By BY RUSSELL A. BERMAN, thehill.com — Lebanon is facing a dangerous combination of accelerating crises — economic, political and societal. Although Lebanon is a small country, important issues for U.S. national interest and geo-strategy are at stake. Yet, currently, American Middle East foreign policy is devoted to the single obsession of the Iran negotiations, leaving little oxygen for other matters. This is a mistake. The Biden administration should develop a more nuanced engagement with the region and especially a robust response to Lebanon’s pending collapse. The Lebanese currency has lost close to 90 percent of its value, pushing much of the country below the poverty line, with many families relying on remittances from relatives abroad. Yet even those lifelines cannot make up for the shortages in commodities: gasoline, medications and food are all in short supply. Add to this a crumbling infrastructure that can supply electricity for only a few hours every day. Meanwhile, a political stalemate blocks the formation of an effective government that could institute reforms that might alleviate some of the problems. Instead, the political class, largely viewed as incorrigibly corrupt, is making no effort to meet the needs of the public. One bright light is the emergence of vibrant oppositional forces. But they remain fragmented, and elections will not take place until next year.

Leadership change may therefore be too far in the future to rescue the crumbling institutions that once enjoyed a strong international reputation, especially Lebanese universities and hospitals. Now the talented personnel on which those institutions depend are trying to leave for better paying jobs abroad. After the troubled decades of civil war and occupations, after the devastation of COVID-19 and the massive destruction of the explosion in the port of Beirut on Aug. 4, 2020, this already fragile country faces even greater disorder. Given the extent of the suffering, there is every reason to provide humanitarian assistance to Lebanon, as the United States is already doing. The U.S. also provides important training support to the Lebanese armed forces, although the scope of that mission has been shrinking. Otherwise, American engagement is quite limited. Washington should do more and put Lebanon higher on the list of foreign policy priorities for four reasons

By NAJIA HOUSSARI MOHAMMED ABU ZAID — arabnews.com — BEIRUT, CAIRO: After he presented a 24-minister cabinet lineup to Lebanon President Michel Aoun on Wednesday, prime minister-designate Saad Al-Hariri is expected to either step down or go on with his mission. If the proposal is approved, it could end a political stalemate that has pushed the country toward social and economic collapse for the past nine months. If Aoun does not approve, Hariri has vowed to resign. “Now is the moment of truth,” Hariri told reporters after delivering the proposal to the presidential palace in Beirut. “This cabinet can help the country rise again and put an end to the collapse,” Hariri, who was designated in October, said he was expecting Aoun’s response on Thursday and he “will be making his decision accordingly.” The proposal does not give a blocking third to any political side and came after French Presidential Envoy Patrick Durel and Mahmoud Mohieldin, the executive director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), renewed pressure on Lebanese officials to form a government.

Lebanon has been without a functioning government since the previous one resigned in the wake of the Aug. 4 Beirut port blast that claimed the lives of 215 people, injured 6,000 more, and destroyed Beirut’s waterfront along with large sections of neighboring residential areas. Hariri presented his cabinet proposal to Aoun during a 30-minute meeting at the presidential palace, and according to a source close to Hariri, “the proposal for a cabinet includes new names.” Hariri presented his proposal to Aoun after he made a brief visit to Cairo on Wednesday where he met with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi. Sources in Cairo said Egypt had promised economic and political support for a new government and that a delegation would travel to Beirut soon. El-Sisi stressed “Egypt’s support for Hariri’s path aimed at restoring stability in Lebanon, addressing current challenges, and for his attempts to form a government … Lebanon must put national interests above any other interests, thus preserving the capacities of the brotherly Lebanese people and its national unity.” Hariri also held talks with Egypt’s Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry.

By GEORGI AZAR — arabnews.com — DUBAI: Two public hospitals in Lebanon have threatened to shut their doors from Thursday, July 15, if officials fail to disburse urgently needed supplies, funds and materials as the healthcare sector inches closer toward a collapse. Lebanon has been hit with an unprecedented financial, economic, and monetary crisis that has wiped out life savings coupled with a crippling liquidity crunch. Shahar Gharbi Governmental Hospital, located in the heart of Aley district, announced Tuesday that it would stop receiving patients as of Thursday. “We’re facing crisis after crisis. Fuel shortages, medicine shortages and unsustainable wages,” Nawal Al Hasaniya, a member of the hospital’s secretary administration, told Arab News.

