Senior U.S. officials self-isolate after meeting Lebanese spymaster who’s positive for Covid

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By Nahal Toosi -- politico -- Several U.S. officials, including a senior figure at the State Department, are now self-isolating after meeting with a Lebanese spymaster who has tested positive for the coronavirus. David Hale, the undersecretary of State for political affairs; CIA Director Gina Haspel; and national security adviser Robert O’Brien were among the Americans who met with Lebanon’s Major Gen. Abbas Ibrahim during his recent visit to Washington, people familiar with the situation told POLITICO. Hale, as well as several other employees from the State Department and other executive branch divisions, are now self-isolating for 14 days, a U.S. official said. It was not immediately clear whether Haspel is among them. O’Brien has already had the virus in the past.

Ibrahim, who leads Lebanon’s directorate of general security, has had to delay his return to Beirut and cancel meetings in France because of his Covid-19 results, his directorate said in a Twitter thread. He “is in good health,” his office said in the thread. The State Department did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Neither did the National Security Council, nor the CIA. Ibrahim had told the Middle East-based news organization The National that he was visiting the U.S. in part to boost intelligence-sharing with Washington and work on releasing more hostages held in Iran and Syria. Ibrahim is believed to be involved in efforts to free Austin Tice, an American journalist who may be in Syrian custody. Lebanon has been in economic and political turmoil for months, a situation aggravated by a massive August explosion that devastated Beirut. A vast cache of improperly stored ammonium nitrate has been blamed for the blast, which killed more than 200 people, wounded thousands and left many more homeless. Daniel Lippman and Natasha Bertrand contributed to this report.

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Enraged Macron washes hands of Lebanese crisis

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by dailystar.com.lb -- Hussein Dakroub -- BEIRUT: French President Emmanuel Macron is outraged by Lebanese political leaders’ failure to act quickly to form a new government to deliver reforms and has therefore decided to wash his hands of the Lebanese crisis for now, a Western diplomatic source said Sunday. However, despite Macron’s frustration with rival Lebanese politicians’ lack of seriousness in dealing with the country’s worst economic and financial crunch in decades, the French initiative to rescue Lebanon from a series of multiple crises is still alive, the source told The Daily Star. “President Macron has washed his hands of the Lebanese crisis, in a move reflecting his disappointment with Lebanon’s political leaders’ continued obstruction of the formation of a new government to enact urgent reforms. He has relegated to the French cell of former French ambassadors who served in Lebanon the job of following up on the implementation of the French initiative to save Lebanon,” the source said.

Macron’s fiery stance came after President Michel Aoun this week suddenly postponed until Oct. 22 binding parliamentary consultations to designate a new prime minister that were set to take place Thursday, apparently due to a lack of strong Christian support for former Prime Minister Saad Hariri’s nomination. Hariri had appeared assured of gaining the support of a parliamentary majority sufficient to designate him to form a new government despite opposition from the two main Christian blocs -- the Free Patriotic Movement and the Lebanese Forces. Hariri, backed by France and regional powers, had emerged as the favorite candidate to form the next government in the absence of a serious Sunni rival. Aoun cited what he called “difficulties that need to be resolved” for his decision to postpone the parliamentary consultations. But Future Movement MP Assem Araji had told The Daily Star that Aoun acted at FPM leader MP Gebran Bassil’s behest to postpone the parliamentary consultations in a bid to block Hariri’s designation for the premiership. A source at Baabda Palace Sunday said the binding consultations would go ahead as scheduled Thursday. “So far, the consultations will take place as planned on Thursday. Barring last-minute hitches, Prime Minister Hariri is expected to be designated as prime minister Thursday,” the source told The Daily Star.

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Lebanese designers struggle to rebuild their brands following triple crisis

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by euronews.com -- Lebanon’s fashion industry is currently enduring a triple crisis. The current economic recession is the worst in the country’s history, COVID-19 has decimated sales and August’s port explosion has destroyed many outlets. To support the sector, a global crowdfunding campaign called “United for Lebanese Creatives” was established. The initiative identified & raised funds for more than 30 Lebanese designers & artists, many of them with ateliers & shops destroyed. Collection collateral Twenty-eight-year-old Lebanese designer, Roni Helou, is a recipient of the aid provided by United for Lebanese Creatives. Helou’s business suffered badly following August’s port explosion, with his atelier, equipment and machinery destroyed. The designer, who did not have insurance, estimates his losses will run to around $15,000.The young creative established his Beirut-based label in 2017, with a focus on sustainability, ethical & local fashion. His latest menswear collection, due for September release in the UAE, was also lost in the port blast. The pieces were made from environmentally friendly, discarded fabrics and so-called ‘dead stock’ materials. The collection took more than a month to construct at a cost of approximately $2,000.

