by tradearabia.com FFA Private Bank, one of the leading investment companies in Lebanon, is all set to launch a structured investment vehicle to channel the country’s investments in power sector and infrastructure projects. A first-of-its-kind in the country, Lebanon Infrastructure Fund is very advanced in terms of financial sophistication, said its top official. The initial […]

by Gulf news – Joseph A. Kechichian, Senior Writer Beirut: At least six months preparation time will be required before a Lebanese parliamentary election can be held under any new law, Interior Minister Nohad Mashnouq said on Friday. Lebanese politicians have indicated they are close to agreeing a new parliamentary election law after months of […]

By Bethany Allen-Ebrahimian – This article represents opinion of the author

Amid renewed congressional efforts to tighten sanctions on Hezbollah, delegations of Lebanese politicians and bankers descended on Washington in May in an attempt to minimize the effects of any new sanctions on the Lebanese banking sector. A draft amendment known as the Hezbollah International Financing Prevention Amendment Act of 2017, which has not yet been formally proposed in the House, would tighten financial regulations on Lebanese banks and extend scrutiny to Hezbollah allies in order to screen for any illicit funding to groups linked to Hezbollah, which the United States, Israel, the Arab League, and others have designated as a terrorist organization.

The draft, first revealed in Lebanese news outlets in April, quickly attracted opposition there. In an April 28 press conference, Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri said that he hoped to work with U.S. politicians to “change” the bill and that such sanctions would be “harsh on Lebanon,” according to the Beirut-based Daily Star. The banking sector is a mainstay of the Lebanese economy. The delegation of bankers and politicians aimed to convey to Congress that, without amendments, the draft regulations would damage their economy and even the overall stability of the country. Yassine Jaber, a Lebanese politician who visited Washington in May, told Reuters, “There’s one question anyone who wants to put pressure on Lebanon should remember: Do you want another failed state on the eastern Mediterranean?” The draft amendment is the second round in a series of efforts intended to squeeze Hezbollah’s financing. In 2015, President Barack Obama signed into law the Hezbollah International Financing Prevention Act, which had been authored by U.S. Representative Ed Royce, a Republican from California. The new draft amendment aims to further strengthen sanctions on the political group’s financing both in Lebanon and abroad, and is in line with President Donald Trump’s emphasis on fighting terrorism financing, especially groups such as Hezbollah which receive backing from Iran.

by Joseph A. Kechichian, Senior Writer Beirut: Lebanon has been ranked third globally for having the most smokers per capita, according to the data released by the World Health Organisation (WHO) for the year 2015. Lebanon has been ranked poorly despite Law 174, which was approved by Najib Mikati’s Cabinet in 2012, and that intended […]

by Asharq Al-Awsat Beirut- Lebanon’s electoral law remains at the center of meetings held between different political parties striving to reach an agreement on a structure that is acceptable by all sides. However, discussions on such a draft-law was absent from Wednesday’s cabinet session chaired by Prime Minister Saad Hariri, who said he was optimistic […]

by pri.org

For all its charm, Beirut can be a difficult place to live. The roads are often clogged with traffic, the sidewalks are narrow and it seems as though there’s a construction site on every corner. Most cities have outdoor places where residents can escape the noise and the chaos. But in Beirut, they’re in short supply — and if developers are allowed to have their way, there may be even fewer still. Beirut’s only public beach — Ramlet al-Baida — is the latest battleground in the fight between Beirutis and authorities over public space in the city. On a brisk, windy day at the beach, Mohammad Ayoub, an activist who campaigns for the protection of public land, stands facing a construction site jutting out onto the sand. Vehicles work on the construction of the Eden Rock Resort on the south end of Ramlet al-Baida beach, in Beirut

“All laws and international agreements, the constitution of Lebanon, say that everything on the sand is public space. So it’s strange to find someone who is pretending that he owns the sand,” he sighs. The beach development now under construction is called the Eden Bay Resort, described by its developers in a promotional video as “an exclusive community by the sea.” When finished — all 5,400 square feet of it — this “sanctuary of luxury and refinement” will feature high-end apartments, a five-star hotel, a spa, swimming pool and a jetty for residents to moor their yachts. It will cater to Beirut’s upper class and wealthy foreign visitors, and it will be unaffordable to most Beirutis. This bothers activists campaigning against the development. “Public space is the spirit of the city. It’s where the city meets. It’s where the children go and play, where young people go and do different kinds of activities and develop their talents. Without public space the people will be more stressful and bored. They will not feel like they belong to the city,” Ayoub says. As far as Ayoub sees it, what little public space that Beirut has is under attack.

Across town, the largest and only substantial park in the city is under threat by plans to build a hospital. Farther down the coast from Ramlet al-Baida, a popular picnic spot on the rocks was closed to the public a couple of years back. Even the city’s downtown area is regularly closed off to the public for security reasons. Densely populated, scarce public space Detailed censuses of the population in Lebanon are hard to come by, for various reasons. But a 2013 survey by the Public Health Ministry estimated Beirut’s population to be around 420,000. That’s around 55,000 people per square mile. For comparison, New York City has around 11,000 people per square mile. Manhattan is more dense, at 72,000 people per square mile, but its public space is incomparably more. Map: Manhattan versus Beirut public space Even famously densely populated and built-up cities like New York have far more green and public space than Beirut does. Up-to-date information on Beirut’s public spaces is limited.

