احد مبارك “الواقع أنّ إيجاد الحلول الدائمة لا يمكن أن يأتي إلا من قلب لبنان” انطونيو غوتيريس امين عام الامم المتحدة في …

by voanews.com -- AMMAN, JORDAN — Lebanon’s parliamentary election will be the first held since the popular uprising in late 2019, when hundreds of thousands took to the streets demanding an end to the entrenched political and economic patronage system, blamed for multiple dire crises engulfing the tiny Mediterranean country. A spiraling economy has plunged three-quarters of Lebanese into poverty as their local currency has lost some 93 percent of its value. Medicine and electricity are in short supply, while food prices have skyrocketed due to inflation. The economic meltdown, coinciding with the coronavirus outbreak, has posed the worst threat to Lebanon’s stability since the 1975-1990 civil war, observers say.

Over the course of 2021, the heavily-armed Iran-backed Hezbollah Shiite militia and political party, along with its allies, have repeatedly tried to remove the judge responsible for investigating the deadly 2020 Beirut port explosion, accusing him of political bias—a charge independents deny. Many Lebanese are angry that no senior official has yet been held accountable for the country’s worst peacetime disaster. Meanwhile, Gulf Arab states accuse Hezbollah of trying to proliferate drugs into their region via fruit and vegetable imports, straining historic ties with Lebanon. Several activist platforms fielding candidates have formed, analysts say, such as Minteshreen, meaning “from October” and “coming from different backgrounds,” to break down divisions the political elite have fostered, such as voting along sectarian lines.

By Najia Houssari - arabnews.com -- BEIRUT: Lebanese security services have imposed a three-week curfew for unvaccinated residents, with fines for those who break it, from 5 p.m. to 6 a.m. until Jan. 9, 2022, amid rising cases across the country. The committee that follows up on coronavirus disease preventative measures said it would exclude those “with at least one vaccine dose or a negative PCR test in the last 48 hours and children under 12.” On Friday, the Ministry of Public Health reported 1,912 new COVID-19 cases, mostly in people between 30 and 39 years old, some of whom had received three vaccine doses. In addition, 14 deaths were recorded. The ministry said: “We have had 22,168 active cases these last 14 days,” adding only 34 percent of people had received two vaccine doses, with the lowest vaccination rate recorded in the Bekaa region.

Lebanese Red Cross Secretary-General George Kettaneh said that “ambulance teams transport 80 to 100 cases to hospitals every day, while over 1,200 oxygen concentrators have been distributed.” So far, Lebanon has had 60 cases of the new omicron variant, but Lebanese Health Minister Firass Abiad noted it is “rapidly spreading … two and a half times faster than the delta variant.” Those who have received three vaccine doses have greater protection against omicron, he added. Lebanon fears yet another outbreak over the holidays, particularly since the medical sector is exhausted amid shortages in staff, fuel, oxygen, medical supplies and medicines.

by arabnews.com -- EPHREM KOSSAIFY -- NEW YORK: Ahead of his visit to Lebanon next week, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called on the country’s leaders to step up their efforts to root out corruption and promote accountability and transparency. “Lasting solutions can only come from inside Lebanon,” he said on Friday in a video message. “It is essential for leaders to put the people first and implement the reforms needed to set Lebanon back on track, including efforts to promote accountability and transparency, and root out corruption.” Guterres expressed his concern for the Lebanese people and the hardships they are facing. He praised them for their “generosity, resourcefulness and hospitality,” qualities he said he has seen first-hand during his visits to the country as head of the UN Refugee Agency.

Lebanon faces multiple crises. In addition to an ongoing financial and economic collapse, it is struggling with the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and still reeling from the devastating explosion at Beirut’s port on Aug. 4 last year, which claimed more than 200 lives, injured more than 6,000, left many more homeless and cost the country up to $4.5 billion in damages. “The United Nations mourns with you,” Guterres told the Lebanese people. “Among the youngest victims were two children of UN staff members.” The explosion happened when a large amount of ammonium nitrate, stored at the port for six years without proper safety precautions, ignited. Tensions remain high in Lebanon over the investigation into the blast, and last month this spilled over into street violence that left at least six people dead. Activists and relatives of the victims say that the official inquiry is being hampered by the Lebanese political leadership in an effort to shield politicians and officials from scrutiny. “I know the Lebanese people want answers and I hear your demands for truth and justice,” Guterres said.