Could Lebanon’s FPM abandon its alliance with Hezbollah?

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By Joseph A. Kechichian Senior Writer Gulf news - This article represents opinion of the author -

Beirut: Lebanon could see a shifting of alliances as Lebanese President Michel Aoun’s Christian Free Patriotic Movement (FPM), which has traditionally been allied with the Shiite Amal and Hezbollah parties, may switch sides to an anti-Syrian alliance comprised of Hariri’s largely-Sunni Future movement and the Christian Lebanese Forces led by Samir Geagea. An FPM shift would essentially break the Amal-Hezbollah monopoly in parliament, something that the Shiite parties chief backers Iran and Syria, would dread. The potential realignment comes as FPM leader and foreign minister Jibran Bassil and Shiite Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri continue to lock horns over a new electoral law.

Politicians have been debating revising the archaic 1960 voting law since 2005 and have yet to reach consensus. According to the 1960 voting law, parliament seats are allocated by religious sects which Lebanon’s most prominent Christian parties want to amend. They say the law marginalises Christian voters, because, in the winner-take-all model Muslim voters in predominantly Christian districts cast their ballots to candidates backed by lists dominated by non-Christian parties. Last month, President Michel Aoun made the unprecedented move to suspend parliament which was due to extend its term for third time since 2009. The move was hailed by Christians but slammed by Shiite politicians including Berri, who also is the Amal party chief.

Powerful Shiite groups like the Iran-backed Hezbollah and Amal want proportional representation or the winner-takes-all system since that would give it potential control of parliament due to its large numbers. Aoun, who has angered Saudi Arabia over his pro-Hezbollah statements in recent months, is apparently ruffling feathers of politicians in his own allianceBerri considered Aoun’s recent remarks to visiting businessmen from Melbourne, Australia, when the president said “those who oppose Bassil’s formula are those who control their communities and do not want minorities represented in parliament”, as a slap in the face.Bassil, Aoun’s son-in-law, has led the charge in parliament and assumed his self-appointed role as the ‘defender of Christians’ in the country.

Lebanon pushed to brink in election law stand-off

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By Tom Perry and Laila Bassam

BEIRUT (Reuters) - Lebanon is on the brink of crisis again with its politicians at odds over an election law at the heart of the nation's sectarian system, threatening to leave the country without a parliament for the first time. Parliament's term expires on June 20 and without a compromise Lebanon faces what one minister has called the most serious political crisis since the end of the 1975-90 civil war. Some analysts believe the dangers of a parliamentary vacuum - including the risk this would topple the government - will force a compromise deal, though there is no sign of one yet.

A short extension of parliament's term beyond June 20 now looks inevitable to allow more time for a deal, though a so-called "technical extension" of a few months will also require a political agreement. Leaders have ruled out a longer extension on concerns of a popular backlash that could cause unrest. "This is the most dangerous crisis the country has been through since the Taif agreement," Finance Minister Ali Hassan Khalil told Reuters, referring to the 1989 peace deal that ended the civil war. "It is the first time since even before Taif that we are close to a (legislative) vacuum," he said However, the prospect of a return to civil war appears remote. Lebanese leaders remain committed to containing sectarian tensions exacerbated by six years of war in Syria. The bigger risk is state paralysis as the government tries to revive an economy saddled by massive public debt and to cope with the strain of 1.5 million refugees from neighboring Syria.

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Nasrallah Announces Hezbollah’s Withdrawal from Lebanese-Syrian Border

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By english.aawsat.com– “Hezbollah” Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah declared on Thursday that the party “competed its mission” along Lebanon’s border with Syria, leaving the arena to the Lebanese state. He announced that “Hezbollah” has “dismantled its positions” along the border, but noted that there is “no end in sight” to the battle on the outskirts of the northeastern border region of Arsal. He made his declaration during a speech marking the first anniversary of the assassination of party military commander Mustafa Badreddine in Syria. “The developments are positive on the eastern border between Lebanon and Syria and they have become very safe,” he added.

“We, in the resistance, entered those mountains and spent difficult days and nights. We offered martyrs and now our presence is no longer needed,” Nasrallah stated. “We dismantled our positions and we will continue to dismantle the remaining military posts along the Lebanese side of the border because our mission is complete and the responsibility now lies on the Lebanese state,” he remarked. “We are not a substitute to the state and Lebanese army,” stressed Nasrallah. Despite announcing the completion of “Hezbollah’s” mission, he acknowledged that the battle on the outskirts of Arsal will continue. “We are prepared to ensure a settlement because the state is not prepared to negotiate with the Syrian government. Regarding the refugees in the camps in Arsal, we are prepared to contact the Syrian regime to return as many of them as possible to their towns and villages. We have no problem with this,” he said. Nasrallah called for cooperation “because the armed presence on the outskirts has become a burden on Arsal and the people. It is therefore best if these issues are addressed to avoid bloodshed.”

