By Najia Houssari — arabnews.com –– BEIRUT: Lebanon has decided to formally negotiate refugee repatriation with Syria, a minister in the caretaker government said on Thursday. The Minister of Displaced Affairs Issam Sharaf El-Din said he would visit Damascus after the Eid Al-Adha holiday, making him the first Lebanese minister to visit the Syrian capital in an official capacity since 2011. Sharaf El-Din will discuss the plan to repatriate Syrian refugees in stages and “secure the executive mechanisms” for their return. He confirmed he had an official mandate from President Michel Aoun and caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati for the Syrian refugee issue.

BACKGROUND International organizations were trying to obstruct this issue by threatening to not help refugees if they returned to their country, said Minister of Displaced Affairs Issam Sharaf El-Din. According to Sharaf El-Din, the plan stipulated “the repatriation of 15,000 refugees per month” because Lebanon believed the war in Syria had ended and the country was safe. “Lebanon will not accept the non-return of Syrian refugees to their country.” Lebanon, which is already in crisis, says Syrian refugees are a heavy burden on basic services and infrastructure. According to Lebanese protesters, the refugees shared “our bread, which has turned into a rare commodity, and people are scrambling to get it in the past days.” Lebanese ministers have previously visited Damascus and met Syrian officials, despite the suspension of Syria’s Arab League membership, but they have been keen to stress the visits were personal.

by un.org — The following Security Council press statement was issued today by Council President Ronaldo Costa Filho (Brazil): The members of the Security Council took note of the appointment of Najib Mikati as the new designated Prime Minister on 23 June, as well as the presentation by the latter of his Government line-up to […]

By Barak Ravid — axios.com — The Biden administration pressed the Lebanese government to criticize Hezbollah’s attempt to send drones to an Israeli natural gas rig in the Mediterranean and to commit to resolving the maritime border dispute with Israel only through negotiations, sources briefed on the issue told Axios. Why it matters: The U.S. is concerned Hezbollah’s actions will sabotage its efforts to broker a deal between Israel and Lebanon on the maritime border by September. Lebanon and Israel each claim a potentially gas-rich, 330-square-mile area off their borders in the Mediterranean Sea. Driving the news: The Israeli military on Saturday shot down three Hezbollah drones headed toward the Karish gas rig. Hezbollah said it launched the unarmed drones on a reconnaissance mission meant to send a “message” to Israel.

Behind the scenes: U.S. energy envoy Amos Hochstein and U.S. ambassador to Lebanon Dorothy Shea spoke to senior political and military leaders in Lebanon over the weekend. They raised concerns about the drones incident and asked the Lebanese government to publicly speak against it, sources briefed on the issue said. According to the sources, Hochstein told several senior Lebanese officials that progress in the maritime border dispute with Israel will be achieved only through negotiations and not through provocations by Hezbollah. What they’re saying: After the U.S. pressure, caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati and Foreign Minister Abdallah Bou Habib on Monday issued a statement committing to the U.S.-led negotiations and criticizing Hezbollah without directly mentioning it by name. “Any act that falls outside the framework of the state’s responsibility and the diplomatic track within which negotiations are taking place, is unacceptable and exposes [Lebanon] to unnecessary risks,” Bou Habib and Mikati said.

سجعان قزي

@AzziSejean

لا شكَّ أنَّ لدى المعنيّين النيّةَ الصادِقةَ لعدمِ تأليفِ حكومةٍ جديدة، ولا يَتورَّعون عن إعلانِها كلّما سَنحَت لهم المنابِر والحناجر. يَتوزَّعون، مع القوى السياسيّة، صلاحيّاتِ تعطيلِ المؤسّساتِ الدستوريّةِ كأنَّ التعطيلَ أصبح حالةً ميثاقيّة. كان المسُّ بمؤسّسةٍ دستوريّةٍ جريمةً لا تُغتَفر فصارت، في السنواتِ الأخيرة، وِجهةَ نَظر. كانوا يُقْدِمون عليها بخفَرٍ فصاروا يُجاهرون بها بوقاحة. كانوا يَجهَدُون لتأليفِ حكومةٍ جديدةٍ، فصاروا يَلتمِسون اجتهاداتٍ دستوريّةً من كلِّ صَوبٍ لتعويمِ حكومةٍ مستقيلة. كانت المنافسةُ لإشغالِ مناصبِ هذه المؤسّساتِ، فأمْسَت لتفريغِ المؤسّساتِ بحدِّ ذاتِها. دولةٌ في طورِ الأُفول قبلَ الاتّفاقِ على بديل.

