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Lebanese society is far less divided than you think

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by James Zoghby -- thenationalnews.com -- Most policymakers and pundits are confounded by what to do about Lebanon. They ask: "What do the Lebanese people want? How strong is the hold that the sectarian elites and Hezbollah, the Iranian proxy, have over the population? And is change even possible in Lebanon?" In an effort to answer these questions, the American Task Force on Lebanon and Zogby Research Services conducted a nationwide poll of 859 Lebanese citizens in September. Broadly speaking, the poll was constituted to assess their current situation and to identify their political priorities and their hopes for the future. The findings are both instructive and fascinating. There are, for example, multiple areas where a consensus on critical issues exists from every demographic and religious sub-group. And despite the extreme hardships, for a strong majority, next year's parliamentary election presents a make-or-break moment for the future of their country. What comes through clearly from the findings is the profound impact the economic collapse is having across the country.

Nine in 10 respondents said that they are worse off now than they had been just five years earlier. More than eight in 10 said they have experienced shortages in fuel, electricity and drinking water. For one third of respondents, there are occasions when they have been forced to go without food. Among the poorest Lebanese, one in five said they "very often go without meals". And almost two thirds reported that they do not have enough income to make ends meet. As a result, a disturbing two thirds conceded that, if given the opportunity, they would emigrate to another country. These figures are hardly surprising, given that the country has been through much political turmoil over the past few years that has led to the economic hardships its people are currently facing. However, despite these hardships, people retain confidence in some of their country's institutions. Scoring high among all religious sects and demographic sub-groups are the Lebanese Armed Forces, civil society, the religious leadership, judiciary and what has come to be known as the 17 October Revolution, the national protests in 2019 that were triggered by planned taxes on gasoline, tobacco and VoIP calls on applications such as WhatsApp.

Attitudes towards Hezbollah are divided, leaning negative, and confidence in Parliament and in the traditional parties are low. On the issue of Hezbollah, it is striking that two thirds of all Lebanese, including a majority of respondents from every religious sect, expressed the belief that their weapons and forces should not be allowed to operate independent of the state and, instead, should be under the control of the armed forces.

Turkey offers to help Lebanon with crisis with Gulf nations

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Turkey's Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu, left, meets with Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati, at the government house in Beirut, Lebanon, Tuesday, Nov. 16, 2021. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

BEIRUT (AP) — Turkey's foreign minister said Tuesday his country is ready to offer whatever support it can to help mend relations between Lebanon and Gulf Arab nations, embroiled in an unprecedented diplomatic rift. The spat with Saudi Arabia and other Gulf Arab states unraveled late last month and has threatened to destabilize the new Lebanese government and escalate the country’s economic tailspin. It erupted over comments by a Lebanese Cabinet minister over the war in Yemen that angered Saudi Arabia.

During a visit to Beirut, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu urged support for Lebanon’s government to ensure the small country’s stability and that general elections scheduled for next spring take place on time. “We have expressed our sadness over the recent crisis between Lebanon and the Gulf. We received information concerning the latest developments toward its resolution. And if there is anything that can be done for the issue to be resolved as soon as possible we are ready to carry it out,” Cavusoglu told reporters after meeting his Lebanese counterpart Abdallah Bouhabib.

'United we run for hope' -Beirut marathon returns

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by reuters -- Seven thousand runners from 59 Arab and foreign countries filled the streets of Beirut under the slogan "united we run for hope." Tens of thousands used to participate in previous years. May El-Khalil, founder of the Beirut Marathon Association, said that the 2019 protests and the coronavirus pandemic, which broke out the following year, led to its suspension. The event was even a delight for spectators. "We should come and cheer and give a push to our friends to acknowledge that life continues," said Lebanese woman Ghada Khadra who came out to support the runners. The Beirut Marathon 2021 edition, which included several options ranging from five kilometers, 13 miles, 13.1 miles for para-athletes, to the full marathon covering 26 miles, cut off traffic on most of Beirut's streets.

Biden taps former US ambassador to Lebanon as next counterterrorism czar

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Then-US Ambassador to Lebanon Elizabeth Richard speaks in front of military vehicles handed over at Beirut's port in Lebanon, Aug. 14, 2017. (AP)

by alarabiya.net -- President Joe Biden has nominated Elizabeth Richard, the former US ambassador to Lebanon, to become the State Department’s Coordinator for Counterterrorism, the White House said Monday. Richard was most recently the ambassador to Lebanon from 2016 to 2020. For the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app. She also was a deputy assistant secretary of State and served as the Deputy Chief of Mission in Yemen from 2010 to 2013. Richard is one of the few career diplomats tapped by the Biden administration to a senior diplomatic role. She has also worked as a diplomat in Islamabad and worked in Afghanistan. John Godfrey, a career member of the Senior Foreign Service, is the acting coordinator for counterterrorism. The Counterterrorism Bureau leads US efforts to “counter terrorism abroad and to secure the United States against foreign terrorist threats.”

