Asharq Al-Awsat — Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi said on Sunday it is “shameful” that Lebanese politicians have yet to form a new cabinet nearly three months after elections, blaming their chronic feuding for the country’s “decay”. In his weekly sermon, Rahi drew an unfavorable comparison between Lebanon’s progress in securing a maritime boundary deal with Israel and the paralysis in domestic politics. “Isn’t it shameful that authorities make efforts to reach an agreement with Israel on maritime borders but refrain from forming a government? Has it become easier for them to agree with Israel than to agree on a government among the Lebanese?” he said. “Isn’t the split in political power in Lebanon, and of the parties… the basis of the (country’s) political, economic, financial and social decay?” he added.

The Maronite Patriarch said “ugly campaigns in the media” appeared aimed at delaying government formation and the election of a new president later on this year. Rahi was alluding to an escalating dispute between President Michel Aoun and caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati, who was re-nominated as premier after parliamentary elections in May and has been struggling to form a new cabinet.

Beirut – Paula Astih  — As thousands of public sector workers continue their strike in Lebanon, hundreds of the country’s newborns are being left undocumented. In Lebanon, civil workers have been on strike for more than a month and a half, exacerbating the crises experienced by the Lebanese on different levels. Because of the walkout, the Lebanese can’t obtain their documents to apply for travel visas and they are also unable to complete the process of buying and selling a car. Moreover, the work stoppage obstructs the entry of goods into Lebanon through the Beirut port, which threatens food security.

Since June 13, about 30,000 public workers have been carrying out an open strike to demand a correction of public sector salaries and an increase in the value of social benefits. The direct daily losses caused by the strike amount to about 12 billion Lebanese pounds, or about $400,000, according to the Minister of Labor in the caretaker government, Mustafa Bayram. Despite attempts to reach a settlement with the employees, many of them refuse returning to their duty stations. This reflected badly on families trying to register their newborns. Not only are newborns going unregistered, but also most, if not all, transactions of the civil services departments and others have come to a screeching halt.

By Najia Houssari — arabnews.com — BEIRUT: Lebanon has strongly condemned Friday’s attack on Gaza by Israel. In a statement on Saturday, the Lebanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs called on the international community “to rapidly intervene to promptly stop these attacks, and call on Israel to abide by UN resolutions in order to preserve the safety of the Palestinian civilians who are badly suffering under Israel’s unjust blockade.” The developments in Gaza were being closely followed by Palestinian refugees in Lebanese camps. People in Lebanon are anxiously waiting to see what direction Israel’s military actions will take and whether they will be affected.

Reacting to the attacks on Gaza, Esmail Qaani, commander of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps’ Quds Force, said: “Hezbollah plans to deal Israel a fatal blow and eradicate it completely at the appropriate time. “Israel’s security is decreasing,” he continued. “We will not stop fighting … and we will continue to stand firm.” Hesham Debsi, director of the Tatwir Center for Studies in Lebanon, told Arab News that Qaani’s statement “falls under the category of reaction rather than action.” “Every time Gaza is under attack from Israel, the Revolutionary Guards Corps launches its favorite slogan, stating that it will deal Israel a fatal blow at the appropriate time. We are still waiting for that moment. It is lame rhetoric made at the expense of Palestinian blood. No one believes it anymore. In fact, it serves the Israeli enemy.” Hezbollah praised “the solidarity of the Palestinian resistance factions” and emphasized the need to maintain a unified stance, which constitutes the main factor in triumphing over the enemy.”

سجعان قزي

@AzziSejean

هل كان يجوز أن تُعقدَ قِمّةٌ لبنانيّةٌ تَضمُّ، بعدَ طولِ فِراق، رئيسَ الجُمهوريّةِ ورئيسَ مجلسِ النوّاب ورئيسَ حكومةِ تصريفِ الأعمال لاستقبالِ موفَدٍ أميركيٍّ والتفاوضِ معه حولَ تفاصيلِ ترسيمِ الحدودِ البحريّةِ بين لبنان وإسرائيل؟ ماذا تَركتم أيّها الرؤساءُ “المِضْيافون” لاستقبالِ الملوكِ والرؤساء؟!

لكنَّ قِمّةَ الرؤساءِ الثلاثيّةَ كَشَفت أنَّ النظامَ اللبنانيَّ، منذ دستورِ الطائف، حوّلته الطبقةُ السياسيّةُ، بإشرافٍ سوريٍّ بدايةً، نِظامًا فدراليًّا هجينًا لا على أساسٍ طائفيٍّ فحَسب، بل على أساسٍ مَذهبيّ. ورغم ذلك، ينتقدُ فِدراليّو الطائف الفدراليّةَ ويَعتبرونها تقسيمًا. أجل، إنَّ الفدراليّةَ بالشكلِ الـمـُطبَّقةِ فيه منذ مطلَعِ التسعيناتِ هي تقسيمٌ دستوريٌّ من فوق وواقعيٌّ من تحت، بينما الفدراليّةُ النظاميّةُ الحضاريّةُ هي اتّحاد. وكلّما التقينا كبارَ الديبلوماسيّين المعتمَدين في لبنان يَعترفون بالواقعِ الفدراليِّ الغريب، ويَدعونَنا إمّا إلى الخروجِ منه أو إلى تطبيقهِ حسَبَ الأصولِ الدستوريّة. وما كان الموفدُ الأميركيُّ هوكشتاين “فَرضَ” لقاءَ الرؤساءِ الثلاثةِ معًا، إلا لأنّه تيقّنَ من وجودِ ثلاثِ سلطاتٍ على الأقلّ في لبنان، وكلُّ واحدةٍ تَملِك حقَّ الفيتو كأمرٍ واقعٍ فِدراليّ.

