سجعان قزي

@AzziSejean

اللبنانيّون من مختلفِ الطوائفِ مَعنيّون أخلاقيًّا وجُغرافيًّا بالصراعِ العربيِّ ــــ الفارسيِّ في الـمِنطقة، فهم يَنتمون إلى العالمِ العربيِّ. ومعنيّون أخلاقيًّا ووطنيًّا بالنزاعِ بين السُنّةِ والشيعةِ في لبنان، فهما مكوِّنان أساسيّان في الشراكةِ الوطنيّة. أنْ نكونَ معنيّين لا يُبرِّرُ مطلقًا الانحيازَ عسكريًّا إلى الصراعِ في المنطقةِ، ومذهبيًّا إلى النزاعِ في لبنان. وأنْ نكونَ حياديّين لا يَعني أن نساويَ بين مَن يساعدُ دولةَ لبنانَ وشعبَه في كلِّ المجالاتِ (دولُ الخليجِ العربيّةُ)، وبين مَن يواصِلُ الهيمنةَ على دولةِ لبنان والإساءةَ إلى شعبِه (إيران وحلفاؤها). وأنْ نكونَ حياديّين لا يَعني أيضًا أن نساويَ بين مَن التزمَ مشروعَ الدولةِ (غالِبيّةُ السُنّةِ)، وبين مَن يَلتزِمُ مشروعًا مناقِضًا الدولةَ (حزبُ الله).

ليس اللبنانيّون ضِدَّ إيران وحزبِ الله لأنهما شيعةٌ، وليسوا مع القِوى السنيّةِ الوطنيّةِ لأنّها سُنّية. الخِيارُ الوطنيُّ يُحدِّدُ الـمَعيّةَ بمنأى عن الانتماءِ الطائفيّ. أصلًا ليس الحيادُ الامتناعَ عن الدفاعِ عن النفسِ وعن استقلالِ كيانِ لبنان وسيادةِ دولتِه ومصالحِ شعبِه أكان المعتدي لبنانيًّا أو غريبًا. حدودُ الحيادِ هي حدودُ سيادةِ لبنان. وحدودُ السيادةِ ألّا يَعتديَ أحدٌ علينا وألّا نعتديَ على أحد.

في هذين الواقِعين اللبنانيِّ والإقليميِّ ينحازُ لبنانُ إلى ذاتِه. فلبنانُ، شعبًا ودولةً وكِيانًا ونِظامًا، يتعرّضُ اليومَ لحربٍ غيرِ معلَنةٍ، ولانقلابٍ من دونِ بَلاغات. تجاهَ هذه الحالات، تَستَسلمُ الشعوبُ أو تُقاوم. وحَسْبي أنَّ اللبنانيّين أهلُ مقاومة (وإنَّ الأمسَ لذاكِره قريب). لذلك لا حرجَ في اتّخاذِ موقِفٍ صريحٍ وشُجاعٍ لصَدِّ الحربِ ووقفِ الانقلاب هذا لا يَنتهِكُ مفهومَ الحياد. مؤسِفٌ أنْ يَفرِضَ علينا حزبُ الله وإيرانُ، رغمًا عنّا، هذا الموقفَ، فيما نَطمَحُ إلى أفضلِ صداقةٍ مع إيران وأحسنِ شراكةٍ مع جميعِ شيعةِ لبنان. يَزعَمُ حزبُ الله أنّه لا يُوجِّهُ سلاحَه نحو الداخل اللبنانيّ (!!!)، لكنَّ مواقفَه وتصاريحَه ضِدَّ شركائِه في الوطن وأصدقاءِ لبنان مؤذيةٌ أكثرَ من سلاحِه. السلاحُ يَقتلُ فردًا بينما الموقفُ يَقتلُ وطنًا.

by Selina Denman -- thenationalnews.com -- Lebanese fashion designer Rami Kadi is launching his first collection of non-fungible tokens, or NFTs, dubbed Lucid Algorithms. The collection of 120 NFTs will be available for sale from 5pm, Dubai time on Wednesday on www.rami-kadi.com. A launch event will run alongside the start of the sale at the Theatre of Digital Art in Madinat Jumeirah. “NFTs will change history, they are not just for art and fashion, everything is logged into the 'cloud'. It is like a closed contract, with owners having access to the physical and the virtual. It can never be reproduced – I am the creator and you are the owner,” the designer explains. “When you buy a Rami Kadi NFT, first, you can come to our studio to customise your own couture piece, inspired by these NFTs. Second you can dress your avatar, in 2D or 3D, and third, you will be invited to all our future events in the physical world and in the meta verse.”

The NFTs are being minted on Cardano, a public blockchain platform that is open-source and decentralised, and uses Ouroboros, the first peer-reviewed, verifiably secure blockchain protocol. “I’m very happy to be the first couturier designer that is launching an NFT in the Arab world and I am the first designer launching their NFT on Cardano,” says Kadi. On his decision to launch on Cardano, rather than competitor Ethereum, Kadi points out a number of factors. "First because the fees on Ethereum are quite high, second, Cardano is eco-friendly and sustainable for the environment and, third, because I see a lot of potential for growth on Cardano," he says.

DUBAI/BEIRUT, (Reuters) - Two years into an economic meltdown the World Bank says is one of the worst recorded, Lebanon's rulers have proposed a way to plug a huge hole in the financial system they were blamed for making: savers will foot most of the bill, not banks or the state. The plan, seen by Reuters, seeks to revive the moribund banking system by making depositors cover more than half the $69 billion gap, which is three times the size of Lebanon's economy. It includes converting a large portion of dollar deposits to Lebanese pounds at rates that wipe out much of their value. The state, central bank and commercial banks will contribute $31 billion, or less than half. Agreement on a plan of action is vital for securing an International Monetary Fund bailout and setting the nation on the road to recovery. The new plan needs cabinet approval.

Till now, disputes between politicians and banks about the size of losses and who should pay have stalled any agreement. This latest plan still needs to convince the IMF. But ordinary Lebanese, many driven into poverty, will have little or no say. "It is the victim that has to bear most of the burden," said Toufic Gaspard, an economist who has advised the IMF and Lebanese finance ministry. "Their logic is unacceptable by any standard of logic anywhere in the world." Savers have faced 'haircuts' in other crises around the world, although small depositors are usually protected. Savers in Lebanon with less than $150,000 will have dollars preserved - amounting to about $25 billion - but, like other depositors, the money will be paid out over 15 years. They have already largely been frozen out of their accounts for two years. Yet the scale of Lebanon's crisis, the worst since its 1975-1990 civil war, dwarfs most other global examples. Lebanese government debt was, by some estimates, an eyewatering 500% of gross domestic product in 2021, while the same sectarian leaders who ran the nation into trouble still wield influence now.

by thenationalnews.com — Vatican Foreign Minister Archbishop Paul Gallagher criticised Lebanon’s elite for exploiting problems in the country for their personal gain. …