By NAJIA HOUSSARI — arabnews.com — BEIRUT: Struggling to cope with soaring living costs and low wages, desperate Syrian refugees and workers are abandoning Lebanon and turning to a new migration route into Europe, via Belarus, with many risking their lives and family savings in the process. An illegal Syrian worker who arrived in Beirut four years ago and lives with his 20-year-old sister in the capital told Arab News that “working in Lebanon no longer makes sense.” “I work all day long delivering goods to be paid 50,000 Lebanese pounds (equivalent to $2.50 on the black market),” Ahmed said. “That is not nearly enough because of the rising costs.” In the past two months alone, more than 16,000 undocumented migrants are believed to have entered the EU from Belarus after Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko responded to Brussels-imposed sanctions by saying he will no longer stop asylum-seekers from crossing into neighboring Poland.

Belarus has been accused of offering migrants tourist visas and helping them across its border — a move that appears to have made the previous migrant route through Turkey and on to the Greek islands a thing of the past. Arab and foreign airlines arranging trips to Belarus through Lebanon have seen demand surge since September, while Syrians have been queuing outside the General Directorate of Public Security’s offices in Beirut for hours to have their passports returned or to pay residency fees. Lebanese citizens can obtain a visa for Belarus once they arrive at Minsk airport. However, Syrians, Iraqis and Palestinians are required to get a tourist visa in advance. Ahmed told Arab News that he found a video on TikTok of Syrians talking about their trip to Belarus, then Poland and finally to Germany, and claiming that the journey is less risky than traveling by sea. “I am now getting my documents ready to leave before the end of October, because things will not get easier after that because of the conditions in winter,” he said.

lb.usembassy.gov — On October 22, Ambassador Dorothy C. Shea attended the inauguration of the Pop-Up Spaces program in Saida. This one year-long program, which is implemented by Tatweer Baladna, will empower youth and young professionals in South Lebanon, North Lebanon, and the Bekaa through civic education and social entrepreneurship training and hands-on activities. During the […]

ان تقريب موعد الانتخابات هو امر دستوري ١٠٠/١٠٠،  في حين ان وضع المجلس الحالي هو مخالف للدستور لانه لم يتم انتخاب بدلاء عن النواب المستقيلين والمتوفين وفقاً لمنطوق المادة ٤١ من للدستور . كذلك مساواة المنتشرين بالمقيمين في العملية الانتخابية هو مطابق للدستور. أوضاع لبنان والحكومة بين ميقاتي وسليمان زار رئيس مجلس الوزراء نجيب ميقاتي […]

by middleeasteye.net — Samir Geagea, head of the Lebanese Forces (LF), a Christian party, has been summoned for questioning over deadly violence that erupted at a protest last week, a judicial official said on Thursday. Fadi Akiki, a representative of the military court, had “instructed the army intelligence to summon Geagea and take his statement based on information provided by arrested LF members”, the official said. Seven people were killed last week when a gun battle erupted as protesters from the Hezbollah and Amal groups were on their way to demonstrate against the lead investigator of the Beirut port blast, Tarek Bitar. The majority of those killed were members of Hezbollah and Amal, who accused the LF of being responsible for sniper fire against the protesters that ignited street clashes, charges Geagea rejects.

Twenty-six people were arrested after the violence in the heart of the Lebanese capital, most of them LF members, the official said on Thursday. Geagea has denied responsibility for the deaths, saying that residents of Beirut’s Christian neighbourhood of Ain al-Remmaneh had “defended” themselves against “Hezbollah militiamen who tried to enter their homes”. On Thursday, Geagea told Lebanon’s MTV channel that he was not informed of any request to hear his statement on last week’s violence and added that his group does not have any armed fighters. “I am ready to appear before the judge, on one condition: that Hassan Nasrallah does it before me,” he said. Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah on Monday launched a scathing attack against the LF leader, saying that his movement had 100,000 armed fighters at its disposal, and warned it against sparking any “civil war”. He has been in hiding since the war between Hezbollah and Israel in 2006.

إنَّ بلدًا تقفُ الحربُ الأهليّةُ خلفَ بابِه ليس بلدًا قابلَ الحياة. إن شعبًا يَتعرّض فيه كلُّ جيلٍ من أجيالِه لتجربةِ الدمِ حريٌّ به البحثُ عن مصيرٍ آخَر. إن مجتمعًا يسيرُ عكسَ حركةِ التقدّمِ والتاريخِ يَلفِظُه الحاضرُ والمستقبل. إنَّ نظامًا مركزيًّا يَفرِزُ الفتنَ دوريًّا ليس نظامًا مناسبًا. إنَّ دولةً لا تَحمي شعبَها هي دولةٌ فاشلة. إنَّ تعدُّديّةً تَفتقِر إلى الحضارةِ المتوازيةِ وثقافةِ السلام هي مصدرُ اقتتالٍ موسِميّ. إنَّ مكوّناتٍ لا يتضامنُ بعضُها مع البعضِ الآخَر لا تحترمُ بديهيّاتِ الشعورِ مع الشريكِ الآخر.

