By AFP — French President Emmanuel Macron called on Lebanon Friday to “get rid” of its political leadership who have for months blocked reforms vital to save its stricken economy. “The problem with Lebanon is that we must solve people’s problems and get rid of those who cannot do it,” Macron said, referring to the country’s entrenched political class — widely blamed for the country’s financial collapse since late 2019. “Lebanon must change its leadership,” he said in an interview with three media outlets including Lebanon’s Annahar newspaper. Macron has taken the lead in international efforts to bail out the Lebanese economy after a collapse in the value of the Lebanese pound plunged most of the population into poverty.

International lenders have demanded that Lebanon adopt a programme of painful economic reforms in return for releasing billions of dollars in bailout loans. But deadlock between opposing alliances of the confessional political parties that have dominated Lebanon since the 1975 to 1991 civil war have left the country with only a caretaker government since an inconclusive May election and a vacant presidency since last month. “The question is: this caste that lives off Lebanon, does it have the courage to change?” Macron asked, adding that he was dismayed to see the mass emigration of young Lebanese who had taken to the streets at the start of the crisis in late 2019 to demand political and economic reform. “My answer is to try to help bring a political alternative to life… and to be intractable with political forces. “I care about Lebanese men and women, not those living off their backs,” he said.

Story by insider@insider.com (Alex Katsomitros) — Since its 2020 debut, the Netflix show “Emily in Paris” has prompted many Americans to fantasize about moving to Paris, pushing an age-old image of the city as the most romantic place on earth. Its plot plays on stereotypes, as Emily, a bubbly, hopelessly naive Chicagoan, wins over the rude but charming Parisians at her office and in her personal life. The show, whose third season premiered Wednesday, is meant to be “a lighthearted romantic comedy,” its creator, Darren Star, told The Hollywood Reporter in 2021, poking fun at “clichés that everyone has experienced at one time or another, both from the American point of view and the French point of view.” But even with the acknowledgment that life isn’t a rom-com, many young American women who’ve moved to Paris have discovered that the real McCoy — or macaron — is much more complicated than it looks on Netflix. “Real life is taking the metro and seeing rats at night.

It’s harder than TV,” says Kiana Tiese, 29, a New Yorker who’s been living in Paris since 2017. In her TikTok videos, Tiese shows her followers how actual life in the City of Light compares with Emily’s escapades. “Being an expat is about how much you grow as a person. Emily doesn’t jump into French culture,” Tiese says. “Many Americans expect people to adapt to them. Once you are an expat and not just a visitor, it’s different.”

Work-life balance in France is better, expats say — but Emily’s social-media savvy isn’t unique

By AFP — Private Sean Rooney, 23, was killed and three others injured on December 14 when their UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) vehicle was attacked near the village of Al-Aqbiya in Lebanon’s south. The area is a stronghold of powerful Iran-backed armed group Hezbollah. One of the injured was medevaced home to Ireland on Wednesday for further treatment. “The investigation has been able to identify suspects but so far none has been arrested and the security services are still looking for them,” said the judicial official who could not be further identified. The UN patrol “was the target of gunfire from at least two people” when it arrived in Al-Aqbiya, according to the same source. Citing preliminary findings, the source said the incident “was premeditated and the patrol was surveilled and followed by a car carrying armed men”.

UNIFIL acts as a buffer between Lebanon and Israel, neighbours which remain technically at war. The force operates near the southern border. Wafic Safa, Hezbollah’s security chief, has said the killing was “unintentional”. Witnesses said villagers in the Al-Aqbiya area blocked Rooney’s vehicle after it took a road along the Mediterranean coast not normally used by UNIFIL. Al-Aqbiya is just outside UNIFIL’s area of operations, the force said.

By MICHAEL YOUNG thenationalnews.com — — Lebanon has been without a president since the end of October, when Michel Aoun’s term ended. Since then, the political forces in the country have failed to reach a consensus on a successor. This is necessary, since parliament elects presidents in Lebanon, and what emerged from the elections in May is effectively a hung parliament. Broadly speaking, there are two major parliamentary alignments. One is led by Hezbollah, and includes the Free Patriotic Movement (FPM), led by Gebran Bassil, Mr Aoun’s son-in-law, and speaker of parliament Nabih Berri’s bloc. The other alignment, which tends to oppose Hezbollah, despite notable exceptions, that includes the mainly Christian Lebanese Forces Party, the Kataeb Party, the bloc led by Druze leader Walid Jumblatt, and a number of Sunni parliamentarians close to former prime minister Saad Hariri. A much more amorphous bloc of independents fluctuates between the two. Parliament has held almost a dozen electoral sessions since October, to no avail, as the search for a successor to Mr Aoun seems frozen. Yet that assessment may not be so accurate. Behind the scenes a search is going on for a new president, one who would benefit from a consensus inside Lebanon, but who would also build trust regionally and internationally.

