By ZEINA KARAM, Associated Press

BEIRUT (AP) — It's summer in this proud Mediterranean city, with celebrities and Lebanese expats flocking to international festivals and parties at Beirut's beaches and nightclubs. But the country's own citizens are suffocating from mountains of stinking garbage collecting on the streets — yet another reflection of government paralysis and its inability to find a solution for the capital's rubbish.

Lebanon has enjoyed relative calm amid the violence afflicting neighboring countries in the past few years. Despite a massive influx of Syrian refugees and occasional outbursts of sectarian clashes, Beirut has largely survived the regional upheaval, even if its politicians have been locked in internal disputes, unable to agree on a new president for more than a year.

The British ambassador’s farewell letter to Lebanon has been widely shared over the past few days on many Lebanese Facebook and Twitter pages. In the emotional and heart-felt piece, Tom Fletcher encourages Lebanese to look beyond the political chaos and to the bigger picture. Below the farewell letter:

"So…Yalla, Bye" by Tom Fletcher UK Ambassador to Lebanon

Dear Lebanon,

 Sorry to write again. But I’m leaving your extraordinary country after four years. Unlike your politicians, I can’t extend my own term.

 When I arrived, my first email said ‘welcome to Lebanon, your files have been corrupted’. It should have continued: never think you understand it, never think you can fix it, never think you can leave unscathed. I dreamt of Beirutopia and Leb 2020 , but lived the grim reality of the Syria war.

 Bullets and botox. Dictators and divas. Warlords and wasta. Machiavellis and mafia. Guns, greed and God. Game of Thrones with RPGs. Human rights and hummus rights. Four marathons, 100 blogs, 10,000 tweets, 59 calls on Prime Ministers, 600+ long dinners, 52 graduation speeches, two #OneLebanon rock concerts, 43 grey hairs, a job swap with a domestic worker, a walk the length of the coast (Video). I got to fly a Red Arrow upside down, and a fly over Lebanon’s northern border to see how LAF is enforcing Lebanese sovereignty. I was even offered a free buttock lift – its value exceeded our £140 gift limit, so that daunting task is left undone.

i24news

Berlin studying ways in which it can help Beirut lower costs of dealing with excess trash

In an attempt to ease Lebanon's waste disposal problem, Germany is exploring ways for Beirut to export its garbage to the European country, according to Beirut-based paper The Daily Star.

Politicians in Beirut, divided by local and regional conflicts, have been unable to agree on where to dump the capital's rubbish. Mounting piles of garbage festering in the summer heat are triggering health warnings and protests by residents furious their government failed to avoid a crisis ignited by the long-scheduled closure of a major landfill site last month.

By Joseph A. Kechichian,Senior Writer

Beirut: Lebanese Prime Minister Tamam Salam may resign on Wednesday, a senior government source told Gulf News. The possible resignation is due to intractable differences within the government and if it happens it will deal a serious blow to the ongoing political deadlock in the country. However, the posts of several important military and security officers will be extended, the source affirmed.

The terms of Walid Salman (Army Chief of Staff), Edmond Fadel (Chief of Army Intelligence) and General Jean Qahwaji (Commander of the Lebanese Armed Forces) would be extended due to the highly sensitive and volatile security situation in Lebanon.