مهما يكن، يبقى أنَّ التقدّمَ الحاصلَ في مفاوضاتِ الحدودِ البحريّةِ بين الجانبين اللبنانيِّ والإسرائيليِّ بوِساطةٍ أميركيّةٍ كافٍ لاستئنافِ اجتماعاتِ الناقورة، لكنّه غيرُ كافٍ بعدُ لتوقيعِ الاتّفاقِ مع ملحقاتِه. وإذا كان لبنانُ وإسرائيل يُعطيان الأولويّةَ لاستخراجِ الغازِ على السجالِ الحادِّ حولَ الحدود، خصوصًا بعد تراجعِ لبنان إلى الخطّ 23، تَظلُّ الخَشيةُ أن تُخفيَ إسرائيلُ، كعادتِها، عُقدةَ رُبعِ الساعةِ الأخير.

by english.alaraby.co.uk — Lebanon’s presidency has denied reports that leading politicians have pocketed hundreds of millions of dollars in Lebanese passport sales, including to individuals associated with the Syrian regime. French newspaper Libération reported Thursday that 4,000 Lebanese passports were on sale for as much as $102,000 each, with relatives of members of the Syrian regime among the prospective buyers. A decree for the naturalisation of 4,000 non-Lebanese was in the process of being issued, sources close to beneficiaries and actors in the passport sale operation told Libération.

The decree would have to be signed by Lebanon’s president, prime minister, and interior and finance ministers – all of whom could allegedly split the proceeds in passport sales, which could total as much as $407 million, according to the report. The “buyers” of the nationality could include relatives of senior Syrian regime figures looking to circumvent travel restrictions and sanctions on them and travel overseas more easily, it added. The media office of Lebanon President Michel Aoun rejected the claims. “What the French Liberation newspaper reported about ‘the sale’ of Lebanese passports to non-Lebanese is false news and has no basis,” the Lebanese Presidency tweeted. The revelations came as part of a Libération report on Lebanon two years after the Beirut port blast in which more than 200 people died. Endemic corruption has been blamed for the disaster, as well as the lack of accountability for those believed responsible for the blast.

By Doreen Abi Raad • Catholic News Service • BEIRUT (CNS) — The 2020 Beirut port blast was the “crime of the century,” said Lebanese Cardinal Bechara Rai, Maronite patriarch. In a solemn Mass commemorating the second anniversary of the blast Aug. 4, the cardinal expressed frustration that no one had been held accountable for the explosion that left 224 dead, 7,000 injured — including 150 of whom are now disabled — and 300,000 homeless. Investigations regarding the blast have been paralyzed by legal and political wrangling. “We are today in the presence of two crimes, that of the explosion of the port and that of the paralysis of the investigation. This paralysis is no less scandalous than the explosion itself,” Cardinal Rai said in his homily at St. George Maronite Cathedral, one of some 70,000 buildings that suffered damages from the blast.

The Mass was attended by family members of the blast victims, the injured and those whose homes and livelihoods had been destroyed. Many family members, dressed in black, held photos of their deceased loved ones. One of the biggest non-nuclear explosions ever, the blast was caused by the detonation of a stockpile of ammonium nitrate improperly stored at the port for years. It was so powerful that buildings were affected more than 12 miles away, and the tremor was felt on the island of Cyprus, 165 miles across the Mediterranean Sea. “We raise a voice of anger against all officials, whoever they may be, wherever they may be and no matter their status, who are obstructing the investigation as if it were a trivial accident,” Cardinal Rai said. He noted that church officials repeatedly had “called for an international investigation … as the crime may be a crime against humanity in the event that it is found to be a premeditated act.” “The state does not have the right, on the one hand, to refuse an international investigation, and on the other, to block the national investigation,” Cardinal Rai said. “History will not forget all those who sought to erase the truth of the crime of the century and the right of the people to justice,” the cardinal said. “God will condemn those responsible.” “With this memorial service, we wish to add our voice to that of the families of the victims and martyrs, to the voice of the wounded and disabled, and to the voice of those affected,” he said.

by cpj.org — On the evening of Wednesday, August 3, a group of men in the village of Beit Yahoun, in southern Lebanon, attacked Shaaban while he was walking his dog and threatened to kill him, according to multiple news reports, a statement by a local press freedom group, and the journalist, who spoke to CPJ in a phone interview. On Thursday morning, Shaaban found a bullet left on the window of his car, images of which he posted to Facebook; he told CPJ he saw it as a threat against his life. Shaaban works as a freelance photographer, and has contributed to the U.S. outlet Bloomberg as well as the regional outlets The Daily Star, Middle East Eye, Lorient Today, and Al-Modon, he told CPJ. He recently covered protests over water shortages in Beit Yahoun, and said he was sure that the attack and threats stemmed from that reporting. “The attack on Lebanese photojournalist Hasan Shaaban and the threats to his life are deeply alarming, and authorities should investigate them at once,” said CPJ’s Middle East and North Africa program coordinator, Sherif Mansour, in Washington D.C. “Authorities should ensure that those responsible do not escape justice, and must protect Shaaban and all other journalists covering protests and other sensitive issues throughout the country.”

