by dailystar.com.lb -- Hussein Dakroub -- BEIRUT: French President Emmanuel Macron is outraged by Lebanese political leaders’ failure to act quickly to form a new government to deliver reforms and has therefore decided to wash his hands of the Lebanese crisis for now, a Western diplomatic source said Sunday. However, despite Macron’s frustration with rival Lebanese politicians’ lack of seriousness in dealing with the country’s worst economic and financial crunch in decades, the French initiative to rescue Lebanon from a series of multiple crises is still alive, the source told The Daily Star. “President Macron has washed his hands of the Lebanese crisis, in a move reflecting his disappointment with Lebanon’s political leaders’ continued obstruction of the formation of a new government to enact urgent reforms. He has relegated to the French cell of former French ambassadors who served in Lebanon the job of following up on the implementation of the French initiative to save Lebanon,” the source said.

Macron’s fiery stance came after President Michel Aoun this week suddenly postponed until Oct. 22 binding parliamentary consultations to designate a new prime minister that were set to take place Thursday, apparently due to a lack of strong Christian support for former Prime Minister Saad Hariri’s nomination. Hariri had appeared assured of gaining the support of a parliamentary majority sufficient to designate him to form a new government despite opposition from the two main Christian blocs -- the Free Patriotic Movement and the Lebanese Forces. Hariri, backed by France and regional powers, had emerged as the favorite candidate to form the next government in the absence of a serious Sunni rival. Aoun cited what he called “difficulties that need to be resolved” for his decision to postpone the parliamentary consultations. But Future Movement MP Assem Araji had told The Daily Star that Aoun acted at FPM leader MP Gebran Bassil’s behest to postpone the parliamentary consultations in a bid to block Hariri’s designation for the premiership. A source at Baabda Palace Sunday said the binding consultations would go ahead as scheduled Thursday. “So far, the consultations will take place as planned on Thursday. Barring last-minute hitches, Prime Minister Hariri is expected to be designated as prime minister Thursday,” the source told The Daily Star.

by euronews.com -- Lebanon’s fashion industry is currently enduring a triple crisis. The current economic recession is the worst in the country’s history, COVID-19 has decimated sales and August’s port explosion has destroyed many outlets. To support the sector, a global crowdfunding campaign called “United for Lebanese Creatives” was established. The initiative identified & raised funds for more than 30 Lebanese designers & artists, many of them with ateliers & shops destroyed. Collection collateral Twenty-eight-year-old Lebanese designer, Roni Helou, is a recipient of the aid provided by United for Lebanese Creatives. Helou’s business suffered badly following August’s port explosion, with his atelier, equipment and machinery destroyed. The designer, who did not have insurance, estimates his losses will run to around $15,000.The young creative established his Beirut-based label in 2017, with a focus on sustainability, ethical & local fashion. His latest menswear collection, due for September release in the UAE, was also lost in the port blast. The pieces were made from environmentally friendly, discarded fabrics and so-called ‘dead stock’ materials. The collection took more than a month to construct at a cost of approximately $2,000.

Couturier comeback

by arabnews.com — BEIRUT: Lebanon’s top Christian cleric urged Lebanese leaders to stop delaying talks on forming a government in a scathing …

By Jennifer Jacobs -- Bloomberg -- Lebanon’s security chief held talks with top administration officials in Washington this week as the U.S. seeks to resolve his country’s energy dispute with Israel and free an American journalist kidnapped in Syria, according to people familiar with the matter. Abbas Ibrahim, the influential head of Lebanon’s General Security agency, spoke with Robert O’Brien, President Donald Trump’s national security adviser, at a dinner on Friday night, said the people, who asked not to be identified discussing private meetings. He also met Central Intelligence Agency Director Gina Haspel. Amid the Trump administration’s push to shift broader U.S. policy in the Middle East, the fate of Austin Tice remains unresolved some eight years after he was abducted in Syria while on assignment. Trump said in March that the U.S. is working with Syria — Lebanon’s war-wracked neighbor — to secure the journalist’s release.

O’Brien and Ibrahim also met at the White House during the Lebanese official’s visit, according to one of the people. The two know each from when O’Brien served as Trump’s hostage envoy in 2018 and 2019. Ibrahim played a role in the release of three hostages, including Sam Goodwin, a U.S. citizen released from Syria last year, and Nizar Zakka, a Lebanese businessman and U.S. resident who was let go by Iran and accompanied by Ibrahim on his return to Beirut. The White House and a CIA spokeswoman declined to comment. A General Security spokesman in Beirut said he had no information on any meetings. Read more: Senators Urge Pompeo to Press for Release of Americans Overseas Guests at the Friday night dinner included Diane Foley, the mother of American journalist James Foley, who covered Syria’s civil war and was beheaded by Islamic State in 2014. She presented Ibrahim with an award, according to one of the people.