Actress Shannon Elizabeth: I’m proud of the Lebanese side of my life

by lebaneseexaminer.com -- As a young girl growing up, actress Shannon Elizabeth always maintained close ties to Lebanese culture. After all, her parents belonged to a local Lebanese-Syrian club in Waco, Texas, and building a strong community bond was central to the family. “I was really proud of that side of my life,” Elizabeth told Lebanese Examiner. “To be able to experience the food and the culture for me was something I felt a lot of people were missing out on.” The actress – best known for her iconic roles in American Pie, Scary Movie and American Reunion – was born to a Lebanese/Syrian father and mother of English, Irish and German descent. She says she was always closest to the Lebanese side of the family. “I remember going to my grandparents’ house quite a bit and it was always about cooking and Lebanese food,” she said. Elizabeth now maintains a non-profit animal rescue organization in Cape Town, South Africa called Animal Avengers. She started the organization in 2001 to help in the global effort in saving animals from going extinct. Ironically, one of her favorite foods growing up was kibbeh nayyeh, or minced raw lamb or beef mixed with fine bulgur and spices. Now, her favorite Lebanese dishes are limited to vegetarian options like grape leaves and falafel. “My relatives don’t understand it,” she joked. “There are a lot of great things that don’t have meat; it’s just about exploring it.”

Elizabeth initially started her organization as a dog and cat rescue, but expanded to South Africa after learning of the global poaching crisis. Through crowdfunding, she raised $30,000 – and the rest is history. “I loved the people (of South Africa), I loved the culture and I felt like I was closer to the issues here,” she added. “I felt like there was more that I could be doing with my platform.” Although she is still active in the film industry, Elizabeth said she is dedicated to her organization, which could soon start work in the Middle East. In fact, she already helped sponsor a lion from Lebanon. There is a Lion that was rescued that I was told was originally from the Middle East,” she said. “I did a lifetime sponsorship for him to help pay for his expenses.” She said she still has many connections in Hollywood, and hopes to someday build connections in Beirut. “I would love to go to Beirut because that’s where our ancestors are from,” she added. “I’m waiting for the right opportunity, but it is very high on my list to get out there very soon"

Coordination with Syrian Regime Revives Spirit of Rival Lebanese Alliances

by aawsat.com -- Indications of an attempt by what was known as the March 8 coalition to keep the normalization of relations with Syria on the discussion table have raised objections by the so-called March 14 alliance, which mainly includes al-Mustaqbal Movement, the Lebanese Forces (LF) and the Progressive Socialist Party (PSP). This dispute has revived the spirit of the March 8 and March 14 coalitions, which had slowly eroded following a consensus agreement sponsored by Prime Minister-designate Saad al-Hariri that led to the election of Michel Aoun as president. The Shiite duo – represented by “Hezbollah” and Amal Movement – has long encouraged the Lebanese government to revive the Lebanese-Syrian relations, causing a major dispute by the end of last year. In recent statements, Bassil said: “The political life between Syria and Lebanon will return, and all the roads between Lebanon and Syria, Iraq and Syria, Jordan and Syria will open, and Lebanon will breathe again through these land routes.” Several pro-Damascus parties agreed with Bassil, stressing the need to end Lebanon’s dissociation policy agreed in 2012 . Over the last two days, Speaker Nabih Berri has pushed strongly in this direction, saying that the lack of coordination with Syria must end. In this context, MP Salim Khoury in the Strong Lebanon bloc, led by Bassil, said that the Free Patriotic Movement (FPM) and its parliamentary bloc supported the coordination with Syria to guarantee the return of the displaced and to preserve the interests of the Lebanese state. “In any case, some parties’ rejection to cooperate with Syria does not serve the Lebanese economy nor the higher interests of the state,” he added. In contrast, Al-Mustaqbal MP Bakr al-Hujairi considered the issue a “game” played by the March 8 coalition. In remarks to Asharq Al-Awsat, Hujairi warned that this issue might block the formation of Hariri’s new government.

Beirut To Play Host To TechCrunch's Startup Battlefield MENA 2018

by entrepreneur.com -- TechCrunch, the global online publisher of technology news, is hosting its first ever startup competition for entrepreneurs across the MENA region. Partnering with Facebook, TechCrunch is bringing its flagship Startup Battlefield challenge to Beirut on October 3, 2018, to be hosted at the Beirut Digital District (BDD) in Beirut, a hub for Lebanon’s startup ecosystem. The TechCrunch Startup Battlefield brings early-stage startups together to compete for the Disrupt Cup, cash prizes, along with the recognition and exposure from media and investors worldwide. Interestingly, the past winners of Startup Battlefield include names like Vurb, Dropbox, Mint, Yammer and many other tech enterprises. Further, participation is entirely free and open to startups meeting certain basic criteria such as being early-stage companies, headquartered in the eligible nations (within MENA), and possess a fully working product. Each of the competing teams will get the chance to pitch their startups in front of the TechCrunch community, alongside a live audience of technologists, entrepreneurs, and investors in Beirut.