Lebanon's Orchestra Keeps Playing as Country Sinks into Crisis

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Lebanon's national orchestra conductor Lubnan Baalbaki during a practice in Beirut, Lebanon November 2, 2021. (REUTERS/Emilie Madi)

by voanews.com -- The National Symphony Orchestra of Lebanon is feeling the effects of the financial crisis in the country. The crisis has left many people in Lebanon suffering from poverty and struggling to meet simple needs. The crisis worsened because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The August 2020 Beirut explosion also worsened the crisis. The explosion killed more than 215 people and damaged parts of the city, including the building where the orchestra meets. As the value of Lebanese money fell, the 100 or so musicians in the orchestra watched the value of their pay fall from $3,000 to around $200. Most foreign musicians left the orchestra and the country. It is not clear how long the orchestra can keep going.

Cultural loss

Lubnan Baalbaki is the conductor of the orchestra, someone who leads the musicians as they are playing. "We used to do very big productions that would cover the entire classical repertoire. Now it's very difficult," Baalbaki said. The pay of those who remain now covers little more than the price of fuel to drive to weekly practices. This has forced Baalbaki to reduce the number of shows from around 30 a year to just a few. This follows a wider loss of Lebanon’s cultural place and activities due to the crisis and the pandemic. One of those loses is summer holiday cultural events. They were seen as a guiding light of the arts in the area. They included famous musicians and Arab celebrities.

Etel Adnan, Lebanese American Author and Artist, Dies at 96

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Etel Adnan in 2015 in her studio in Paris. In her poetry, novels and nonfiction, she often wrote about political discord and violence in the Middle East.

By Nana Asfour -- nytimes.com -- Etel Adnan, an influential Lebanese American writer who wrote a seminal novel about the Lebanese civil war and achieved acclaim in her later years as a visual artist, died on Sunday in Paris. She was 96. Her death was confirmed by her longtime partner and only immediate survivor, Simone Fattal, who did not specify the cause. For much of her life, Ms. Adnan, who grew up in Lebanon and spent several decades in California, was an international literary figure, her lyrical prose reverberating with generations of Middle Eastern writers. Her most widely acclaimed novel, “Sitt Marie Rose,” (1978) based on a true story, centers on a kidnapping during Lebanon’s civil war and is told from the perspective of the civilians enduring brutal political conflict. It has become a classic of war literature, translated into 10 languages and taught in American classrooms.

Ms. Adnan also wrote numerous collections of poetry. Her latest, “Shifting the Silence,” was published in October 2020. Reviewing her previous collection, “Night,” for The New York Times Book Review, Benjamin Hollander described it as “a meditative heir to Nietzsche’s aphorisms, Rilke’s ‘Book of Hours’ and the verses of Sufi mysticism,” and “an intricate thread of reflections on pain and beauty.” In her poetry, novels and nonfiction, Ms. Adnan often wrote about political discord and violence. Her books on the Middle East, like “The Arab Apocalypse,” a poetry collection from 1980; “Of Cities and Women (Letters to Fawwaz),” from 1993; and “In the Heart of the Heart of Another Country” (2005), address the region from sociological, philosophical and historical perspectives. Ms. Adnan caught the attention of the international art world in her late 80s, when her paintings were included in Documenta 13, the contemporary art exhibition in Kassel, Germany, in 2012. The invitation to the show resulted from a serendipitous visit by Carolyn Christov-Bakargiev, Documenta 13’s director, to Lebanon, where she saw an exhibit of Ms. Adnan’s geometric and vibrantly colored abstract work on generally small canvases.

President Michel Sleiman: في تحقيق انفجار المرفأ اصبحت مثل "المخمس المردود" في الزجل مع الفرق ان الزجل شعر وموهبة في سبيل الخير في حين ان تعطيل التحقيق هو ظلم

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الردود والردود المضادة … والردود على هذه الاخيرة المردودة … في تحقيق انفجار المرفأ اصبحت مثل "المخمس المردود" في الزجل مع الفرق ان الزجل شعر وموهبة في سبيل الخير في حين ان تعطيل التحقيق هو ظلم