Couturier comeback

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Lebanese Patriarch urges leaders to stop delays in forming government

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by arabnews.com -- BEIRUT: Lebanon’s top Christian cleric urged Lebanese leaders to stop delaying talks on forming a government in a scathing Sunday sermon in which he blamed them for the country’s financial crisis and political deadlock. Patriarch Bechara Boutros Al-Rai, leader of the Maronite church, was speaking a day after demonstrators marched through Beirut to mark the first anniversary of a protest movement which erupted last October against corruption and mismanagement. In the year since, Lebanon’s problems have been compounded by the coronavirus pandemic and a devastating explosion in Beirut in August. “Take your hands off the government and liberate it. You are responsible for the crime of plunging the country into total paralysis in addition to the implications of the corona pandemic,” the patriarch said in his sermon.

His remarks came after two main Christian parties, the Free Patriotic Movement (FPM) and Lebanese Forces, said this week they would not back the nomination of former Prime Minister Saad Al-Hariri to lead a new government to tackle the deep economic crisis, further complicating efforts to agree a new premier. “The responsibility and accountability is collective. Who among you officials has the leisure of time to delay consultations to form a government?” he said. “No one is innocent of Lebanon’s (financial) bleeding.” Hariri, who quit as prime minister last October in the face of the nationwide protests, has said he is ready to lead a government to implement reforms proposed by France as a way to unlock badly needed international aid. Parliamentary consultations to name a new prime minister were due to be held last Thursday, but President Michel Aoun postponed the discussions after receiving requests for a delay from some parliamentary blocs.

U.S. Meets With Lebanon Security Head to Resolve Israel Dispute

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By Jennifer Jacobs -- Bloomberg -- Lebanon’s security chief held talks with top administration officials in Washington this week as the U.S. seeks to resolve his country’s energy dispute with Israel and free an American journalist kidnapped in Syria, according to people familiar with the matter. Abbas Ibrahim, the influential head of Lebanon’s General Security agency, spoke with Robert O’Brien, President Donald Trump’s national security adviser, at a dinner on Friday night, said the people, who asked not to be identified discussing private meetings. He also met Central Intelligence Agency Director Gina Haspel. Amid the Trump administration’s push to shift broader U.S. policy in the Middle East, the fate of Austin Tice remains unresolved some eight years after he was abducted in Syria while on assignment. Trump said in March that the U.S. is working with Syria — Lebanon’s war-wracked neighbor — to secure the journalist’s release.

O’Brien and Ibrahim also met at the White House during the Lebanese official’s visit, according to one of the people. The two know each from when O’Brien served as Trump’s hostage envoy in 2018 and 2019. Ibrahim played a role in the release of three hostages, including Sam Goodwin, a U.S. citizen released from Syria last year, and Nizar Zakka, a Lebanese businessman and U.S. resident who was let go by Iran and accompanied by Ibrahim on his return to Beirut. The White House and a CIA spokeswoman declined to comment. A General Security spokesman in Beirut said he had no information on any meetings. Read more: Senators Urge Pompeo to Press for Release of Americans Overseas Guests at the Friday night dinner included Diane Foley, the mother of American journalist James Foley, who covered Syria’s civil war and was beheaded by Islamic State in 2014. She presented Ibrahim with an award, according to one of the people.

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Lebanon: Anti-government protesters mark one year of 'revolution'

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by AP -- Lebanese protesters are still calling for the downfall of the political elite, although a year of rallies has so far failed to spark a full-blown revolution. The country is still reeling from the deadly Beirut blast. Anti-government protesters rallied across Lebanon on Saturday, marking a year since hundreds of thousands of people first came out on streets to protest taxes, corruption and poverty. "We will continue no matter what," read one placard at the protests in Beirut, as thousands of people chanted "Revolution, revolution." The protests first broke out after people people disappointment with the government boiled over last October. With minor changes, the ruling elite has been in power since Lebanon’s 1975-1990 civil war. While the rapidly deteriorating economic crisis and a collapse of the currency were the main driving force for the protests that rocked the country, the situation has only gotten worse since then.

The country faces an uncertain future with no stable government in place, which has further amplified the damage caused by the coronavirus and the massive August 4 explosion at the capital city’s port. The blast has killed over 190 people and injured 6,00 more. While marches seem to have taken a backseat in the current political and economic climate, protesters maintain that the movement will continue. They demand the resignation of President Michel Aoun. "The revolution did not die," said activist Rabih al-Zein, as protesters took to the streets of Beirut, Tripoli, and other cities. "We can hold this corrupt authority accountable and the proof is we brought down two governments." In Beirut, protesters marched near the central bank and parliament, before continuing down to the site of the devastating August blast. A candlelight vigil marked the exact time when ammonium nitrate exploded at the port.

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