by Washington – Elie Youssef -- aawsat.com/ -- American sources revealed that they had from the start believed that the border negotiations between Lebanon and Israel would not reach any tangible results. The sources, which were in contact with the State Department team that sponsored the negotiations, said that the talks were “hastily” arranged. They revealed that they had urged the team against being hasty in launching the negotiations months before the American election. The team had sought a “political victory” in beginning the marine border talks, but the Trump administration’s defeat in the election means that it will not be employed for any political gain. Moreover, the sources said the team failed in understanding the “mentality” of the Lebanese side of the negotiations. They explained that they underestimated the reasons that could motivate the Lebanese to “accept any settlement that could help them resolve their crippling economic crisis.”

Indeed, the reality on the ground showed that the ruling Lebanese class does not care in the slightest about easing the crisis and is happy to leave the country in the hands of an armed group – Hezbollah – that is following a non-Lebanese agenda. “It was evident that the Lebanese negotiators will not offer a free gift” to Trump when he leaves office, said the sources. They would rather offer it to Joe Biden’s administration amid Iran’s hopes that it could salvage the 2015 nuclear deal or end US economic sanctions against it, they continued.

By NAJIA HOUSSARI - arabnews.com -- BEIRUT: Lebanese Army troops were deployed near the home of parliamentary Speaker Nabih Berri on Saturday as protesters targeted people they believe are a “privileged elite.” Groups of demonstrators have followed political and economic leaders into restaurants and cafes to protest and accuse them of theft. They include former minister Adnan Kassar, the wife of the governor of the Banque du Liban, Nada Riad Salameh, and the secretary-general of the Future Movement, Ahmad Hariri. There was further anger on Saturday when video footage emerged of bodyguards for Hariri, cousin of Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri, apparently attacking protesters inside an upmarket Italian restaurant in Beirut. Twitter user Usamaibn Munqid said: “The whole Lebanese political elite needs to be jailed whether it is Hariri, Aoun, Berri and many more.”

by NAJIA HOUSSARI -- arabnews -- BEIRUT: Student movements at Lebanese universities and independent civic groups are reorganizing themselves with the goal of changing the ruling authority in Lebanon. Secular and independent clubs affiliated with the Mada network in Lebanon’s universities launched the “Declaration of Lebanese Students” on Saturday, in light of “the unprecedented risks threatening students, especially the crisis of the dollarization of tuition fees.” That dollarization has seen tuition fees start to massively increase at institutions across the country, following decisions to adopt the Lebanese Central Bank’s new exchange rate of 3,900 Lebanese pounds to the dollar. The American University of Beirut (AUB) saw its tuition costs increase 160 percent alone as a result. Lebanon has been in the grip of a currency crisis ever since the pound, previously pegged at 1,500 to the dollar, began to devalue rapidly as a consequence of political and economic mismanagement, blamed by many on the country’s elite. Student elections at a number of private universities in Lebanon resulted in a series of unprecedented victories for independents, especially secular representatives, on representative councils this year, after decades of being held by students from the country’s ruling parties.

The representative of the Secular Club at Saint Joseph University, student Charbel Shaya, said: “The independent, unified student movement has turned the tables after student representation was confiscated by parties in power. I believe that networking between us has led to achievement, and the time has come to fight the battle of refusing the dollarization of tuition fees as a prelude to rejecting what the parties committed against us as people.” Qamar Suleiman, a medical student at the University of Balamand, said: “Political awareness in universities is one of the means for change. Politics controls the corners of our lives, and engaging in student elections is a step toward creating independent secular groups that believe in social justice to improve student life and protect their rights. “We want to impose a truly progressive and clear political discourse that establishes grounds for individuals capable of practicing political life in a sound manner after graduation,” he added. “The parties in power make us pay for things that we did not commit, but rather they did.” Manal Suleiman, an engineering student at Notre Dame University, said: “Universities are the ones that should fear their students, just as governments should fear their people. Students today are reclaiming their role through independent student movements that aim for change.” And Jad Al-Hani, from the AUB, said: “The retreat of the (main) parties in the student elections at the university was a declaration of defeat. The first battle we will fight is the battle against dollarizing tuition fees. We are headed toward an escalation in the coming days.”

BEIRUT (AP) Zeina Karam — Top Lebanese politicians and the militant Hezbollah group rallied on Friday against charges of negligence levelled against the caretaker prime minister and three former ministers over the massive explosion in Beirut’s port, underscoring the enormous difficulties facing the investigation. Hezbollah called on investigating judge Fadi Sawwan to reconsider the charges, calling them “political targeting” and saying they lacked legal and constitutional basis. Similar criticism was voiced by Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri, who visited the accused caretaker Premier Hassan Diab — a political foe — in a gesture of solidarity. Lebanon’s grand mufti, the top cleric for Sunni Muslims, said the charges are an attack on “the office of the prime minister” and were a violation of the constitution. The prime minister in Lebanon must be a Sunni Muslim, according to the country’s sectarian-based power-sharing system.

The four are the most senior officials to be charged in the investigation and are set to be questioned as defendants next week by Judge Sawwan. It was not clear whether the criticism could have an impact on the investigation — or the charges— but the united front was seen by many as an attempt to block a precedent that might lead to accountability on a high level. A culture of impunity has prevailed in Lebanon for decades, including among the entrenched political elites. It has also fostered widespread corruption that has helped plunge Lebanon into the worst economic and financial crisis in its history. “What is happening now can be summed up in four words: Gangs defending each other,” tweeted Riad Kobaissi, an investigative journalist who has followed corruption at Beirut port. In a stunning move, Judge Sawwan filed the charges against Diab and three former ministers on Thursday, accusing them of negligence that led to the death of hundreds of people in the catastrophic explosion in August. At this point, however, it is far too early to say if any of the four will actually face trial. Diab, who is supported by Hezbollah and its political allies, resigned in the wake of the Aug. 4 blast but remains in his post in a caretaker capacity, as Lebanese officials have failed to agree on a new Cabinet.