For its MENA edition, TechCrunch invites applications from MENA-based innovators, makers, and entrepreneurs, from which the TechCrunch team will select fifteen candidates, who will be coached to improve their pitches and get ready for the main event. At the pitching event, the judges will then choose a winner for the title of ‘The Middle East’s Most Promising Startup,’ whose founders will win US$25,000 in no-equity cash along with a paid trip for two to compete in the Startup Battlefield at TechCrunch Disrupt 2019 at San Francisco. For those interested in the region’s entrepreneur and investor community, TechCrunch is also hosting its first meetup at Beirut Digital District on July 26 at 5:30 p.m. to introduce the TechCrunch team, and learn more about the Startup Battlefield challenge. Register here if you’d like to attend the TechCrunch meet up. As for the teams interested in exhibiting at TechCrunch Startup Battlefield, send in your applications here before July 31.

Lebanon's Hariri says optimistic on government formation

Source: Reuters BEIRUT: Lebanon's prime minister-designate Saad al-Hariri said on Wednesday he was more optimistic than before that a new government would be formed. "In the coming days we will complete the positive consultations with the president ... and God willing, matters are on the way to a solution," he said in televised remarks after meeting President Michel Aoun. "I am more optimistic than at any other time," he added. Foreign donors have said Lebanon, which held a parliamentary election on May 6, needs to form a government quickly to maintain confidence and start working on reforms to help its ailing economy. Nearly all the new members of parliament backed Hariri to continue as prime minister in consultations with Aoun after the election, leading to his designation for the role. In June he said he was "very close" to forming the government. The new government, like the last one, is expected to include most major parties within Lebanon's sectarian power-sharing system. May's elections were the first since 2009. Disputes between the country's major political blocs caused paralysis for years until they agreed in 2016 on a national unity government. The last government has continued as a caretaker administration since the election, in which allies of the Iran-backed Shi'ite movement Hezbollah gained in parliament. (Reporting By Laila Bassam and Angus McDowall; Editing by Alison Williams)

Lebanese Security Chief Says His Role is to Coordinate Return of Syrian Refugees

BEIRUT, July 24 (Reuters) - Russia is talking to Lebanon about Moscow's plans for the mass return home of Syrian refugees, the Lebanese prime minister's office said on Tuesday, adding Lebanon hoped the Kremlin's initiative would tackle what it called a "displacement crisis". "(Hariri) is looking forward to the roadmap prepared by the Russian Defence Ministry, hoping that coordination with the U.S. administration, the United Nations and other concerned parties will form a serious effort to address the displacement crisis," his office said. Syria's war has killed an estimated half a million people, driven some 5.6 million people out of the country and displaced around 6.6 million within it. As the Syrian army, backed by Iran and Russia, has recovered more territory, some Lebanese officials have stepped up calls for refugees to leave for parts of Syria where violence died down.

by dailystar.com.lb -- General Security chief Abbas Ibrahim said in comments published Tuesday that he will not stop communicating with the Syrian regime as per his designation by the Lebanese president to coordinate the return of refugees to their homeland. “I haven’t heard complaints from anyone over this designation [to discuss the refugee crisis and security situation with Syrian authorities] or my communication and dialogue with Syria. There are no conditions on this designation and no veto,” Ibrahim said to Al-Akhbar newspaper. Ibrahim said it’s a common call from Lebanese sides for the safe return of Syrian refugees to their homeland, “so it’s normal for no one to complain over my role, which is to achieve this goal.” He noted that he “continuously” goes to Syria and that because of this, “many humanitarian and security issues were resolved, Lebanese and non-Lebanese files.”

Ibrahim also said it is his duty to help facilitate the safe return of refugees who want to leave Lebanon for their homeland and that in order to accomplish this, he has routine meetings with Syrian security officials and ministers. The General Security head has helped secure the release of kidnapped foreigners and Arabs inside Syria using his communications with Syrian officials, he noted. “I have only seen cooperation from the Syrian authorities in files we have discussed, and there are no preconditions on Lebanon for the return of Syrian refugees,” Ibrahim said. This article has been adapted from its original source. daily-star.com.lb

Hundreds of Syrians return home from Lebanon

by infomigrants.net -- More than 800 Syrian refugees living in the border city of Arsal in Lebanon have now returned to Syria. Since the beginning of 2018, around 13,000 Syrian refugees have returned to their home country. Hundreds of Syrians left Lebanon on Monday for their home country, Syria. In the eastern border town of Arsal, men, women and children of all ages piled into cars, minivans and tractors, the French news agency AFP reports. Most refugees returned to their homes in the Syrian western Qalamoun region. Security forces checked the identity papers of those about to make the journey back to Syria with suitcases, boxes of food and even live poultry, an AFP photographer said. The convoy was accompanied by Lebanese security forces, members of the UN Refugee Agency, UNHCR as well as the Lebanese Red Cross, the German news agency DPA reports. 1.5 million Syrian refugees in Lebanon It's been seven years that the Syrian war started. Lebanon hosts around 1.5 million Syrian refugees. The country itself has a population of 4.5 million. In relation to that, Lebanon has accepted the most refugees worldwide. Respectively, the Lebanese government wants them to repatriate rapidly. According to the Lebanese state news agency NNA, around 3,000 Syrians in Arsal have formally requested to repatriate. Their requests have to be examined by Lebanese authorities. This is the third batch of Syrians leaving Arsal, where informal camps host more than 45,000 registered Syrian refugees.

According to UNHCR, since the beginning of 2018, around 13,000 Syrians returned to their home country from neighboring countries. Since the Syrian war started in spring 2011, more than 5 million people fled Syria for neighboring countries. More than 350,000 people have been killed and over half of the country's population has been displaced.