How Has a TV Station Fire Inflamed Tensions in Lebanon?

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By Al Bawaba -Article represent opinion of the author 

It seems that Lebanese channel Al Jadeed just cannot catch a break after allegedly having been attacked for the fourth time in 6 months. A van belonging to the privately owned broadcaster was set on fire in the early hours of Thursday morning, according to reports in local media. The station has accused the Amal movement political party, whose leader is parliament speaker Nabih Berri, of being behind the attacks. While the Daily Star reports that security forces are still attempting to discover what started the fire, Al Jadeed has released CCTV footage apparently showing the perpetrators.  Karma Khayat, an Al Jadeed journalist, reportedly claimed that “members affiliated to Berri attacked the channel. “Even if they want to assault or attack us, we have a message and we will deliver it,” Khayat added. In February, angry demonstrators, some of whom were waving Amal flags, attacked the Al-Jadeed headquarters after the channel broadcast a sketch allegedly mocking the missing cleric Musa al-Sadr. However, Amal leader Berri’s press office have denied the allegations, saying that "Khayat approached us with fabrications and lies, which [will] no longer fool anyone.” Opinion was equally divided on social media, with rival hashtags “in solidarity with Al Jadeed” and “Al Jadeed are liars” revealing apparent divisions within Lebanese society. Many expressed their support for the Amal movement,  and claimed that the accusations against it were false. The Lebanese Interior and Information Ministers visited the studio on Thursday, as well as the owner of private TV station LBCI, according to the Daily Star. Berri’s press office has announced that the Amal leader will be taking legal action against Khayat and Al-Jadeed for what it calls their “false accusations.”

Lebanon’s Hariri Invited to Saudi-US Summit in Riyadh

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Asharq Al-Awsat English - The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz has sent an official invitation to Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri inviting him to attend the Arab-Islamic-American Summit to be held in Riyadh on May 21. According to a statement by Hariri’s press office, the Charge d’affaires of the Saudi embassy in Lebanon, Walid Al-Bukhari, handed over to Hariri the invitation during a meeting at the Grand Serail. “The aim of the summit is to work towards an establishment of a new partnership to confront extremism and terrorism, and reinforce the values of tolerance and coexistence for the future of our generations in the Arab region,” said Bukhari, following the meeting.

King Abdullah II of Jordan, Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika and Niger’s Mahamadou Issoufou are among the leaders invited by Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz for the summit with United States President Donald Trump. In addition, Yemeni President Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi, Morocco’s King Mohammed VI and the leaders of Turkey, Pakistan, Iraq and Tunisia have also received invitations. Saudi Arabia, which is home to Islam’s holiest sites, will be Trump’s first foreign stop as President.

Lebanese banker buying Colorado Springs bank as launching point for U.S. expansion

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By: Wayne Heilman

A Lebanese banker has agreed to buy Pikes Peak National Bank to make the Colorado Springs financial institution a hub for expansion across the U.S. and possibly internationally, according to a spokesman. Antoun Sehnaoui, chairman of Société Générale de Banque au Liban SGBL in Beirut, agreed to buy Pikes Peak National Friday from the Georgeson family, which has owned the bank for nearly 40 years. The transaction is scheduled for completion in July, pending approval from the U.S. Comptroller of the Currency's office. Terms were not disclosed.

Pikes Peak, one of just six locally owned banks among the 40 that operate branches in Colorado, has three branches with combined assets of $88.9 million and about 30 employees. The bank was started by a group of Westside businessmen on July 1, 1957. Earl Georgeson, John Georgeson's father, bought an interest in the bank in the early 1970s and bought out other owners in 1978. The bank was ordered in 2009 to reduce its problem loans and boost capital, an order that was lifted in 2014. John Georgeson, the bank's chairman and CEO, said he and his sister, who own the bank's holding company, were first approached by Sehnaoui's representatives nearly two years ago, when he told him the bank wasn't for sale, but could be for "the right offer," which would not require Pikes Peak National to be merged with another bank and its employees, officers and board would be retained. He said Sehnaoui's representatives approached the Georgesons last summer with those terms and began negotiating a sale. Georgeson, 71, said he will move onto "a new career that may be retirement."

Mark Corallo, an Alexandria, Va.-based spokesman for Sehnaoui, said the 44-year-old Beirut banker had been searching two years for a U.S. bank "with a national charter that had a local feel. He also wanted a bank that had gone through extensive regulatory scrutiny so he knew what he was buying and he wanted a fabulous executive management team."

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