One of the countries engaged in this effort, according to analysts and diplomats in Beirut, is Qatar, which, with France, has been trying to build Arab backing for a candidate. The Qataris have reportedly told their interlocutors that their preference is for the election of the army commander, Joseph Aoun. Proof of Qatari interest came recently, when they invited Mr Aoun to Doha, before hosting another presidential hopeful, Mr Bassil. While the commander discussed military issues with the Qataris, there was little doubt that his visit was tied to the presidency. Mr Bassil’s trip, in turn, could have been aimed at facilitating his approval of a Joseph Aoun presidency, although at this stage much remains unclear. There are several hoops Aoun will have to go through before there is a concurrence of views around his candidacy Qatar’s role is hardly fortuitous. In 2008, the Qataris were instrumental in negotiating a compromise among Lebanese political factions after armed clashes in and around Beirut. At the time, this compromise, known as the Doha Agreement, involved paving the way for the election of then army commander Michel Suleiman as president and giving Hezbollah and its allies veto power in the cabinet, which they had demanded. That explains why Qatar has maintained the trust of Hezbollah, and why the party will take seriously any deal on the presidency proposed by the Qataris. At the same time, Qatar is seen as instrumental in persuading the Saudis of any agreement reached in Lebanon.

This led one Arab diplomat, cited by a Lebanese newspaper, to speak about Joseph Aoun’s invitation to the emirate: “This invitation, with this timing, is undoubtedly a political message that aims to say that General Aoun’s candidacy for the presidency benefits from Qatar’s support, but also that of France, the United States, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia.” However, those remarks may be slightly ahead of the curve. If we assume the initiative to promote the army commander is serious, and all the signs are that it is, there are several hoops he will have to go through before there is a concurrence of views around his candidacy. And for the time being, nothing indicates we have reached that stage yet.

By David Tusing — thenationalnews.com — At the 71st Miss Universe pageant in January, not only will a winner be announced, but she will get to wear a new crown, crafted by Lebanese jewellery brand Mouawad. The crown, called Force for Good, was unveiled at a glitzy event in Bangkok on Monday by Fred Mouawad, the “co-guardian” of the Beirut-founded brand, as well as the Miss Universe Organisation’s new Thai owner Anne Jakkaphong Jakrajutatip. Former Miss Universe title holders Natalie Glebova (2005) from Canada and Thailand’s Apasra Hongsakula (1965), also attended the event. “The Force for Good crown is a work of extraordinary craftsmanship. It’s a crown filled with symbolism. And we hope it will inspire not only the winners, but all of you to be a force for good,” Mouawad said at the presentation, adding that the crown represents “a future forged by women who push the limits of what’s possible”.

Embedded with 110 carats of blue sapphires and 48 carats of white diamonds, the Force for Good crown features wave-like curls at the base, that emulates a serpent’s head, “symbolising the challenges involved in swaying opponents,” a description by Mouawad reads. The colour gradiant of the predominantly white diamond base then changes to the blue of sapphires towards the top where a blue pear-shaped sapphire sits at the pinnacle, representing hope for a brighter future.

Founded in 1908 in Beirut and now with its headquarters in Geneva, Mouawad has been crafting one-of-a-kind pieces for royal families as well as the wealthy for four generations. It became the official jeweller for Miss Universe in 2019 when it crafted the crown for the winner of the title, South Africa’s Zozibini Tunzi. Called The Power of Unity, the crown, estimated to be between $4 million and $5 million, has been passed on to successive winners. Miss Universe 2021, India’s Harnaaz Sandhu will be the last one to wear it. “We thought, ‘What can we do that’s in line with our heritage, something majestic that would have a very wide exposure?’,” Mouawad told The National in a previous interview, referring to how his company’s relationship with the Miss Universe Organisation began. “And we thought of Miss Universe, because we are, after all, jewellers to royalty. So why don’t we use our know-how to also create a crown for the most beautiful women in the world?” Estimated to be worth $5.5 million, the Force for Good crown comes amid a host of changes at the 70-year-old Miss Universe competition.