أصلًا الدولةُ الأصيلةُ، دولةُ لبنانَ الكبير، عَدّها البعضُ دولةً بديلة. كان لبنانيّون يَعتبرونها بديلًا عن جبلٍ أشمَّ ما زال يُراودُ عِزّتَهم، وآخَرون بديلًا عن وِحدةٍ عربيّةٍ أو إسلاميّةٍ حضاريّةٍ هامدةٍ في الوِجدانِ، ومع حزبِ الله أُضيفَ مفهومُ الدولةِ الرديفةِ لإيران الخُمينيّة. واللافتُ الـمُحزِنُ أنَّ لبنانَ ما شارفَ في تاريخِه الحديثِ على السقوطِ الكيانيِّ أكثرَ ممّا حينِ تَـمَّ الاعترافُ به “وطنًا نهائيًا”. في ظنّي، سببُ هذه الظاهرةِ الغريبةِ هو أنَّ الاعترافَ بنهائيّةِ لبنان تَرافقَ مع تغييرِ هُويّتِه، والخروجِ عن الحِياد، وتقويضِ انتظامِ مؤسّساتِه الدستوريّة، والانتقالِ مباشرةً من عدمِ الولاءِ للبنان إلى الرغبةِ في امتلاكِه من دونِ المرورِ بالولاءِ الحقيقيِّ والصادقِ والصافي. من يومِها صار التعيينُ قاعدةَ الديمقراطيّةِ اللبنانيّةِ والانتخابُ استثناءَها، وأصبَحت المؤسّساتُ الدستوريّةُ نوعًا من الكماليّاتِ أو الـمُتمِّمات.

by Nada Homsi | Jamie Prentis — thenationalnews.com — Dozens of protesters angered by the rapid deterioration of living standards in Lebanon marched through the capital Beirut on Tuesday evening and attempted to break into the headquarters of MTC Touch, one of the two state-contracted telecoms companies. The demonstrations, in which a handful of protesters clashed with security forces, came days after a major jump in the cost of phone and internet services — the latest price rise in a country suffering from inflation of more than 200 per cent. To attend the protest, demonstrators Bassil Hatoum, Maan Moghrabi and Yaman Moghrabi had to split the petrol bill on their way from Kfar Silwan, a village more than an hour away from Beirut. Anger in Lebanon as struggling telecoms sector increases rates “We can’t afford to get here without splitting it. And that’s just us,” said Mr Hatoum, a 27-year-old music manager. “Imagine all the people who can’t afford to come to these protests because they can’t afford the petrol to get here.”

Lebanon’s economic collapse, which began in 2019, has caused about 80 per cent of Lebanon’s population to slip below the poverty line. Dire shortages of basic goods and services have plagued the state in the years since. State electricity is nearly nonexistent, so the majority of Lebanon’s population relies on expensive private generator subscriptions for backup electricity. These are powered by diesel, itself often a scarce commodity in the troubled nation. Water, bread, fuel and medicine are also often in short supply and the local currency has plunged in value by more than 90 per cent. “They’ve brought us to below poverty and somehow they’re still in power,” Mr Hatoum said, referring to Lebanon’s political elite, many of whom transition from their roles as warlords during the country’s civil war — which ended 30 years ago — to national leaders. Mr Hatoum described them as “mafia leaders”. “They’re experts at staying in power through clientelism,” 32-year-old Mr Moghrabi, another of the protesters, added. “No one is comfortable, except for those with money or people who benefit directly from having the political class in power.”

