by AP — President Biden on Saturday became the first U.S. president to formally recognize the systematic deportation and massacre of Armenians by the Ottoman Empire as a genocide — something the successive White Houses have avoided out of concern for damaging relations with Turkey. “Each year on this day, we remember the lives of all those who died in the Ottoman-era Armenian genocide and recommit ourselves to preventing such an atrocity from ever again occurring,” Biden said in a statement marking Armenian Remembrance Day. An estimated 2 million Armenians were deported and 1.5 million killed between 1915 and 1925 in what has become known as Meds Yeghern. “Beginning on April 24, 1915, with the arrest of Armenian intellectuals and community leaders in Constantinople by Ottoman authorities, one and a half million Armenians were deported, massacred, or marched to their deaths in a campaign of extermination,” Biden said. “We honor the victims of the Meds Yeghern so that the horrors of what happened are never lost to history. And we remember so that we remain ever-vigilant against the corrosive influence of hate in all its forms.”

by thenationalnews.com — Gareth Browne — A shipment of more than 5.3 million amphetamine pills hidden inside pomegranates seized by Saudi Arabia originated in Syria, not Lebanon, representatives of the Lebanese agriculture industry said. The claim came after the drug seizure at Jeddah Islamic Port prompted Riyadh to ban imports of fruit and vegetables originating […]

By AFP — A Lebanon-made electric car has made its debut, the first time the Mediterranean country has manufactured an automobile, despite struggling amid a dire economic crisis with frequent power cuts. The red sports car – named “Quds Rise”, using the Arabic name of Jerusalem – is the project of Lebanese-born Palestinian businessman Jihad Mohammad. It’s the “first automobile to be made locally,” Mohammad told reporters on Saturday, at the unveiling in a parking lot south of Beirut. It was built in Lebanon “from start to finish”, he said of the prototype, emblazoned at the front with a golden logo of the Dome of the Rock, the shrine in Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, Islam’s third holiest site.

The car is to cost $30,000. Production of up to 10,000 vehicles is hoped to start later this year in Lebanon, with cars to hit the market in a year’s time, said Mohammad, the director of Lebanon-based firm EV Electra. He says his long-term goal is to compete on the international market for hybrid and electric cars, as well as to make sales in Lebanon. But the unveiling comes as Lebanon struggles amid its worst economic crisis in decades, and imported car sales are at a record low, in part due to capital controls and drastic devaluation on the black market.

اليوم وبعد ١٠٦ سنوات تعترف الولايات المتحدة بالابادة الارمنية. هل نعتبر ونطالب جميعنا باستعادة سيادة الدولة حتى لا ننتظر عشرات السنين؟ باسم الانسانية وباسم الشعب الارمني بخاصة اللبنانيين منهم نتوجه بالشكر للشعب الاميركي

by reuters — BEIRUT (Reuters) -Saudi Arabia announced on Friday a ban on imports of fruits and vegetables from Lebanon, blaming an increase in drug smuggling, in a measure that will add to Lebanon’s economic woes. Lebanon is already in the throes of a deep financial crisis that is posing the biggest threat to its stability since the 1975-1990 civil war. Its agriculture minister said the move was a “great loss” and that the trade was worth $24 million a year. The Lebanese foreign ministry said it had been informed of the ban through the Saudi embassy and the foreign minister had relayed it to top officials. “Lebanese authorities must exert utmost efforts to control all smuggling operations … to prevent harm to innocent citizens, farmers, industrialists and the Lebanese economy,” the Lebanese foreign ministry statement said.

The ban will take effect from 9:00 a.m. local time on Sunday. Saudi customs authorities at Jeddah had foiled an attempt to smuggle in more than 5.3 million Captagon pills, a type of amphetamine, hidden in pomegranate shipments from Lebanon, said Mohammed bin Ali al-Naim, undersecretary for security affairs at Saudi Customs, according to Saudi Arabia’s SPA news agency. Lebanon’s caretaker interior minister Mohamed Fahmy told Reuters Lebanon was ready to cooperate with all states to stop drug smuggling and that it had already been exerting “tremendous efforts” but that sometimes smugglers might succeed. One Lebanese official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the ban appeared to be political. “The export of Lebanese vegetables and fruits to the Gulf countries and especially the kingdom was one of the few doors that were still open to bring dollars into the country. Closing this import line increases pressure on Lebanon,” he said.

ذا كنا لا نستطيع منع التهريب بشكل عام ومنع توزيع الكبتاغون وتصدير الاذى الى شباب العالم فكيف نشرع الحشيشة لاهداف طبية كمخرج لتعزيز النمو الاقتصادي … المكتوب يقرأ من عنوانه

BEIRUT, Lebanon, by Dalal Saoud (UPI) — Lebanon is seeking a quick resumption of U.S.-mediated negotiations over its maritime border dispute with Israel, putting on hold new claims to more offshore territory and resorting to arbitration by inviting international experts to step in, according to Lebanese officials and experts. Israel is being asked to refrain from all exploration activity in the disputed area, potentially rich in oil and gas. The move, which came against a backdrop of changing positions by Lebanon caused mostly by political bickering, different delimitation methods and negotiation tactics, was meant to end the impasse in the indirect talks and reach a deal over the disputed area. Lebanon spent 10 years in negotiations to reach a U.S.-mediated framework agreement that paved the way for unprecedented talks with Israel last October.

But the negotiations were suspended after four rounds when the Lebanese delegation, made up of Army generals and experts, presented a new map that would add 550 square miles (referred to as line 29) to the disputed 330 square mile area (referred to as line 23) of the Mediterranean Sea that each side claims is within their own exclusive economic zones. Debt-stricken Lebanon is in dire need of proceeding with oil and gas discoveries that could help overcome its economic woes. Its negotiations with Israel, which has developed offshore natural gas rigs, “have potential to unlock significant economic benefits for Lebanon,” U.S. Under Secretary for Political Affairs David Hale said during a visit to Beirut last week.