By insider@insider.com — Natalie Armbruster — This month, Chinese President Xi Jinping arrived in Riyadh for a three-day visit which included a bilateral meeting between China and Saudi Arabia, a Gulf-China summit, and an Arab-China summit, coming to a consensus on China-Saudi energy and technology cooperation. Throughout the visit, Western media has been quick to conclude that the deals are a message to the West — a snub to Washington and President Joe Biden. However, to assume that China views the Middle East through the same lens the United States has used for the last 30 years is a mistake. China has long assessed US involvement in the Middle East to be damaging to American power and strength. Xi’s visit, and China’s interest, investment, and involvement in the Middle East, have far more to do with shared economic interests and a stable energy supply than any potential security alliance or geopolitical aspirations.

The first thing to know is China’s involvement in the Middle East rests primarily on its energy dependence. In 2021, 72% of China’s crude oil consumption was imported. The Middle East accounted for 50% of these imports. China alone accounted for more than one-quarter of Saudi Arabia’s crude oil exports as well. As long as China remains reliant on external sources of oil and Saudi Arabia is looking to make a profit, it is only natural for Saudi Arabia and China to expand their economic cooperation — bilateral trade which currently amounts to $87.3 billion. This remains true for China’s heavy investment in the Middle East through the Belt and Road Initiative. China’s BRI investments have focused largely on the construction of ports and industrial parks in countries such as Egypt, Oman, Saudi Arabia, or the United Arab Emirates. One needs to know little about geography to observe that China’s investments center around secure and stable access to vital energy and trade chokepoints: the Persian Gulf, the Gulf of Oman, the Red Sea, the Bab al-Mandeb Strait, the Strait of Hormuz, the Suez Canal, etc.

by Hina Navin gulfnews.com — Rabih Bou Rached, a UAE-based Lebanese expat in his 40s, saw himself as an entrepreneur for as long as he can remember. But before setting off on a decades-long entrepreneurial journey, he recalls waiting on tables in his teenage years. But even though it was a low-paying job as a restaurant attendant, it gave him an influx of money because of how well he was tipped. After working in the Food and Beverage (F&B) industry, Bou Rached went on to set up a restaurant by age 21, equipped with the financial lessons he learnt.

“In my teens, I didn’t know how to save or invest my money and spent most of what I made on unnecessary expenses. Over time, I learned how to save and, more importantly, evaluate and decide what expenses were necessary,” said Bou Rached, who now runs a commercial drone service provider. His chance encounter with drones in 2013 became a light bulb moment for him when he realised the potential impact this technology could have in different industries. Since then, it has been his resolve to launch a drone-operated commercial service company in the UAE.

Gaining business experience before entrepreneurship

By Jagmeet Singh — techcrunch — WhatsApp has introduced a feature to undo the “Delete for Me” action to save you from being potentially embarrassed over accidentally deleting a message only for you that you wanted to pull for everyone on the app. The new feature, called “accidental delete,” brings a five-second window to let […]

This is an opinion article and does may not represent khazen.org opinion – 

By Jules Boykoff and Dave Zirin — The winner of the Qatar men’s World Cup is not Argentina, who won the greatest match in finals in history, or even the upstart semifinalist Morocco. It is neither the Golden Boot winner, the otherworldly Kylian Mbappe of France, nor the Golden Ball winner, the legendary Argentinian Lionel Messi. The champion is Qatar, and they didn’t have to win a match. The World Cup host country looks to have successfully—with the West’s full complicity—engaged in brazen sportswashing, earning plaudits and envy from authoritarians the world over.

2022 has unquestionably been the year of sportswashing. Political leaders, authoritarian and democratic alike, used sports mega-events to distract from their crimes and lies. Qatar executed its sportswash brilliantly, and despots—and those aspiring to be such tyrants—are noticing the dividends the country is reaping. The Western wannabe despots were on display as camera captured Elon Musk and seditious Trump-son-in-law Jared Kushner standing unsmiling in a luxury box with gulf state authoritarians. The sportswash, thanks to activists and campaigners across the globe, was not always smooth.

Patriarch Mar Beshara Boutros Al-Rahi condemned the assassination of the Irish soldier within the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), stressing that the time has come for the state to put its hands on all illegal weapons, according to the Lebanese newspaper An-Nahar. He added, “We denounce such actions and condemn them in the […]