The health sector, as with virtually all other sectors across the country, has been reeling under the burden of the country’s severe financial crisis, prompting medical practitioners to repeatedly sound the alarm. The national currency has lost more than 91 percent of its value since October 2019, causing the value of the minimum wage to plummet to around $35 per month. At Sibline Government Hospital on the southern outskirts of Beirut, managing doctor Ali Al Barraj echoed Hasaniya’s concerns. “It’s an extremely tough situation. Starting tomorrow we’re going to shut down,” he said. Just like Shahar Hospital, his facility will limit its activities to only treating life-threatening conditions such as dialysis and heart conditions. Employees, they explained, now earn as little as $40 per month, with Barraj calling on the Health Ministry to disperse LL3 billion while raising their wages. A similar plea was made by Sibline Hospital, yet both have fallen on deaf ears. “Until now, we haven’t heard anything, and we are headed toward an escalation,” Hasaniya said.

by bbc.com — Dearbail Jordan & Simon Jack — At 10.30pm on a cold December night in 2019, a former titan of the global car industry lay bundled inside a box on board a plane, waiting to flee Japan. “The plane was scheduled to take off at 11pm,” recalls Carlos Ghosn. “The 30 minutes waiting in the box on the plane, waiting for it to take off, was probably the longest wait I’ve ever experienced in my life.” Now, for the first time, the man who was once the boss of both Nissan and Renault has detailed his daring escape. In an exclusive interview with the BBC, Mr Ghosn tells how he disguised himself to slip unnoticed through the streets of Tokyo, why a large music equipment box was chosen to smuggle him out of Japan and the elation he felt when he finally landed in his native Lebanon. “The thrill was that finally, I’m going to be able to tell the story,” he said.

Mr Ghosn was arrested in November 2018 over allegations by Nissan that he had understated his annual salary and misused company funds, which he denies. At the time, Mr Ghosn was the chairman of the Japanese carmaker. He was also chairman of France’s Renault and the boss of a three-way alliance between both carmakers and Mitsubishi. His cost-cutting at Nissan – initially controversial – was ultimately seen to have saved the carmaker and he became a highly respected and recognisable figure. But he insists he was “collateral damage” in a fight back from Nissan against the increasing influence of Renault which still owns 43% of the Japanese company. Documentary series Storyville details his extraordinary rise and sudden fall in Carlos Ghosn: The Last Flight which will be shown on BBC 4 on Wednesday 14 July.

by middleeastmonitor.com — Lebanese President Michel Aoun confirmed Tuesday that the country’s parliamentary elections will be held as scheduled in 2022, Anadolu Agency reported. According to a statement issued by the Lebanese Presidency, Aoun told the former Head of the European Union delegation, Elena Valenciano, that “parliamentary elections will take place on time, in spring […]

وزير فرنسيّ: نحترم إلتزاماتنا على عكس السلطة اللبنانية http://alhadeel.net/article/178253 الجميع يشير الى عدم احترام الدولة اللبنانية التزاماتها. صح بالاضافة الى عدم تسديد سندات الدين لم نلتزم تعهداتنا بتحييد لبنان بعد ان التزمت الامم المتحدة والدول الصديقة بناء لطلبنا ( اعلان بعبدا ) كما لم نلتزم بمناقشة الاستراتيجية الدفاعية التي تعهدنا مناقشتها ( اليوم لا لزوم […]

By Louisa Ballhaus — msn.com — While Ivanka Trump and husband Jared Kushner seem to be distancing themselves more and more from former president Donald Trump, younger daughter Tiffany Trump may be thinking this is her moment to shine — and her wedding plans suggest that Marla Maples’ daughter, at least, has no problem aligning herself with the Donald Trump brand. Recent moves by Ivanka like her vaccine selfie and midsummer trip to Aspen amid Trump’s Dallas CPAC appearance seem geared at showing just how different from her dad Ivanka can be, but Tiffany — who has long remained more at the outskirts of Trump’s orbit than her older sister — is reportedly considering a family wedding ceremony with fiancé Michael Boulos (Lebanese originally) at her dad’s very favorite place: Palm Beach’s Mar-a-Lago. “They both want to marry in a big ceremony, your basic international spectacle,” a source tells People of Tiffany’s plans. Boulos, whom she started dating in 2018, proposed in January 2021 and has since begun eagerly planning with his fiancée. “Tiffany likes the idea of a glamorous and glitzy affair and, surprisingly, so does Michael.”

