by alkhaleejtoday.co -- Hind Al Soulia - Riyadh - Lebanon's President Michel Aoun is in hot water after it emerged that tea donated by Sri Lanka for victims of the Beirut blast had been distributed to families of his presidential guards. Critics see it as yet another example of official corruption in a country reeling from the August 4 explosion that killed more than 190 people, wounded thousands and ravaged central Beirut. But the island nation’s ambassador has insisted the controversy is a storm in a teacup, saying that it was a gift for Mr Aoun who can do with it as he wishes. She also blasted the brewing criticism of Lebanese officials. Sri Lanka, many of whose expat community in Lebanon work as housemaids, was one of several nations that rushed to show support after Lebanon's worst peacetime disaster.

The president's office released a picture on August 24 showing Mr Aoun receiving Sri Lank’s ambassador Shani Calyaneratne Karunaratne and quoted her saying that Colombo had "donated 1,675 kilos of Ceylon tea to those affected by the Beirut blast". When asked by Lebanese media what happened to the tea, the president’s office said Mr Aoun had written to his Sri Lankan counterpart to thank him for "a gift of Ceylon tea that had been received by the army … and distributed to the families of soldiers in the presidential guard". On Wednesday morning, the president’s press office confirmed to The National that the tea was a "personal gift" to Mr Aoun and that he had distributed it to members of the presidential guard who were affected by the blast. Social media erupted in criticism, with the hashtags "tea thief" and "Ceylon tea" trending on Twitter. But Ms Karunaratne said such criticism of President Aoun "shameful." "We gave this tea to the president and he can do whatever he wants with it as long as the people who get it are Lebanese," Ms Karunaratne told The National by phone. "It's one of the best teas in the world and I'm happy that whoever he gave it to is drinking it," she said.

by NAJIA HOUSSARI — arabnews.com — BEIRUT: Cypriot authorities on Tuesday repatriated 90 Lebanese, including women and children, to Tripoli after they …

Lebanese former Finance Minister Ali Hassan Khalil was blacklisted by the U.S.

 By Ian Talley in Washington and Nazih Osseiran in Beirut wsj.com -- -- The Trump administration on Tuesday blacklisted two former Lebanese government ministers it says have aided Iran-backed Hezbollah and are part of systemic corruption that the U.S. says is contributing to the country’s economic and political crises. The Trump administration said the action against Yusuf Finyanus, a former minister of transportation and public works, and Ali Hassan Khalil, a former finance minister, is an effort to help Lebanon use the political backlash from last month’s deadly blast in Beirut to overhaul a government long plagued by corruption. The Treasury Department didn’t blame the two for being directly responsible for the port explosion that killed 191 people, injured thousands and leveled much of downtown Beirut last month, but cited the catastrophe as justifying urgent action. A senior administration official said the men likely had some level of oversight of the port during their tenures, though adding that the sanctions weren’t based on that fact. “Both of these ministers would have had some involvement in the development of Lebanese government policies and government action concerning the Beirut port and the activities there,” the official said. Neither of the former officials responded to requests for comment. Hezbollah officials didn’t respond to a request for comment.

U.S. officials last month said they planned sanctions and other diplomatic tools to help shape a new government that would pursue anticorruption measures and sideline Hezbollah, a political group and militia that is allied with U.S.-foe Iran. Washington and other Western nations have designated it as a terrorist group. Senior administration officials said the sanctions should serve as a warning to other Lebanese officials accused of corruption and tied to Hezbollah. David Schenker, the assistant secretary of state for near eastern affairs, said further sanctions should be expected. “I hope that we can get a bunch more of these out there as soon as possible,” he said, declining to elaborate on potential candidates.

by arabnews.com -- NAJIA HOUSSARI -- BEIRUT: The TV channel MTV Lebanon has taken legal action against the Lebanese presidency after being banned from entering the parliament building to cover talks on the formation of a new government. Urgent appeals court judge Carla Shawah told the presidency of the lawsuit — believed to be the first of its kind focusing on media freedom — which comes after a reporter and camera crew from the channel were refused entry to the Baabda Palace last week. MTV attorney Mark Habaka told Arab News: “We look forward to a decision that is in the interest of press freedom because the decision to deny the MTV team entry to the Republican Palace is unfair and a violation of freedom of expression, which is guaranteed by the constitution.”

The MTV team said it was shocked after being stopped from entering the Baabda Palace to cover binding parliamentary consultations that Lebanese President Michel Aoun held to appoint a prime minister for the next government. Habaka denied claims that the channel undermined the presidency. “We consider this move to be a dangerous precedent with regard to undermining the Fourth Estate,” he said. MTV, like many privately owned channels, has been highly critical of the Lebanese government and Aoun in the wake of the Beirut port explosion on Aug. 4. Presidential spokesman Rafik Shalala confirmed a statement had been issued by the General Directorate of the Lebanese Presidency explaining the decision to deny MTV entry to the palace.