Cardinal Bechara Rai, patriarch of Maronite Catholics, greets Maronite Archbishop Moussa El-Hage of Haifa and the Holy Land at Diman, the patriarchal summer residence in north Lebanon July 20, 2022. The Maronite Catholic officials denounced the detention of Archbishop El-Hage on the southern border of Lebanon July 18. (CNS photo/Mychel Akl for Maronite patriarchate)

By: Doreen Abi Raad BEIRUT (CNS) — Maronite Catholic officials in Lebanon have denounced the detention of one of its bishops on the country’s southern border with Israel. The July 18 incident occurred at the border post of Lebanon’s General Security in the village of Ras Naqoura, at which Maronite Archbishop Moussa El-Hage of Haifa and the Holy Land was detained for more than 12 hours. Archbishop El-Hage, also the patriarchal exarch of Jerusalem and Palestine and Jordan, was traveling by road from his episcopal seat in Haifa, Israel, when he was taken into custody by security officers at a crossing that is reserved for religious and the diplomatic corps. Maronite officials said the archbishop was transporting aid, food and cash from his archdiocese intended for needy in Lebanon, amid the country’s catastrophic economic collapse that has pushed nearly 80% of the population into poverty.

Cardinal Bechara Rai, patriarch of Maronite Catholics, convened a meeting July 20 of the permanent council, a patriarchal authority composed of four bishops that meets in “emergency and serious cases.” Archbishop El-Hage was present. In the statement following the meeting at Diman, the patriarchal summer residence in north Lebanon, the Maronite council condemned what it called the “unfortunate and reprehensible attack” on Archbishop El-Hage. The incident, they said, “brought us back to the times of occupation and rulers in the previous centuries, when the invaders and occupiers were trying to undermine the role of the Maronite Church in Lebanon and the East and its brotherhood between religions.”

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ليس لبنانُ بَعدُ مِن الأولويّاتِ الدُوَليّةِ لكنّه حكمًا من الضَرورات. حزبُ الله هو بين الأولويّاتِ للأسبابِ المعروفةِ وليس الدولة. الّذين دَرجْنا على اعتبارِهم أصدقاءَ، يُسعِفون لبنان بالحدِّ الأدنى من المساعداتِ الإنسانيّةِ وبالحدِّ الأقصى من النصائحِ المجانيّةِ ليبقى حيًّا ولو مُضرَّجًا بالأزَمات. هو جَبهةٌ مُعلَنةٌ في حربٍ لم تَندلِع ويَدفعُ ثَمنَها كأنّها مُندَلِعةٌ. “الأصدقاءُ” يَعرِفون أنَّ في لبنان تَقطُنُ جميعُ صراعاتِ الـمِنطقةِ القابلةِ للحلِّ سلميًّا أو المعرَّضةِ للحلِّ عسكريًّا، لكنّهم يَتعاطَوْن معه كأنَّ مشاكلَه داخليّة. “لهم أعينٌ ولا يُبصِرون، ولهم آذانٌ ولا يَسمَعون”.

حلُّ قضايا الشرقِ ممكنٌ سياسيًّا لو تَقدَّمت مُكوّناتُه البشريّةُ واحتَكَمت إلى حقوقِ الإنسانِ والقوانينِ الدُوليّة. لكنَّ المعضِلةَ أنَّ أهلَ الشرقِ الكبير يُقبِلون على الخِيارِ العسكريِّ أوّلًا فيما هو الخِيارُ الأخير. الحروبُ تَهرُب من الشرقِ الأوسط، وبعضُ دولِه يركضُ وراءَها. لا مجدَ دونَ الانتصارِ، ويا ليتَهم انتصَروا. منذ فجرِ الفتوحاتِ والعربُ يأنَسُون إلى الحروبِ. قاتلوا قرونًا من دونِ قضيّةٍ وطنيّة، ولـمّا أصبحَت لديهم قضيّةٌ كبرى، القضيّةُ الفِلسطينيّةُ، أوْقفوا القِتالَ وراحَ بعضُهم يُقاتلُ البعضَ الآخَر، وهَرعوا إلى الحلولِ السلميّةِ قبلَ نيلِ حقٍّ أو تسجيلِ انتصار. مُتعِبٌ أن يَنتميَ لبنان إلى هذه العروبةِ المتحوِّرة، وممنوعٌ عليه أن يَستعيدَ العروبةَ الأصيلة.