It’s incredible what these shows have done to our profession.” This is how Lebanese dancer Cynthia Assadourian described to Global Voices the impact of shows like the Arabic versions of So You Think You Can Dance?‘ (يلا نرقص) and Dancing With The Stars (رقص النجوم) on the public’s perception of dancing. Assadourian, who was herself a former contestant on So You Think You Can Dance, said that she’s been witnessing a sort of bodily liberation around her: Latin dance, in particular, has become mandatory in dance studios. You see men and women of different ages and from all walks of life coming into the studio to have fun and work out. Even men are letting go of their fear of hip-shaking. I never thought I’d live to see the day where men would do that. She added: Of course, people still come in with a fear of not being able to keep up with the choreography but that’s normal. It might be difficult at first but eventually, your body and mind get used to it. It just takes a bit of practice and hard work.

Most people prefer to take up dancing rather than hit the gym, because it doesn’t feel like a workout. Lyne Gandour, a popular hip-hop dancer, first caught the eyes of her dance teachers at a tender age. She was constantly praised for having a contagious energy whenever she danced. Her ability to memorize choreography and improvise made her one of the most well-known young dancers in Lebanon. Just like many others in her field, Gandour also noticed a shift in attitude when it comes to dance: My first steps in dance started at a very young age with gymnastics, that I learned in my home country of Ivory Coast. Being raised in Africa developed in me a big respect for this form of art. When I moved to Lebanon, my dedication for dance grew ten times stronger, particularly because of how people treated dance and dancers. When I opened my new dance studio, my aim was to educate my students about dance and make them work very hard at it. I want this artistic domain to be as challenging as any well reputed major in Lebanon. Such a shift would be very different from the public perception of dance that Gandour encountered when she first moved to Lebanon: I believe that dance has been quite often associated with pejorative meanings in the Arab world.

by cbs news BEIRUT — “Wonder Woman” has garnered praise from critics, but not everyone is happy about the DC movie.  Lebanon’s ministry of economy is seeking to ban the film because its lead actress — Gal Gadot — is an Israeli, though a formal request for a ban has not yet been received, a Lebanese security official said Tuesday. A ban would require a recommendation from a six-ministry-member committee, a process that also has not yet began, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to reporters. Summer movies: Female-led action films and Oscar contenders An advance premier of the movie is scheduled for Wednesday in at least one cinema in Beirut, which offers its members attending the show free popcorn. Posters of the movie and digital billboards have sprouted up around the Lebanese capital. Lebanon is officially at war with Israel and has a decades-old law that boycotts Israeli products and bars Lebanese citizens from traveling or having contacts with Israelis.

A boycott group, called Campaign to Boycott Supporters of Israel-Lebanon, has campaigned against showing the movie in Lebanon. The campaign on its Facebook page praised the ministry’s call, saying it is advocating a ban because Gadot was a soldier in the Israeli army, and has expressed support for Israel’s military policies against the Gaza Strip, a coastal Palestinian territory run by the militant Hamas group. In a widely shared posting on her Facebook page, Gadot had praised Israel’s military during the Gaza-Israel 2014 war, sending prayers to Israeli soldiers “who are risking their lives protecting my country against the horrific acts conducted by Hamas.” Officials at the Lebanese economy ministry were not immediately available for comment. The security official said banning a movie would be something that would ultimately come from the country’s interior minister, following a recommendation from the six-member committee.

Even though Lebanon enjoys a greater margin of freedom of expression than other countries in the region, prior censorship remains in place, particularly with content relating to Israel, religion and homosexuality. Reflecting tightening of censorship, an Egyptian movie about a celebrity Muslim cleric, Mawlana, and a Lebanese movie, Beach House, about friends discussing their identities were banned in Lebanon earlier this year. Mawlana was later shown after cuts were made, said one cinema manager, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the ongoing controversy. The two movies were approved in Egypt. There is no clear mechanism for appeal of a ban on art work and public campaigns often are the only means to protest a ban.

by AP — French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday leveled a remarkable criticism of two Russian media outlets — with Russian President Vladimir Putin standing by his side. Macron, at a joint news conference with Putin in Paris, was asked by a reporter about his refusal to allow access at his campaign headquarters to some Russian outlets. Macron, whose campaign was the target of a massive cyberattack just before his election victory last month that cybersecurity firms have traced to Russian operatives, accused Russia Today and Sputnik of spreading misinformation.

“Russia Today and Sputnik have been influential outlets which at several times have spoken mistruths about me and my campaign,” Macron said, according to an English translation. “And that’s why they were not invited to my headquarters. All media outlets, including Russian ones, have had access to my campaign. Relationships are always the same.” “So it was serious that foreign media outlets interfered by saying serious mistruths during a Democratic campaign. And I will not give into that in any way,” he added. “But Russia Today and Sputnik have not behaved as media outlets and journalists, but behaved as organs of influence, propaganda, and false propaganda.”

At the news conference, Putin said he and Macron had not discussed the topic of election meddling, but rejected allegations that Russia attempted to influence France’s vote. He also defended his preelection meeting with Marine Le Pen, Macron’s chief rival in France’s campaign. Putin said it would have been strange not to hold a meeting with a candidate who had expressed warming relations with Russia.

 By Naharnet – The upcoming parliamentary elections will apparently be held under a new law based on proportional representation, media reports said on Sunday. “The only remaining obstacle is the demand to move some Christian seats across some districts,” al-Mustaqbal newspaper said. “It has become known that President Michel Aoun in agreement with Prime Minister […]