”) and instructed them to answer briefly (so the speakers saw that they were distracted). Afterward, we asked the speakers questions about whether they were worried about what their partner thought of them, whether they acquired any insight while talking, and whether they were confident in their beliefs. We found that speakers paired with good listeners (versus those paired with distracted listeners) felt less anxious, more self-aware, and reported higher clarity about their attitudes on the topics. Speakers paired with undistracted listeners also reported wanting to share their attitude with other people more compared with speakers paired with distracted listeners.

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Lebanon Voices Concern over New Syrian Redevelopment Law

Asharq Al-Awsat --- Lebanese Foreign Minister Jebran Bassil voiced on Saturday his country’s concern over a new Syrian law aimed at redeveloping areas devastated by seven years of war, saying it could impede the return of Syrian refugees to their homes. "Law 10" of the legislation allows people to prove they own property in the areas chosen for redevelopment, and to claim compensation. But aid groups say the chaos of war means few will be able to do so in the time specified. The law has yet to be applied and the legislation came into effect last month. In a letter to Syrian regime FM Walid al-Muallem, Bassil said “Law 10” could make it difficult for refugees to prove property ownership, and in turn discourage some from returning.

Lebanon hosts more than a million Syrian refugees and Bassil expressed concern over the limited time frame given for refugees to prove possession of their properties. "The inability of the refugees to practically present what proves their possession (of their properties) during the given time limit might lead to them losing their properties and their sense of national identity," Bassil said in the letter, according to a Foreign Ministry statement. "This would deprive them of one of the main incentives for their come return to Syria," he added, echoing comments earlier this week by Lebanese Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri. Hariri said the law "tells thousands of Syrian families to stay in Lebanon" by threatening them with property confiscation. Moreover, Bassil voiced concern that the law would pave the way for the naturalization of Syrian refugees in Lebanon. He stressed that Lebanon is “committed to its constitutional right to prevent naturalization,” reiterating that the only way to resolve the refugee crisis is for them to return to their homes, if they are located in safe areas. He stated that Lebanon would not forcibly deport the Syrians or link their return to any issue, such as the political solution.

Bassil sent a similar letter to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, calling for action to protect the rights of Syrian refugees in maintaining their properties. He urged it to assume its full responsibilities in informing all Syrians in Lebanon of the law and urge them to take the necessary measures to prove their ownership of property and return home. Lebanon, said Bassil, faces many challenges that prevent it from informing all Syrians of the law, blaming this problem on the “negative policy” and “lack of transparency” adopted by UN agencies in failing to disclose information about refugees to the Lebanese government.

How an Alexa speaker recorded and shared a private conversation

by Heather Kelly  @heatherkelly - cnn - Alexa has many talents. Amazon's voice assistant can play music, set timers, order a pizza, and send recordings of private conversations to random people in its users' contact list. An Amazon Echo user in Portland, Oregon, says she was shocked to learn her Echo had recorded a conversation with her husband without them knowing, then sent the audio file to one of his employees in Seattle. "My husband and I would joke and say I'd bet these devices are listening to what we're saying," the Echo owner Danielle told local news station KIRO 7. The news station did not report her last name. She said the incident happened two weeks ago when the employee called them to say she'd received a strange voice recording of them. "The person on the other line said, 'unplug your Alexa devices right now,'" she told KIRO. "'You're being hacked.'"

The audio recording included the couple talking about hardwood floors. Danielle said they turned off their multiple Echo smart speakers, contacted Amazon and spoke to an Alexa engineer, who apologized multiple times. Related: Alexa is laughing at users and creeping them out Amazon confirmed the error in a statement and explained the improbable series of events that took place for it to happen. It wasn't a hack or a bug with the device, but a case of Alexa's always-listening microphones mishearing a series of words and mistakenly sending a voice message. "Echo woke up due to a word in background conversation sounding like 'Alexa.' Then, the subsequent conversation was heard as a 'send message' request," Amazon said in a statement. "At which point, Alexa said out loud 'To whom?' At which point, the background conversation was interpreted as a name in the customers contact list. Alexa then asked out loud, '[contact name], right?' Alexa then interpreted background conversation as 'right'. As unlikely as this string of events is, we are evaluating options to make this case even less likely."

The Echo only confirms a contact name if there are multiple people in an address book with the same or similar sounding names. It's unknown if the couple had the volume turned all the way down on their device or if they just didn't hear Alexa's multiple spoken replies during the message process. The colored ring on Echo speakers also lights up when the device is active. While voice technology is increasingly popular, there are lingering concerns about privacy issues associated with having an internet-connected microphone in the home. Companies like Amazon and Google say their devices only begin recording when their microphones hear a trigger word or phrase, like "Alexa" or "Hey Google."

