By Maria Maalouf — arabnews.com –– While campaigning ahead of last year’s US presidential election, Joe Biden made many suggestions that then-President Donald Trump had made a huge mistake by pulling America out of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action nuclear deal signed between the P5+1 world powers and Iran three years after it was concluded in 2015. Biden had doubts that Trump had done the right thing regarding Iran. The irony now is that members of his administration have also expressed doubts over whether Tehran intends to stop itself from gaining possession of nuclear weaponry. In a TV appearance this week, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said: “We still believe diplomacy is the best path forward for putting the nuclear program back in the box that (it) had been in under the agreement, the so-called JCPOA. But we were also looking at, as necessary, other options if Iran is not prepared to engage quickly in good faith to pick up where we left off in June.”

There are many problems with the statements made by Blinken. First, there is a great deal of contradiction between the way the Biden administration has expressed its doubts over Iran’s real intentions regarding its nuclear program and its strong desire to quickly resume the negotiations with Iran in Vienna. Second, the Biden White House seemingly lacks the courage to make clear-cut declarations about Iran cheating on every aspect of its nuclear program. A fair question is: If Biden and members of his national security team are critics of Iran’s nuclear policy, why have they accepted it as a serious negotiating partner? There is little logic to what Biden and his team are saying on Iran — that all difficulties can be overcome by the supposition that engaging Tehran in negotiations will make it more responsible in its foreign policy and defense policy. Dangerously, there is still too much vagueness regarding the Biden administration’s policy toward Iran.

by english.alaraby.co.uk — Israel’s state broadcaster has hosted controversial Lebanese writer and journalist Maria Maalouf on its Arabic-language service Kann News, in the first ever appearance of a Lebanese woman on Israeli TV. In her interview, Maalouf – who is well-known for her strong anti-Hezbollah stance – said: “Hassan Nasrallah and Iran’s party in Lebanon have taken the state hostage and returned it to the stone age. The recent crisis with Saudi Arabia demonstrates that Hezbollah has alienated Lebanon from its Arab surroundings”. “I’ve told Nasrallah that he is a murderer, that he has killed the children of Yemen, Syria, and Iraq… and our citizens in the port of Beirut”, she added. Maalouf informed viewers that she plans to visit Israel, adding that she has had positive interactions with American Jews who she has found to be “loving towards others… unlike the Palestinians who are only interested in taking Arab money”.

The YouTube clip of Maria Maalouf’s interview has since been removed from Kann News’ official page, but recordings can still be found online. In response to her comments, lawyer Ghassan al-Mawli – representing a number of former Lebanese prisoners who served sentences in Israeli jails – has filed a case against Maalouf in a Lebanese military court “for the crime of communicating and collaborating with the Israeli enemy”. Maria Maalouf began her career as a host of mainstream political programmes on Lebanese television. In 2017, she made headlines for calling on Israel to assassinate Nasrallah, and again in 2020 after insisting “Palestine is not my struggle” in the wake of the UAE-Israel normalisation deal. Maalouf now resides in the United States, where she works for Hawas TV. No peace agreement exists between Israel and Lebanon and media appearances by Lebanese citizens on Israeli TV, and vice-versa, are extremely rare.

By Najia Houssari — arabnews.com — BEIRUT: Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati was on Friday awaiting the results of behind-the-scenes consultations aimed at bridging the gap within his government and mending ties with Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries, after they severed diplomatic and economic ties with Beirut in protest over statements made by Information Minister George Kordahi. MP Ali Darwish, a member of Mikati’s parliamentary bloc, told Arab News: “Through the roadmap that Mitaki announced on Thursday, he put forward an initiative to defuse the crisis.” Darwish stressed that Mikati “is a moderate man by nature over whom there is consensus, which is essential in a country like Lebanon, so it is crucial for him to carefully and wisely handle issues.” Mikati had once again called on Kordahi to “follow his conscience and prioritize national interest.” Kordahi, however, is refusing to resign from the government.

Speaking about the possibility of Mikati’s government falling if Kordahi and his political team stand firm, Darwish said: “Mikati understands the Lebanese situation and believes that as long as he is prime minister, he can help Lebanon maintain good relations with the Arab countries.” Darwish added: “If Mikati were to resign, Lebanon could face unimaginable consequences.” The MP also said the current government “is based on a formula that brings together all the Lebanese, and if we were to lose the executive authority, we would be stripping Lebanon of the decision-making authority.” Speaking on behalf of the anti-Hezbollah Sovereign Front, former Interior Minister Maj. Gen. Ashraf Rifi said: “Hezbollah formed governments based on its interests, controlled the state and took it hostage for Iran’s sake.” He called on Mitaki to resign, saying: “You are the prime minister of a dysfunctional government, and the country does not need more Hezbollah governments.” Rifi noted: “This entire regime needs to leave, starting with the president from Hell, Michel Aoun. We need to steer away from the axis of evil, and justice must be applied.”