أحداثُ 14 تشرين الأوّل وخِطابُ السيد حسن نصرالله وما تَبِعهُما من مواقفَ ملتَبسةٍ ومتقلِّبةٍ وذِميّة، أيْقظَت هذه المعطياتِ القديمةَ/الجديدة، وأكّدَت، مرّةً أخرى، استحالةَ البقاءِ في ظلِّ دولةٍ مركزيّة. ما تَصوّرتُ يومًا أن يُهدِّدَ السيّدُ نصرالله المسيحيّين اللبنانيّين بذاتِ المنطقِ العَدائيِّ الذي يُهدِّدُ به إسرائيل. يَتوعَّدُ إسرائيلَ بمئةِ ألفِ صاروخٍ، والمسيحيّين بمئةِ ألفِ مقاتل. إشكاليّةٌ هي توحيدُ الأرضِ والشعبُ منقسِمٌ، ومأساةٌ هي تقسيمُ الأرضِ الوطنيّةِ بسببِ انقسامِ الشعبِ لدَواعٍ غيرِ وطنيّة. عِوضَ أن يكونَ التقدّمُ في الزمنِ تَقدُّمًا في تثبيتِ دولةِ لبنان، أخَّرَها. وعِوضَ أن تكونَ المحنُ عِبرةً تَختِمُ حروبَنا بالشمعِ الأحمرِ، بَقيت مفتوحةً وتَفنَّنا في إعادةِ إنتاجِها. غريبٌ هذا الوطنُ الذي نَشأ للكلمةِ ولا يَحتكِمُ إلا للسلاح، وتأسَّسَ للتوافقِ فصارَ بئرَ أحقاد. نحتاجُ هيئةً لمكافحةِ الأحقادِ أكثرَ من هيئةٍ لمكافحةِ الفساد.

By Najia Houssari — arabnews.com — BEIRUT: Amos Hochstein, the US envoy appointed by the Biden administration this month to mediate Lebanon’s maritime border dispute with Israel, held talks on Wednesday with Lebanese President Michel Aoun, Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri and Prime Minister Najib Mikati on the future of the negotiations. Aoun expressed “Lebanon’s readiness to continue to cooperate positively” with the process. However, the points of contention remain. “The administration of President Joe Biden is ready to help Lebanon and Israel find a mutually acceptable solution to their common maritime borders,” the State Department said. Hochstein, who is also the State Department’s senior adviser for energy security, also met Foreign Minister Abdullah Bou Habib, Energy Minister Walid Fayyad and army commander Gen. Joseph Aoun.

The speaker’s office said Berri’s discussion with Hochstein focused on “multiple files, particularly the demarcation of the maritime and land border between Lebanon and occupied Palestine. The framework agreement announced in October last year was confirmed.” The US administration’s framework agreement for talks, which was implemented a year ago by Assistant Secretary of State for Near East Affairs David Schenker, includes two demarcation zones, for land and maritime borders. In accordance with the agreement, the US acts as mediator at the request of both sides. Lebanon has been seen as struggling with the demarcation of its maritime borders. After submitting a border proposal to the UN in 2011, Lebanese officials decided that it was based on mistaken estimates and demanded an additional 1,430 square kilometers, an area that includes part of Israel’s Karish gas field.

The Israelis oppose this. Berri told Hochstein: “We have a new opportunity to resume negotiations in the southern Lebanese town of Naqoura, thanks to the new US efforts in this context.” He also highlighted “the importance of excluding Lebanon from the sanctions of Caesar’s law in the topics of piping Egyptian gas and electricity from Jordan through Syria to Lebanon.” Lebanon has been experiencing widespread power outages as a result of fuel shortages amid a crippling economic crisis. The Caesar Act is US legislation sanctioning the Syrian government for war crimes against the Syrian people. “The US envoy conveyed to Berri an optimistic view about positive progress being achieved in what relates to these matters,” the speaker’s office said.

by naharnet.com — Kataeb Party chief Sami Gemayel has called on the Lebanese people to “withdraw legitimacy from Hizbullah’s actions” through voting for change in the upcoming parliamentary elections. “We’re not speaking of eliminating Hizbullah. We are saying that the battle will withdraw the legitimate cover it had gained from institutions,” Gemayel added, in an […]

لقد أحسن النواب بالأمس، بالمساواة ما بين المنتشرين والمقيمين في كيفية انتخاب ممثليهم في البرلمان. ان فكرة تحديد دائرة خاصة بالمغتربين كانت معقولة في بداية الاقتراح عام ٢٠٠٩ قبل التطور التكنولوجي الهائل الذي اضحى بمتناول الجميع ويسمح بالانتخاب عن بعد،  اما  بعد ١٣ سنة وبعد كل هذا التطور وبعد ازدياد عدد المنتشرين النخبويين وبعد تصاعد […]

BEIRUT,  (Reuters)  By Maha El Dahan and Laila Bassam – Lebanon’s parliament voted on Tuesday to hold legislative elections on March 27, giving Prime Minister Najib Mikati’s government only a few months to try to secure an IMF recovery plan amid a deepening economic meltdown. Lebanon’s financial crisis, which the World Bank labelled one of the deepest depressions of modern history, had been compounded by political deadlock for over a year before Mikati put together a cabinet alongside President Michel Aoun. The currency has lost 90% of its value and three-quarters of the population have been propelled into poverty. Shortages of basic goods such as fuel and medicines have made daily life a struggle. Mikati, whose cabinet is focused on reviving talks with the International Monetary Fund, had vowed to make sure elections are held with no delay and Western governments urged the same.

After a meeting with an executive director at the IMF on Tuesday, Mikati said his government had compiled necessary financial data for the fund. “We hope to complete a cooperation programme before the end of this year,” Mikati was quoted in a statement by his office as saying after a meeting with the IMF’s Mahmoud Mohieldin in Beirut. But a row over the probe into last year’s Beirut port blast that killed over 200 people and destroyed large swathes of the capital is threatening to veer his cabinet off course. Some ministers, aligned with politicians that lead investigator Judge Tarek Bitar is seeking to question over the explosion, last week demanded that the judge be removed from the probe. Mikati has since said the cabinet will not convene another meeting until an agreement is reached on how to deal with the crisis.

https://f24.my/854Q