BEIRUT, (Reuters) – Lebanese Prime Minister-designate Najib Mikati said on Tuesday a political agreement on a new central bank governor was required before an investigation into current head Riad Salameh could progress. He made his comments shortly after a judicial raid on the Beirut headquarters of Banque du Liban, a move Mikati denounced as inappropriate because the bank dealt with issues related to monetary stability and it could lead to an “ominous shock”. “What is required is that this file be dealt with via prior political agreement on a new governor of the Banque du Liban, and that the case take its appropriate legal course after that,” a statement from Mikati’s office said.

Mikati’s office did not respond to a request for comment on whether discussions on replacing the governor had taken place. Salameh, the central bank governor since 1993, faces corruption probes in at least five European countries and in Lebanon, which has been plunged into a deep financial crisis that critics blame, in part, on his policies. He has defended his actions and denied wrongdoing, saying the investigations are politically motivated and aim at scapegoating him for the Lebanon’s financial problems. He still enjoys the support of some of Lebanon’s top politicians, including Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri.

Khazen.org condemns the lebanese government unjust detention of the Maronite Catholic Archbishop Mousa El-Hajj at the Naqoura border crossing as an apparent intimidation from Hezbollah and its allies – We stand with the Maronite Church –

Press release from In Defense of Christians (IDC) — Washington, DC – In Defense of Christians (IDC) condemns the Lebanese government’s unjust detention of a Maronite Catholic Archbishop as an apparent act of intimidation against Maronite Church leadership for its public opposition to Hezbollah. On July 19, Lebanese authorities detained Maronite Catholic Archbishop Mousa El-Hajj at the Naqoura border crossing, upon his return from pastoral duties in Israel, and subjected him to an eight-hour interrogation. The Archbishop was released only after the intervention of senior church and judicial officials. The vicar has been summoned for further interrogation before a military court on Wednesday, July 20.

Archbishop El-Hajj is the Maronite Archbishop for Haifa and the Holy Land, and Patriarchal Vicar to Jerusalem, Palestine and Jordan. His arrest and detention by Lebanese authorities occurred in flagrant contempt of his pastoral duty, and further threaten Lebanon’s tradition of religious freedom. The arrest of Archbishop El-Hajj is an apparent attempt to intimidate Maronite Patriarch Rai for his opposition to Hezbollah’s political coercion. The Patriarch has publicly called for Lebanon’s full sovereignty and neutrality, and the unconditional enforcement of UN Resolutions 1559 and 1701 for the disarmament of Hezbollah. Such acts against the leaders of the Maronite Church demonstrate Iran’s coercive control over Lebanon through its proxy Hezbollah, and its malign intention to solidify Lebanon as an Iranian satellite state.

by thenationalnews.com — Jamie Prentis — A Lebanese judge raided the central bank in Beirut on Tuesday in search of its governor Riad Salameh, after state security forces failed to find him at one of his houses earlier in the day. Judge Ghada Aoun, a state prosecutor, has charged Mr Salameh and his brother Raja with illicit enrichment. But the 71-year-old governor could not be found, and Ms Aoun said she was unable to search for Mr Salameh in Banque du Liban’s offices.