BEIRUT (Reuters) – Lebanon’s tourism minister unveiled a new slogan for the crisis-swept country on Thursday that aimed to portray the precarity of life there as a point of pride, roughly translating to “I love you in your madness”. Lebanon is suffering a financial and economic meltdown which the World Bank has labelled as one of the deepest depressions of modern history, compounded by the COVID-19 pandemic and a massive explosion at Beirut’s port that destroyed large parts of the city and killed more than 215 people. “This will be our touristic identity that the world will see,” Tourism Minister Walid Nassar said at a news conference with other senior ministers in Beirut. The slogan was developed cost-free for Lebanon by Dubai-based advertising company TBWA, he said. TBWA Chief Creative Officer Walid Kanaan said it was “near-impossible” to find ways to market a country in the grip of multi-layered economic and political crises, but that he had found inspiration in Lebanon’s people. “This is our country, a crazy country … crazy in its nightlife, crazy in its food and generosity. And no matter how crazy the situation in Lebanon is, we can only say, ‘we love you in your madness,’” Kanaan said, unveiling the slogan.

Originally a lyric in a song by Lebanese star singer Fairuz released before the outbreak of Lebanon’s 1975-90 civil war, the new catchphrase will be displayed on planes of Lebanon’s national carrier Middle East Airlines and used in social media campaigns, Kanaan said. The official English translation will be “A crazy love.” Tourism, historically a major component of Lebanon’s economy, has dramatically declined since late 2019. Some 2 million tourists visited the country in 2018, according to the former tourism minister, while media reports citing official figures suggest that numbers fell to a few hundred thousand in 2020.

by english.alaraby.co.uk — Lebanese Jews on Monday attended a “family gathering” held by Beirut’s representation at the embassy in Paris, Lebanese news outlets reported on Thursday. The gathering was the first of its kind at the embassy, Annahar reported. About 50 invitees attended the event, according to Megaphone. The event took place while Lebanon is […]

by miragenews.com — Department of Defense Spokesperson Commander Jessica L. McNulty provided the following readout: Performing the Duties of Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Policy Dr. Mara Karlin and Lebanese Chief of Defense Gen. Joseph Aoun met today in the Pentagon to discuss the U.S.-Lebanon bilateral defense partnership and shared security interests. Dr. Karlin […]

طريق الانقاذ يمرً عبر الحكم الرشيد. الحكم الرشيد يرتكز على المصطلحات 3 D التالية : Démocratie  معطلة بسبب السلاح Développement  سلبي بسبب السلاح Dialogue  متعذر بسبب السلاح

BEIRUT,  (Reuters) – Restaurant owner Antoine Haddad has been in business for over 35 years but says he is running out of hope as Lebanon struggles with one of the deepest financial crises of modern times. The Lebanese pound lost around 90% of its value in the past two years, propelling three quarters of the population into poverty. For Haddad, the difference between this and other crises that Lebanon has experienced, including the 1975-1990 civil war, is that it feels like there is no end in sight. “Previously, you had hope that: ‘tomorrow the war will end, we do this and that and go back to where we were’, but this time there is no hope,” he said. “They (those in power) promised us we would have plenty of money in our hands, and we indeed have a lot of it to play with,” he said sarcastically referring to the growing stacks of banknotes needed for even basic purchases after the currency drop. Haddad, whose small restaurant has been in business since 1984, said he can only buy 10% of the olive oil he used to buy with the same money.

The government, facing an election in March as it tries to secure an IMF recovery plan, has tripled transport allowance for employees to alleviate some of the pain but most salaries, including the minimum wage, have not been adjusted. Pub-owner Moussa Yaakoub is also taken aback by the amount of cash he needs to run his business. “I have never before held in my hands this amount of money,” he said as he counted some 10 million pounds, worth $6,600 at the pre-crisis rate but now less than $500 at the market rate. That much money used to cover a pub’s operation for months, but now only pays a couple of bills, he said.

BEIRUT, Nov 2 (Reuters) – The English-language Lebanese newspaper The Daily Star has told its staff they will all be laid off, joining a list of Lebanese media outlets that have been forced to close or scale back due to financial pressures. In a message to staff, The Daily Star management said the decision to […]