by arabnews.com - NAJIA HOUSSARI - BEIRUT: Meetings between Lebanese officials and a delegation from the International Monetary Fund began on Tuesday in an attempt to find a solution to the nation’s financial crisis. Lebanon asked the IMF six days ago for help to develop an economic rescue plan in light of a $1.2billion Eurobond debt that is due for repayment on March 9. It is the first of three looming debts due between now and June, worth $2.5bn in total, plus an additional $2bn in interest on a $30 billion debt portfolio.

The participants in the meetings will include Lebanese Prime Minister Hassan Diab, central bank Governor Riad Salameh and representatives of the Banking Control Commission of Lebanon. “Lebanon’s economic and financial crisis is being addressed to mitigate its repercussions,” President Michel Aoun told the UK’s Senior Defense Adviser for Middle Eastern Affairs, Lt. Gen. Sir John Lorimer. “The IMF will provide its technical expertise in setting up a plan. “The unstable situation in several Middle Eastern countries in general, and in Syria in particular, has negatively affected Lebanon.” Amal Movement MP Yassin Jaber said: “Lebanon will wait for what the IMF delegation has to say. It will advise Lebanon and will not impose anything. It will then be up to the 20-minister cabinet to decide whether or not to take the advice.” The economic uncertainty has caused chaos in the money markets, and anger at what many see as profiteering by the banks and money changers. They have hiked the exchange rate against the dollar to 2,500 Lebanese pounds, even though the official exchange rate remains at 1,507, and in defiance of an agreement to limit the rate to 2,000 pounds. “The banks’ practices are a form of systematic fraud. They are confiscating the depositors’ money after having (imposed) high interest rates and reaped huge profits,” said MP Mohammad Kabbara.

by reuters --- BEIRUT: Lebanon’s Prime Minister Hassan Diab, who is getting the cold shoulder from Gulf Arab states, yesterday met Iran’s parliament speaker, the first senior foreign official to visit since Diab’s government took office. The heavily armed Hezbollah, an ally of Iran, is a main backer of Diab’s cabinet, which took office last month after efforts failed to strike a deal with Saad Al-Hariri, a traditional Western ally. Gulf Arab states had long channeled funds into Lebanon. But now, alarmed by the rising influence of Hezbollah, Lebanon’s rich neighbors appear loathe to help it out of an unprecedented economic and financial crisis. The crisis came to a head last year as slowing capital inflows led to a liquidity crunch and protests erupted against the ruling elite. Banks are curbing access to cash, the Lebanese pound has slumped, inflation has spiked and firms are shedding jobs. Foreign donors say they will only help once Lebanon enacts long-delayed reforms. Analysts say Hezbollah’s role in forming Lebanon’s new cabinet could make it harder to get aid from Western and Gulf states that are worried about Tehran’s clout in the region. Diab has said his first trip abroad would be to the Arab region, particularly the Gulf monarchies. But none of them have officially commented on the government nor extended public invitations to Diab. An Arab diplomat in the Gulf said only Qatar had invited Diab to visit so far. “No other government in the Gulf will invite him,” the diplomat said. Qatar did not immediately respond to a request for comment on whether it had sent an invitation.

by dailystar.com.lb -- BEIRUT: An Israeli online newspaper reported Monday that a Lebanese man, who worked for the Israeli Mossad, fears deportation to Lebanon, claiming that Israel refuses to help him. The Times of Israel says that Benjamin Philip-not his real name- worked for the Mossad since 2011, during which time he helped gather information on Lebanon’s Hezbollah. While the paper does not give his current whereabouts, it says Philip is seeking asylum in Europe.“However, if this [asylum] fails [...] it appears he will be sent back to Lebanon,” the report said. He said that if deported, he will face years of imprisonment, “a scenario that he, a gay man, cannot accept, knowing that such a sentence in a Lebanese prison would mean rape and torture,” the paper said. Philip added that his decision to go public with his story came “out of a sense of desperation, hoping — as a last-ditch effort — that by making his case public, he could pressure Israel and the Mossad to help him, as he says they promised to do.”

by middleeasteye.net -- Lebanon's state-owned carrier Middle East Airlines (MEA) revoked a decision to accept payment only in US dollars after a backlash on Sunday, Lebanese media said. The country is in the throes of an economic meltdown and a biting liquidity crunch that has seen the local currency depreciate and banks impose stringent controls on withdrawals and transfers abroad, AFP said. News of the decision, which was first reported late Saturday, drew dozens of people to MEA's ticket office at Beirut airport where they tried to buy tickets in Lebanese pounds before the decision was due to take effect on Monday, Reuters reported. Former foreign minister Gebran Bassil declared the decision illegal. Writing on Twitter, parliamentarian Fouad Makhzoumi said the move put the Lebanese under effective "house arrest" and must be cancelled. President Michel Aoun said airfares should be priced in Lebanese pounds in line with the law.