Lebanon’s Information Ministry joins public sector strike “We immediately received a judicial order [to leave],” she said. Central bank employees then began a three-day strike following the raid. “The dignity of the institution and its employees comes first. We refuse to be treated with militia methods and we announce the strike”, said Abbas Awada, the head of the central bank’s employee union. “We are not defending Riad Salameh but the institution, and we do not accept these methods.”

by english.alaraby.co.uk — Israel’s army said on Monday it intercepted a drone presumed to belong to Lebanon’s Hezbollah group that crossed into the self-proclaimed Jewish state. “Soldiers spotted and intercepted a drone that crossed from Lebanon into Israeli territory,” an army statement said, adding that the drone “likely belongs” to the Iran-backed Hezbollah movement. Earlier this month, the army said it intercepted three drones launched by Hezbollah that were headed towards the Karish offshore gas field in the Mediterranean. Another Hezbollah drone “which approached Israel’s economic waters” was downed in late June, according to the army. Israel regards the group as one of its principal enemies.

By Najia Houssari — arabnews.com — BEIRUT: A delegation from the American Task Force for Lebanon has stressed the importance of “establishing a social economic program before it is too late.” The call came after the delegation — accompanied by US ambassador to Lebanon Dorothy Shea — held talks with several Lebanese officials on Monday. Edward Gabriel, head of the ATFL, said: “Time is moving quickly, and the government must expedite laws and policies, carry out the required reforms, and take the necessary steps to meet the needs of citizens to push forward negotiations with the International Monetary Fund. We need a partner, and that partner is the government, which has to act quickly to achieve what is required from it.” The US provided aid worth more than $700 million to Lebanon last year, he added, and President Joe Biden “did not forget about Lebanon” during his Middle East visit.

FASTFACT MP Ibrahim Kanaan, chair of the finance and budget committee, announced the adoption of a law amending banking secrecy to prevent tax evasion, combat corruption, financing terrorism, and illicit enrichment. Biden mentioned several issues that affected Lebanon and stressed the integrity of the Lebanese territories during his meetings. The US call came as judicial assistants decided to join a strike of public sector employees on Monday, causing courts in Lebanon to grind to a halt. Public sector employees have been striking for about a month demanding that salaries be increased and for transportation allowances to be raised. The judicial assistants said they had stopped working permanently and would not make any exceptions, be they for urgent cases or public prosecutions, and would no longer issue notices on behalf of departments and courts.

NNA – Maronite Patriarch, Cardinal Bechara Boutros al-Rahi, presided this morning over Sunday Mass at the summer patriarchal edifice in Diman. In his religious sermon, the Patriarch urged all thoose involved in political affairs to rememebr that “they are also entrusted with the mission of serving the common good, through which the good of all and the good of every citizen is preserved.” Touching on the growing daily-living crises in the country, al-Rahi considered that they do not spare any Lebanese family of any financial status. “This is clearly visible: in the crises of flour, bread, electricity, water and food, school fees, medicine and hospital supplies, the return of the Corona epidemic, and confusion in the treatment of public sector employees’ wages amid discretionary increases that contradict the concept of equality between citizens and employees,” he said.

The Patriarch also referred to the “ambiguities over the negotiations to demarcate the maritime borders between Lebanon and Israel,” stressing that “Lebanon cannot wait for long to extract gas and oil, while Israel is doing so,” and hoping that “the United States of America, the mediating country, will resolve the issue with Israel, since Lebanon has provided the maximum for the success of the negotiations.” “Amidst this reality, the Lebanese people are waiting for rescue solutions, only to find that problems are further escalating and their poverty increasing,” al-Rahi regretted. He considered that distrust in the political community has doubled and Lebanon’s credibility in seeking aid from friends is weakened due to the absence of clear and solid rescue solutions. He thus called on the political forces, “in light of the political, parliamentary and security facts, to move away from the atmosphere of challenge that complicates Lebanon’s relations and distances the Lebanese constituencies, at a time when Lebanon is going through the most serious existential challenge in its modern history.”

