Lebanese Renowned Artist Marwan Mahfouz Passes Away in Syria

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by albawaba.com -- Marwan Mahfouz was famous for his work with Al-Rahbani family, as he participated in many of their famous musicals, which are still treasured by many, and he continued his cooperation with Ziad Al-Rahbani, who composed many singles for him. His songs written by Ziad Rahabani from the play Sahrieh, who the latter composed at the age of 17 are still recited by many Arab artists and fans around the world. Mahfouz sang works of many great song writers and composers such as the Rahbani brothers, Ziad Rahbani, Wadih Al-Safi, Philemon Wehbe, Elias Rahbani, Suhail Arafa, Joseph Ayoub, Abdel Fattah Sukkar and Azar Habib and others, in addition to many poets such as Musa Zgheib, Abdul Jalil Wahbi, Issa Ayoub, Boutros Deeb and Ghassan Matar. Mahfouz participated Rahbani Brothers famous classic movie "Safar Berlak" and starred in the movie "Confused Girls" with the actress Igraa. Mahfouse lived between Lebanon, Syria and Canada after the Lebanese civil war. His last performance was a live streamed concert at the Damascus Opera House in June 2020, which was sold out but only at 30% capacity due to social distance regulations.

Israeli Army Drone Crashes Inside Lebanon

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by english.aawsat.com -- An Israeli drone crashed inside Lebanon during operational activity along the border, an Israeli military spokeswoman said Sunday. "There is no concern that any information was leaked," the spokeswoman said. Israel's Channel 12 reported that the drone crashed after it experienced a technical failure. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday that the Lebanese state was responsible for any attack on Israel from within its territory. Israel would “not allow Iran to establish a military base” on its northern border, he said in reference to Hezbollah’s presence in southern Lebanon. His warning came amid an increase in Israeli flights over Lebanon. The Lebanese army said it recorded a total of 29 violations of Lebanese airspace in the last 48 hours. Tension rose this week along the Israel-Syria frontier after a Hezbollah member was killed in an apparent Israeli strike on the edge of Damascus on Monday. The Israeli military said it has since boosted its forces on its northern front, where Israel borders Lebanon and Syria.

Lebanon fights coronavirus and rotten food

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by arabnews.com -- NAJIA HOUSSARI -- BEIRUT: The government’s coronavirus follow-up committee has issued a series of recommendations to control the spread of the disease as more infections were recorded in all regions of Lebanon this week. It has recommended closing bars, nightclubs and indoor pools, electronic games centers for children, children’s clubs, sports halls and popular markets, as well as banning beach parties and religious and social events for a week. It said that occupancy in restaurants should not exceed 50 percent of capacity in enclosed areas. The recommendations, not yet endorsed by the relevant ministries, were formulated by specialized doctors. The number of cases of COVID-19 infections in Lebanon on Saturday exceeded 3,400 while the death toll rose to 46. The number of infections during the past week increased from an average of 75 cases to 166 a day.

Dr. Abdel-Rahman Bizri, a member of the national committee for infectious diseases, told Arab News: “If Lebanon continues to witness an increase in cases of infection, and as long as the Lebanese do not adhere to the preventive and precautionary measures, then we must get to this level.” “We are currently wavering between the third and fourth phase in confronting the virus, which means that we reached the stage of societal reproduction because the virus is internally spread and not being transmitted by people coming from abroad,” he said. Lebanon reopened its international airport on July 1 for commercial air traffic, with passengers required to be tested and proved free of the virus.

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Sharp increase in Lebanon's inflation rate 'could get worse without government action'

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by Michael Fahy -- .thenational.ae -- A sharp increase in consumer price inflation is “a potent illustration of the severity of Lebanon’s crisis”, which could deteriorate unless the government takes urgent action, according to emerging markets research company Tellimer. Official figures published earlier this week showed a year-on-year increase in consumer price inflation from 56.5 per cent in May to 89.7 per cent in June as the value of the Lebanese pound continued to fall, causing the prices of food and other basics to rise.

Although Lebanon officially maintains its currency peg at 1,507.5 pounds to the US dollar, its value on the black market has declined by 75 per cent so far this year. The currency fell by 50 per cent from the end of May, according to Patrick Curran, a senior analyst at Tellimer Research, with the pound currently trading at about 8,200 to the dollar. “Lebanon’s US dollar peg has effectively subsidised imports since its inception in 1997, allowing Lebanon to consume beyond its means, but hollowing out industry in the process,” Mr Curran said. He said the “economy is, thus, extremely import-dependent” and cited the most recent gross domestic product figures from 2018 that showed imports accounting for about 40 per cent of the household consumption.

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Church bells ring to mourn the conversion of Hagia Sophia

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by greekcitytimes.com -- A day of mourning for Hagia Sophia (Church of the Holy Wisdom) and for all Christians. All around Greece, church bells are ringing in mourning, while flags are at half-mast. Archbishop Ieronymos of Athens and All Greece stated a few days ago that “the insult and hubris do not attain only Orthodox Christianity, or even Christianity as a whole, but the whole civilised humanity, any thinking human being, irrespective of religion.” The leader of Greece’s Orthodox Church added Erdogan was exploiting religion to attain political and geopolitical roles, but that his attempt would be futile. “It is hard to kick against the goads,” he said, quoting from the Acts of the Apostles. His Eminence will hold a service at the Athens Metropolitan Cathedral in downtown Plaka at 8pm on Friday, to coincide with the official inauguration of the former Greek Orthodox church of Hagia Sophia in Istanbul as a mosque.

Lebanon’s leaders are to blame for the worsening crisis

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by arabnews.com -- ZAID M. BELBAGI -- There was a time when Lebanon’s “Zuama,” or confessional-come-political leaders, held sway in their respective communities. Their role in providing access to opportunities, amenities and basic provisions was central to their support. They were free to politic in Beirut, becoming billionaires in the process, while their supporters muddled through the developmental challenges that are part of any emerging economy. In 2019 this changed, as the Lebanese people took to the streets to voice their opposition to a worsening state of affairs. As the government made only cosmetic changes the Lebanese pound slumped, and just when many people thought the former “Paris of the East” had reached the brink, the global pandemic broke the back of the country while its effete elites looked on from their mountainside second homes. The middle class had been cocooned in luxury apartments surrounded by imported foreign domestic staff, living to almost European standards. Now, however, they find themselves bartering for food and kitchen appliances.

The artificial development of Lebanon’s economy following the Civil War has come unstuck. The Lebanese pound has fallen to a sixth of its previous value, exacerbating the problems faced by the working class, whose modest savings are now worth a pitiful amount. With clinics closed because doctors’ salaries have gone unpaid, importers of medical supplies have gone bust and lifesaving drugs are hard to come by at a time when a health care crisis has taken hold. For those that still have jobs and are being paid, minor procedures cost more than a month’s wages. The cost of basic groceries is almost as crippling. With inflation spiraling out of control and a likely famine on the horizon, the average Lebanese citizen awaits even more challenging times. The current situation has completely shattered the veneer of progress that followed the Taif Agreement that brought the country’s bitter Civil War to an end in 1990. As bullet holes were plastered over, a construction boom gave the impression of a newly confident state.

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