Ivanka Trump Didn’t Join Her Siblings in Posting a Father’s Day Tribute to Donald Trump This Year “I don’t know if they will have two big deal weddings but there could be a smaller celebration somewhere if relatives can’t make the big one,” the source added. “Mar-a-Lago would make sense even though so many people marry there…It depends when it happens and what is going on around them at the time.”

by AFP — BEIRUT: The judge investigating last year’s deadly Lebanon port blast on Monday rejected a request by MPs for more evidence before immunity for three ex-ministers can be waived, a judicial source said. Hundreds of tonnes of ammonium nitrate fertiliser exploded on the dockside at Beirut port last August 4, killing more than 200 people, injuring thousands and ravaging swathes of the capital. Afterwards, it emerged that officials had known about the explosive substance being stored there unsafely for years. Coming less than a month before the first anniversary of the tragedy, Monday’s move may mean a new standoff, with fears that the probe could be derailed by political interference. Earlier this month, lead judge Tareq Bitar said he had demanded that parliament lift the immunity of ex-finance minister Ali Hasan Khalil, former public works minister Ghazi Zaiter and ex-interior minister Nohad Machnouk. Bitar said he was looking at possible charges of “probable intent to murder” and “negligence”.

Deputy speaker Elie Ferzli said parliament’s administration and justice committee on Friday decided to “request all evidence available in the investigation, as well as all documents that prove suspicions”. He said the committee would reconvene once it had received a reply, to decide whether or not to waive immunity. On Monday, the judicial source said no further documents would be forthcoming. “The investigating judge rejected parliament’s request … In an official letter he explained that he had already handed over all the documents that needed to be handed over,” the source told AFP. – Protests – Lawyer and activist Nizar Saghieh said the committee’s request on Friday went against the separation of powers between the judiciary and the legislature, and “violated the confidentiality of the investigation”. “They’re just trying to buy time,” he alleged.

PARIS (Reuters) – The European Union said on Monday it wanted to agree by the end of July the legal framework for a sanctions regime targeting Lebanese leaders, but cautioned that the measure would not be immediately implemented. Led by France, the EU is seeking to ramp up pressure on Lebanon’s squabbling politicians after 11 months of a crisis that has left Lebanon facing financial collapse, hyperinflation, electricity blackouts, and fuel and food shortages. The move is part of broader international efforts to force a stable government capable of carrying out crucial reforms to emerge from nearly a year of political chaos and economic collapse following a blast that ravaged Beirut port. “I can say that the objective is to complete this by the end of the month. I am not talking about the implementation of the regime, just the building of the regime according to sound legal basis,” EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell told reporters in Brussels.

Nearly a year after the Aug. 4 explosion, which killed more than 200 people, wounded thousands and devastated swathes of the capital, Lebanon is still headed by a caretaker government. “Lebanon has been in self-destruct mode for several months,” French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian told reporters in Brussels. “Now there is a major emergency situation for a population that is in distress.” The EU first needs to set up a sanctions regime that could then see individuals hit by travel bans and asset freezes, although it may also decide to not list anybody immediately. Le Drian said there was now a consensus among the bloc’s 27 nations for a regime.

By Vivian Nereim and Donna Abu-Nasr — bloomberg.com — The sultan of Oman landed in Saudi Arabia on Sunday in the first visit by an Omani leader in over a decade, a sign of shifting alliances in the Persian Gulf as the kingdom reaches out to states with closer ties to regional rival Iran. Skyscrapers in the Saudi capital, Riyadh, were lit up in red and green, the colors of the Omani flag, to celebrate Sultan Haitham bin Tariq’s arrival. The visit to the city of Neom, where he was greeted by Saudi Arabia’s de facto ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, coincides with the opening of the first-ever land crossing connecting the countries as Oman tries to diversify trade routes. The Saudi cabinet also authorized officials to prepare and sign draft agreements with Oman in a slew of fields including commerce, culture, investment promotion and post and transport. “There’s been a lot of work behind the scenes to try to build the foundation of something much more significant between the Saudis and Omanis,” said Ayham Kamel, head of the Middle East and North Africa at the political risk consultancy Eurasia Group. “Sultan Haitham is viewed in Riyadh as leaning toward Saudi in terms of Gulf affairs.”

A closer relationship could be an economic boon for Oman, which is struggling to diversify its economy away from oil. It also comes as Prince Mohammed reaches out to states once held at a distance over differences in their approach to Iran. Saudi Arabia has forged closer ties with Iraq, hosting the prime minister in March, and reconciled this year with Qatar — a Gulf neighbor it had a rancorous split from in 2017. Sponsored Content Resilience Through Digitalization and Sustainability Yokogawa At the same time, tensions have spiked between Saudi Arabia and another Gulf Cooperation Council neighbor, the United Arab Emirates, over differences on oil policy, geopolitical views and economic competition. “It’s almost a new crown prince who thinks about regional affairs differently,” Kamel said. “He’s much more interested in building a GCC-centric multifaceted relationship that does not rely only on one ally, which used to be the UAE, but builds on a much broader network of alliances.”