By Nicole Di Ilio — al-monitor.com — BEIRUT — On a hot July morning, Ali Samir Nabbouh stood for more than two hours outside a bakery in Beirut’s southern suburbs, desperately waiting for a bag of bread. The shop had not yet raised its shutters, and he jostled among a restless crowd all eager to be first served. “I had to feed Fatima and Sarah, my two daughters. I couldn’t miss my turn,” he said. Nabbouh, a 45-year-old divorced father with a part-time job, was struggling for yet another day to bring some pita bread to the table. Not long ago, to do so was a given for all walks of life in Lebanon. But even the staples of life are out of reach for many now. Not only has the number of bread bundles decreased in weight, but their cost has also increased by 550%. Exorbitant prices are now beyond the means of many. Today, what was considered the food of the poor, accessible to all, has become a luxury good. “Just a few months ago, Arabic bread cost 1,500 Lebanese pounds. Now, it reaches around 25,000,” Nabbouh said. “We are not looking to buy anything extra. We’re just trying to buy some food. And we have to beg for help to eat.” With its currency in freefall, its economy shattered and its flatlining legislature incapable of offering reprieve, Lebanon was one of the most vulnerable countries in the world to a supply shock. And then came Ukraine.

Vladimir Putin’s invasion not only brought its neighbor to its knees, but it also decapitated Ukraine’s wheat export industry and, in doing so, sparked unprecedented prince hikes and scarcity of grain across its main export markets in the Middle East. As of early February, just before the Russian invasion, more than 95% of Ukraine’s grain exports — wheat and maize — were shipped via the Black Sea, and half were sent to the Middle East and North Africa. But after Ukraine’s southern ports Odessa, Kherson and Mykolaiv became battlegrounds, the key corridor was closed, suffocating the maritime trade that Lebanon relied upon.

By ALEXANDER WARD and JONATHAN LEMIRE — politico.com –– JEDDAH, Saudi Arabia — President Joe Biden’s four-day Middle East trip was a stark demonstration of how, on the global stage, the importance of values at times gets downplayed in the cold pursuit of the national interest. Biden’s swing through Israel, the West Bank and Saudi Arabia saw the United States engaged in a great game, seeking a larger foothold in the region as Russia and China muscle their way in. Armed with hugs and fist bumps, Biden both literally and figuratively embraced traditional allies who sought rekindled ties to their most important security partner. That coziness resulted in historic agreements to bring Jerusalem and Riyadh closer together, a crown prince seemingly more open to ending the war in Yemen and a renewed push to solve the intractable conflict between Israelis and Palestinians.

But getting there came at a cost. The president’s reputation as a champion of human rights suffered a potentially significant blow once the image of his fist bump with Mohammed bin Salman beamed across screens worldwide. Though Biden raised the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in his meeting with the kingdom’s de facto ruler, who Biden and the U.S. intelligence community believe ordered the killing, his main objective wasn’t to lecture. It was to maximize America’s influence in the Middle East. Biden came to deal with “the needs of the free world, and particularly the United States, and not leave a vacuum here, which was happening as it has in other parts of the world,” he told reporters Friday night in defense of his trip. It will take weeks, months and years to know if it was all worth the media nightmare the president and his team endured.

The diplomatic gamble had an eye toward the long term even as immediate concerns loomed large, namely the need for increased oil production to erase the West’s energy deficit following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Should many of the initiatives pan out — especially the hoped-for normalization of relations between Israel and Saudi Arabia — Biden and his coterie may deem the visit in the scorching heat a success. To hear the administration tell it already, Biden didn’t have to minimize anything to boost America’s standing and make strategic gains this week. If anything, U.S. officials say the president bolstered his reputation as a savvy statesman. “You can’t advance your values and advance your concerns about human rights by not traveling, by staying home, by not having conversations,” National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby told POLITICO on the sidelines of the president’s meetings in Jeddah. “The way you prove that human rights are, in fact, an integral part of your foreign policy is to get out on the road and have those conversations.”