By Gulfnews

Beirut: Authorities in the Lebanese capital renamed the stretch of
the airport road that was known as Hafez Al Assad Avenue after 1991 as
President Camille Chamoun Boulevard.

A brief ceremony was held
earlier this week in the presence of Dory Chamoun, the son of the
country’s second president, along with representatives from the National
Liberal Party and the Camille Chamoun Association.

The
celebration of the reversion to the old name occurred in front of the
Monroe Hotel in Beirut where the Minister of Education, Elias Bou Saab,
delivered a short speech saying: “President Camille Chamoun inspires us
through his political work to be open to all citizens of the nation.

“The
lesson here today on the eve of Lebanon’s Independence Day is that
Lebanon is only strong through the solidarity of its people and their
rallying around their institutions, Constitution and president.”

What
was left out in the brief talk, delivered in the presence of deputy
Bahia Hariri and Beirut Governor Ziad Chebib, was the pain that many
felt when traditions were upset during the three decades-long Syrian
occupation of the country.

By Reuters

Nov 24 Lebanon’s economy is expected to
grow 1.5 to 2 percent in 2016, Central Bank Governor Riad
Salameh said in a televised speech in Beirut on Thursday, in
line with ratings agency forecasts.

Inflation in 2016 was expected to be close to zero percent,
he said, in a speech to a banking conference.

Salameh added that central bank reserves in September were
at historically high levels and that bank deposits had risen at
an annualised rate approaching five percent.

Ratings agency Fitch said in July it expected real growth in
Lebanon’s gross domestic product to remain lower than 2 percent
in 2016. Moody’s said in the same month that it expected the
economy to grow at a rate of 1.7 percent this year.

Lebanon’s economy has for years been hindered by regional
unrest, including the war in neighbouring Syria, and by its own
political crisis.

But the election of President Michel Aoun this month after a
two-and-a-half-year period without a president, and the expected
formation of a new Lebanese government with Saad al-Hariri as
prime minister, may help alleviate Lebanon’s political deadlock.

@Tyre – #LiveLoveLebanon

Lebanese soldiers marched in formation and helicopters flew overheard in
a military parade in central Beirut Tuesday headed by the newly elected
president, the first such celebration in two years, to mark the
country’s Independence Day. Armored vehicles and tanks rolled down a
major thoroughfare in downtown Beirut, soldiers on horseback marched to
military tunes, and a choir performed national songs while organizers
released balloons in the colors of the Lebanese flag

BEIRUT, Nov. 22 (Xinhua) — Lebanon celebrated Tuesday its 73rd Independence Day with an official ceremony including a military parade by the Lebanese Armed Forces and other Security agencies, staged at Shafiq al-Wazzan Boulevard in Downtown Beirut. President Michel Aoun, Speaker Nabih Berri, Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri and Caretaker PM Tammam Salam attended the ceremony.

During the parade, hundreds of red, white and green balloons representing the colors of Lebanon’s flag were launched skywards after military helicopters overflew marching soldiers.
Aoun, Berri, Hariri and Salam later headed to Baabda palace where they received well-wishers.
Lebanese Independence Day commemorates the country’s liberation in 1943 after 23 years of governance by French Mandate that succeeded the Ottoman rule at the end of the First World War in 1918.

Aoun hailed on Monday the Lebanese army for “gaining citizens’ confidence and being their source of security and serenity,” calling for “liberating civil servants from the culture of corruption.”

He has said in a televised address to the nation on the eve of Lebanon’s Independence Day “when dangers threaten the country, the army remains its security valve and the firm core of its national unity.” “We must immunize independence through refraining from seeking help from foreign forces to achieve partisan interests at the expense of the public interest,” the president noted.
In addition to the pledges of economic growth and security, Aoun said in his oath of office that Lebanon must work to ensure Syrian refugees “can return quickly” to their country.
He also urged to endorse an “independent foreign policy” and to protect Lebanon from “the fires burning across the region.”

November 21 BEIRUT — Saudi Arabia on Monday invited the newly elected Lebanese president Aoun to visit Saudi Arabia kingdom. Saudi Prince Khaled al-Faisal  current Governor of Makkah Province told reporters after meeting President Michel Aoun at Baabda Palace near Beirut that the president has accepted the invitation and agreed to visit after a new […]

By thenational.ae She could be 80 or 81 – while her age is disputed, one thing for sure is November 21 is Fairouz’s birthday. The legendary Lebanese artist, real name Nouhad Wadie’ Haddad, has performed on all the world’s greatest stages, ranging from the Royal Albert Hall in London to Carnegie Hall in New York. […]