On Wednesday evening, a man approached Shaaban and told him and his dog to leave Beit Yahoun, the journalist told CPJ. After the journalist refused, that man returned with seven other men, and one slapped Shaaban in the face, another punched him, and as the journalist fled the scene, the men followed him, knocked him to the ground, and beat, punched, and kicked him, Shaaban told CPJ. The attack stopped when one of the men said, “that’s enough,” and one of the attackers told Shaaban, “If we ever see you back here, we’ll kill you.” Shaaban told CPJ that, while the men did not say why they were attacking him, he believed it was retaliation for photos and videos of those protests he published on his personal Facebook page, where he has about 1,700 followers and frequently posts his reporting. Those posts, which included clips of locals criticizing the local political parties Amal and Hezbollah, were later cited in local media reports, he said. He told CPJ that he knew the men who attacked him, and they were supporters of Hezbollah. “If there was another reason, they would’ve done it before,” he said. “This is clearly because the reporting went viral.”

by diplomatie.gouv.fr — Two years after the Beirut port explosion on August 4, 2020, France expresses its total solidarity with the Lebanese people. We stand with the victims’ families and loved ones, whose memory we still cherish in Lebanon and France. Those responsible must be held accountable. The Lebanese judiciary must be able to conduct […]

by NADIA AL-FAOUR — arabnews — DUBAI: Two years ago, on Aug. 4, 2020, Ghassan Hasrouty walked into his office at the port of Beirut where he had worked a steady job for the past 38 years. He would not return home that day. At 6:07 p.m. local time, hundreds of tons of hazardously stored ammonium nitrate ignited in Warehouse 12 where Hasrouty was working. He and several of his colleagues were killed instantly. The third biggest non-nuclear explosion ever recorded in history devastated the port and a whole district of the Lebanese capital. At least 220 people were killed, more than 7,000 wounded, and a city already in the throes of economic and political crisis was left paralyzed under a mushroom cloud of pink smoke. “The investigation of the port explosion will be transparent. Take five days, and any officials involved will be held accountable,” Mohammed Fahmi, Lebanon’s interior minister at the time, said after the blast. And yet, two years on, as families still reel from the loss of their homes, businesses and loved ones, the official Lebanese state’s investigation remains stagnant.

On July 31, part of the port’s now grimly iconic grain silos collapsed, sending a cloud of dust over the capital, reviving traumatic memories of the blast. The Lebanese Cabinet recently approved plans for the controlled demolition of the silos, which were badly damaged but miraculously survived the 2020 blast, having sustained much of its force. The decision has sparked outrage among Beirut residents and victims’ support groups who have called for the silos to be preserved until a full and proper investigation into the blast is concluded. Many place the blame for the blast and its aftermath on corruption and mismanagement within the Lebanese government. With a status quo originating from the days of the 1975 to 1990 civil war, which has rendered those in power effectively untouchable, the inquiry has descended into little more than a finger-pointing match as it moves from one presiding judge to the next. With that, politicians have effectively ensured the complete impunity of officials who have long been wanted for questioning, arrest and prosecution.

By Najia Houssari — BEIRUT: The celebration of the 77th Lebanese Army Day on Monday witnessed over 40 female officers graduating from the Lebanese Army Military Academy. Female officer Lt. Angie Khoury was the top cadet in this year’s graduating class. She read out the oath and all graduates repeated it after her. The gender split reflects “the progress of Lebanese society and the change in the stereotypical picture of women,” said the National Commission for Lebanese Women in a statement. “It also shows that the Lebanese Army appreciates women’s capabilities and qualifications, and opens the door for them to reach decision-making positions in the fields of security and defense,” the commission added.

Women’s access to senior positions in state security is one of the envisaged objectives in the national plan to implement the UN Security Council decision 1325 on women, peace and security. A ministerial decree was issued in 1989 including applicable provisions related to the recruitment and service of Lebanese women in the army, in line with women’s rights to equality, in addition to a defense law that grants all Lebanese the right to volunteer to serve in their country’s military. Over time, women’s roles were no longer limited to administrative work. According to the Lebanese Army’s Orientation Directorate, today “women occupy many positions in combat units and they proved their success in all tasks assigned to them.” The total number of women who graduated from the academy reached 46 out of 121 graduates — 40 from the ground forces, four from the air forces, and two from the maritime forces.