سجعان قزي وزير سابق  @AzziSejean 

منذ سنةِ 1633 وكاتدرائيّةُ الكبوشيّين في ڤيينا تَضُمُّ أضْرحةَ آل هابسْبورغ أباطرةِ النمسا/هنغاريا. وكانت لجنازاتِـهم طقوسٌ خاصّة: عندَ بلوغِ جُثمان الإمبراطور بابَ الكاتدرائيّةِ الـمُقفَلَ، يَسألُ راهبٌ من الداخل: “مَن الآتي؟” فيُجيبُ ضابطٌ: “أنا الإمبراطورُ الفُلاني…” ويَسرُدُ ألقابَ الإمبراطورِ كاملةً. فيَـرُدّ الراهب: “لا نَعرِفُه، مَن الآتي؟” فيُكرِّرُ الضابطُ الجواب: “أنا الإمبراطور الفلاني…” ويُعدِّدُ الألقابَ مختَصرَةً. فيعودُ الراهبُ ويقول للمرّةِ الثالِثة: “لا نعرِفُه، مَن الآتي؟” حينئذٍ يُعلن الضابط: “أنا الإنسانُ الخاطئُ الحقير”. فيَفتحُ الراهبُ البابَ ويتمُّ إِدخالُ النعش.

لا مكانَ للـــ”أَنا” أمامَ الله ولا أمامَ الشعب. ما قيمةُ أمجادِ المناصبِ تجاه اللهِ خالقِ الكونِ، وإزاءَ الشعبِ اللبنانيِّ مصدرِ السلطات (مبدئيًّا). أخَذوا على رئيسِ الجمهوريّةِ قولَه: “أنا ميشال عون”، وتَناسَوا أنَّ هذه الــ”أنا” تَنتشرُ أيضًا بين أركانِ المنظومةِ السياسيّةِ، القديمةِ والمخَضرَمةِ والمستَحدَثة. لدى الزعماءِ الفاشلين قبل الناجِحين. ولدى الـمُعقَّدين قبل الصفائيّين. لدى الّذين صُنِعوا وَهُمْ لا شيءَ قبلَ الّذين صَنَعوا وَهُمْ شيءٌ ما. الــ”أَنا” موجودةٌ كذلك بوَفرةٍ في عددٍ من أحزابِنا ومؤسّساتِنا. هي الديكتاتوريّةُ الـمُضْمَرةُ في الديمقراطيةِّ المعلَنةِ. وأصلًا، الديمقراطيّةُ في لبنان فَشِلَت لأنَّ الديمقراطيّةَ عمومًا هي نظامٌ تَسلْسُليٌّ مترابِطٌ يَسقُطُ بكاملِه حين تَنقطعُ حَلْقةٌ من حلَقاتِه. ولأنَّ أحزابَنا انتَقلَت بــــ”أناها” الديكتاتوريّةِ إلى الدولةِ، وحتّى إلى المعارضَة، عَطَّلت ديمقراطيّتَها. أنّى لدولةٍ أن تكونَ ديمقراطيّةً وأحزابُها ديكتاتوريّة، خصوصًا أنَّ الديكتاتوريّةَ مثلُ الديمقراطيّةِ هما نزعةٌ نفسيّةٌ وثقافيّةٌ قبلَ أن تكونا نِظامًا دستوريًّا. وآخِرُ مثلٍ على ذلك “أَنا” القاضيةِ غادة عون، فـــــ”أناها” ليست “أناها” الشخصيّةَ بقدْرِ ما هي “أنا” بيئتِها السياسيّة.

By abouther.com — President Biden recently announced his nominations for the 11 members he has chosen to steer national security and law enforcement at the White House and across key agencies. And the American leader has tapped Christine S. Abizaid as Director of the National Counterterrorism Center (NCTC) at the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. It is one of the agencies the Biden administration is counting on to thwart a rise in terrorism. And If confirmed by the Senate, the Lebanese-American, a former Pentagon and White House official, would be the first woman to hold the post on a permanent basis.

Avril B. Haines, the Director of National Intelligence who oversees the counterterrorism centre, praised the choice. “Christy brings a command of counterterrorism issues, leadership acumen and enterprising approach that will enable her to effectively steer NCTC and lead the CT mission into the future,” he said in a statement. He also added, “Christy is an outstanding selection for this critical position, and I look forward to working with her to protect our nation.”

by english.aawsat.com — Suzanne Mouawad lived through Lebanon’s civil war and built a successful advertising business in the hopeful days after the fighting ended, but she says her country’s economic collapse is breaking her in a way that even missiles did not. Mouawad, 56, comes from a well-to-do background and previously led a privileged life, running her agency as well as a family-owned paper manufacturing business, taking frequent holidays abroad and receiving rent from properties she owns. Now, both the advertising and paper businesses have all but dried up, the tenants can no longer pay the rent, and she finds herself pondering the price of items in the supermarket during her weekly grocery shop. “I didn’t let Lebanon down. It let me down and it hurt me,” she said.

With no end in sight to economic and financial paralysis, Mouawad feels a hopelessness that was not there during the war, which broke out when she was 12 and lasted 15 years. “With war you get a couple of missiles falling one day and then the next day you pick up and you go back to school or back to work and you start producing and making money,” she said. “Now the money is being held at the banks and there is no work.” Stricken Lebanese banks, the biggest creditors to the bankrupt state, have locked customers out of their deposits under informal capital controls imposed without legislation since late 2019 when the country’s financial meltdown started. Any savings people had in Lebanese pounds have lost most of their value, while dollar deposits are inaccessible.