Trump cuts North Korea some slack, saying Singapore summit could happen and 'everyone plays games'

by  Alex Lockie - Business Insider -- President Donald Trump told White House pool reporters on Friday that he was talking to North Korea and that the summit between him and Kim Jong Un that he canceled Thursday could still take place. Earlier, Trump tweeted praise of North Korea for what he called a "warm and productive" statement that walked back some of Pyongyang's hardline chatter from the days before. "We'll see what happens," Trump said Friday when asked whether the summit was still on. "We're talking to them now. It was a very nice statement they put out. We'll see what happens." "It could even be the 12th," Trump said of summit, which had been scheduled for June 12. "They very much want to do it. We'd like to do it. We're going to see what happens."

Though Trump cited "tremendous anger and open hostility" from Pyongyang as his reason for canceling the summit, he left the door open for future summits or reconciliation, telling Kim in a letter that he could write or call him at any time. Now it seems North Korea has changed its tune, and Trump is sticking to his word and considering going through with the summit. As far as the diplomatic back-and-forth that derailed what would have been a historic meeting between a US and North Korean leader, Trump seemed understanding. "Everybody plays games," Trump said. While Trump has expressed openness to revisiting the summit, he also warned on Thursday that the US military, South Korea, and Japan all stood ready to respond to any "foolish or reckless" behavior from North Korea.

Hariri Officially Tasked with Forming a New Government

by Naharnet -- Saad Hariri was officially tasked Thursday with forming a new government after he garnered 111 votes in the binding parliamentary consultations, the Presidency said. The consultations were held at the Baabda Palace from 10:00 am until 5:00 pm. Hariri was first to arrive at the Presidential Palace where he met President Michel Aoun as part of the consultations. Hariri was supported by the largest blocs in parliament and will most likely work on forming a national unity Cabinet, similar to the one he's been heading since 2016. Tripoli MP ex-PM Najib Miqati, who leads a four-member parliamentary bloc, met with Aoun and told reporters afterwards that he nominates Hariri for the premiership. “In light of the national imperatives and challenges, I named Hariri for the premiership,” he said.

The consultations on a premier came a day after parliament elected Nabih Berri as its speaker. He has been holding the post since 1992. Former Prime Minister and Beirut MP Tammam Salam also named Hariri. He said: “A new phase is ahead of us. I pray it will be a promising one led by a promising man who is Saad Hariri.” Deputy Speaker Elie Ferzli, whose election to the current post a day earlier was not met with the approval of (Hariri's) al-Mustaqbal Movement, said after meeting Aoun: “We have affirmed the nomination of Hariri for the premiership.” After consultations with Aoun, al-Mustaqbal bloc led by MP Bahia Hariri (Saad Hariri's aunt) said the bloc has nominated the caretaker PM to lead the new premiership.

The Strong Lebanon coalition which comprises the Free Patriotic Movement's MPs, the Armenian MPs bloc, the Mount Lebanon Guarantee bloc (Talal Arslan, Cesar Abi Khalil, Mario Aoun and Farid al-Bustani), and Independence Movement leader MP Michel Mouawad named Hariri. MP Jebran Bassil, the head of the bloc, told reporters: “We have nominated Hariri. This position is normal and consistent with the outcome of the elections.” On the other hand, Hizbullah’s Loyalty to the Resistance bloc unsurprisingly did not name Hariri for the post. They said they "nominated no one."

MP Faisal Karami, spoke on behalf of the National Coalition bloc (Farid al-Khazen, Tony Franjieh, Estephan Douaihi, Fayez Ghosn, Mustafa al-Husseini, Jihad al-Samad and Karami) after meeting Aoun. He said: “As a national coalition we have named Hariri for premiership except for Jihad al-Samad.” Shyly stuttering newly elected MP Taymour Jumblat, who heads the Democratic Gathering bloc succeeding his father Walid Jumblat, announced that the bloc has nominated Hariri. “We deposited the name of our candidate to the government at President Aoun,” said the Social National bloc (SSNP) without disclosing their nomination. The Strong Republic bloc of the Lebanese Forces meanwhile named Hariri for the premiership. After a 15-minute bilateral meeting with the president, LF leader Samir Geagea said: “I hope the new government will be new par excellence and the country needs a major rescue operation.” Surprisingly, the opposition Kataeb Party bloc also nominated Hariri, with its leader MP Sami Gemayel saying that he wants to give Hariri and the country “a chance.” “Our opposition is against a performance, not certain individuals,” Gemayel told reporters.

Hariri was also named by the MPs Fouad Makhzoumi, Edie Demerjian, Michel Murr, Talal Arslan and Adnan Traboulsi as MPs Osama Saad, Jamil al-Sayyed and Paula Yacoubian said they did not nominate anyone. “I have not nominated PM Hariri because I'm opposed to his policies,” Saad said. “I have not nominated anyone for the premiership and I explained to the president that we will practice constructive opposition,” Yacoubian for her part said, noting that this is the stance of the Kollouna Watani civil society coalition. Berri's Development and Liberation bloc also named Hariri for the premiership. Hariri's al-Mustaqbal Movement lost a third of its seats on May 6, when Lebanon held its first legislative election in nine years and voters reinforced the weight of Hizbullah and its allies. Hariri has been prime minister since December 2016 and served his first term from 2009 to 2011.