by aawsat.com — Lebanon’s top Christian cleric has reiterated demands for politicians to speed up the formation of an all-party government and elect a new president to pull the country out of rock bottom. “The government shall be inclusive, inspire confidence through its national approach, and seriously address some outstanding issues,” Maronite Patriarch Cardinal Bechara […]

By KAREEM CHEHAYEB Associated Press BEIRUT (AP) — Lebanon’s caretaker prime minister has criticized the militant group Hezbollah for sending three unmanned aircraft over an Israeli gas installation. A statement from his office on Tuesday said that the Iran-backed group’s actions were “unacceptable” and renewed support for ongoing U.S.-mediated maritime border talks with Israel. The […]

By Lisa Schlein — voanews.com– GENEVA — The United Nations is warning that Lebanon is in a state of crisis, with millions of people out of work, and suffering from shortages of food, medicine, fuel, and other essential needs. The United Nations says soaring food prices are forcing 90% of Lebanese families to consume less expensive food, skimp on meals, and reduce portion sizes. It warns spiking crude oil prices threaten to tip thousands of families over the edge, worsening food insecurity, malnutrition, and hunger. A recent survey finds almost a third of Lebanon’s labor force is unemployed, with youth unemployment at nearly 50%. U.N. resident coordinator for Lebanon Najat Rochdi said 2.2 million Lebanese, 86,000 migrants, and 200,000 Palestine refugees need emergency aid, an increase of 46% over last year.

She said the outlook for the country’s financial stability is not good. She notes the World Bank projects Lebanon’s gross domestic product will contract by a further 6.5% this year, with inflation expected to reach devastating new heights. “The socioeconomic meltdown in Lebanon has been further exacerbated by the impact of course of the Ukrainian crisis on the country, which is mainly reflected in the depletion of wheat reserves and the soaring prices of fuel items that are leading to drastic increases in bread prices and threatening food security in Lebanon,” she said.

By Maria Fantappie and Vali Nasr — foreignaffairs.com — US. President Joe Biden’s July trip to the Middle East comes at a delicate moment. There is a last gasp effort underway to revive stalled talks between the United States and Iran on restoring the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), the deal aimed at preventing the Islamic Republic from being able to develop a nuclear weapon. Since the last round of talks in Vienna, Tehran has accelerated its program and will soon become a threshold nuclear state. When the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)—the UN nuclear watchdog—censured the country for failing to cooperate with inspectors, the Iranian government further curtailed IAEA monitoring of its nuclear program and announced new underground advanced enrichment facilities.

Israel, however, has long promised that it will not tolerate a nuclear-armed Iran, and it is working outside of multilateral institutions to realize that goal. Israel has assassinated Iranian scientists and military officials. It has conducted air attacks on Iranian targets in Syria and expanded its strike capabilities, presumably in preparation for new attacks on Iranian nuclear sites and military facilities. With American backing, the Israelis are also seeking to organize a number of Arab states into a military alliance against Iran. According to The Wall Street Journal, the United States convened a meeting last March with security officials from Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Qatar, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to integrate intelligence sharing and air defense systems to combat aerial threats from Iran.

Caretaker Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates, Abdallah Bou Habib

NNA – Caretaker Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates, Abdallah Bou Habib, and Arab League Secretary-General, Ahmed Aboul Gheit, held a joint press conference this evening, in which they outlined the discussions that took place during the consultative meeting of the Arab foreign ministers held at Al Habtoor Hotel in Sin El Fil this morning.

Bou Habib began by expressing gratitude for “this wide Arab participation in the meeting, which was successful by all standards, thanks to the cooperation between us and His Excellency the Secretary-General of the Arab League, my brother Ahmed Aboul Gheit and his team.” He added: “I felt from all the ministers and heads of delegations all devotion and solidarity with Lebanon in its crisis, for everyone is eager for its recovery as soon as possible…and all deemed that participating in this meeting, in itself, is a message of support and standing by Lebanon.” Bou Habib went on: “This meeting is hosted by Lebanon in its capacity as the current head of the Arab Ministerial Council, and is dedicated to consulting on developments and challenges facing the region and the world.