By NAJIA HOUSSARI -- arabnews.com -- BEIRUT: The Beirut Bar Association has urged all officials to refrain from interfering with the judiciary and respect the law and work of institutions. Nader Kaspar, head of the association, said: “The lawyers stand in solidarity with the judges and the Judicial Council.” His statement came as the confrontation between Hezbollah and the Lebanese judiciary took a dangerous turn. The party has accused Judge Tarek Bitar, who is leading the probe into the Beirut port explosion, of “politicizing the investigation.” In the past few days, the Justice Palace in Beirut has been abuzz with news about the resignation of several judges in protest at the poor conditions the judiciary is experiencing, due to political interference on the one hand and the economic situation on the other.

Former public prosecutor Judge Hatem Madi told Arab News: “What is happening increases the state of disgust within the judicial body. These pressures should not affect the course of the judiciary's work, but how long can the judiciary stand its ground in light of a pressing financial and economic crisis? “Pressure has always been exerted on the judiciary. If the judiciary had surrendered, the judges would have resigned a long time ago. They want to remove Bitar at any cost. They have paralyzed the government and they want to do the same to the judiciary, but the latter has so far been steadfast.” The president of the Fifth Chamber of the Court of Cassation Judge Jeannette Hanna, public defender Judge Carla Kassis, and president of the Court of Appeal Judge Rola Al-Husseini have submitted their resignation. However, the head of the Supreme Judicial Council Judge Suhail Abboud rejected these resignations, asking the judges to “hold back.”

By Najia Houssari -- arabnews.com -- BEIRUT: Black Friday promotions in Lebanon that flooded social media seem to have failed to attract customers as the Lebanese pound hit a new low amid a worsening economic and political stalemate. The currency was trading at 25,000 Lebanese pounds to the dollar on the black market on Friday. A further devaluation seems imminent amid the political instability. Although many stores have extended the sales for the entire weekend, several people who headed to shops in search of good deals said: “It’s a hoax.” Hassan, an engineer, said: “I went to a well-known appliance store where people used to queue for hours to be able to get in during previous Black Friday sales. The prices are much higher than the original brand stores. I left without buying anything.” The minimum wage is now no more than $30, amid worsening economic conditions. The head of the Beirut Traders’ Association, Nicolas Chammas, said: “It is too early to assess Black Friday sales. We need to wait until next week to see to what extent people’s purchasing power has declined.”

On Friday, the Central Bank warned against mobile applications offering exchange rates on the black market: “These are suspicious, illegal applications. Still, they are determining the exchange rate but do not reflect the reality. “Rates change day and night, every day of the week, even during holidays; as if the parallel market is an organized market in the form of a stock exchange. “Those operating these applications are serving other political and commercial interests. The judicial and security authorities have sought to control these applications at the request of the Lebanese government. Since many of them are based outside Lebanon, the Central Bank has demanded that international internet companies remove these applications from their networks.”

by Reuters — Lebanon re-launched a second offshore oil and gas licensing round for eight remaining blocks on Friday, with the deadline …

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