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Assad cousins and Hezbollah operatives hit with sanctions over amphetamine trade that funds regime

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by Elizabeth Hagedorn @ElizHagedorn - almonitor.com -- WASHINGTON — The Biden administration on Tuesday unveiled new sanctions aimed at curbing Syria’s production and export of Captagon, an illegal amphetamine that serves as a key source of revenue for the Syrian regime. The sanctions are the administration’s first to target Syria’s Captagon trade and also its first use of so-called Caesar Act, a law that allows for sanctions on persons or companies that do business with the Syrian government. In a statement, Secretary of State Antony Blinken vowed the United States would continue targeting Syria's drug traffickers and “those who provide support to the Syrian regime’s vicious war.”

An estimated 80% of the world’s Captagon supply is produced in Syria, where the stimulant has become the war-ridden country’s main export. The UK government, which unveiled its own sanctions in coordination with the US, described the Captagon trade as a "financial lifeline" for Assad's regime worth $57 billion. Among those designated by the US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control was Khalid Qaddour, a Syrian businessman who is a close associate of Maher al-Assad, a brother of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad who heads the Fourth Division of the Syrian Arab Army. According to OFAC, Qaddour is responsible for managing the Fourth Division's revenues from facilitating the production and trafficking of Captagon. Also designated was Samer Kamal al-Assad, a cousin of the Syrian president who allegedly oversees Captagon facilities in the regime-controlled port city of Latakia in coordination with the Fourth Division and certain associates of the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah. Assad reportedly owns a Captagon production factory in the Qalamoun region near the Syria-Lebanon border.

Stock grants value Twitter at $20B

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By Jake Perez, Editor at LinkedIn News -- Twitter CEO Elon Musk is offering employees stock grants based on a $20 billion valuation, less than half of the $44 billion Musk paid for the company last year. In an email to staff, Musk said Twitter should be considered "an inverse startup" as the company sheds staff — down from 7,500 to about 2,000 now — and rebuilds by diversifying into new advertising and subscription revenue streams. Ultimately, Musk expects the stock grants to pay off handsomely, adding that he sees "a clear, but difficult, path to a >$250B valuation.

Lebanon time zones: Partial clock change causes confusion

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By Henri Astier BBC News -- People in Lebanon have woken up in two rival time zones, amid a row between political and religious authorities over when clocks should go forward. Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati announced that daylight saving would begin at the end of Ramadan next month, allowing Muslims to break their daily fast earlier. But Christian authorities said they would change the clocks on the last Sunday in March, as happens most years. Many businesses have followed suit.

The dispute illustrates deep divisions in a country where Christian and Muslim factions waged a civil war in the late 1970s and 1980s, and where political positions are shared between religious groups. On Thursday Mr Mikati, a Sunni Muslim, announced his decision to delay the start of daylight saving until midnight on 20 April. He did not give a reason for the move, but many commentators regard it as a way to boost his popularity during Ramadan. The Muslim holy month began on 22 March and ends on 21 April. If the time remains unchanged, Muslims will be able to break their fast an hour earlier, at around 18:00 instead of 19:00, the time the sun sets. But Lebanon's influential Christian Maronite Church said it would disregard the decision, calling it "surprising".

Several major Lebanese organisations have also decided to ignore it. Three news channels, LBCI, NewTV and MTV, moved their clocks forward early on Sunday. Middle East Airlines, the national carrier, decided on a compromise. It said its clocks and other devices would stay in winter time but its flight times would be adjusted to avoid disrupting international schedules. There was also confusion for users of mobile phones and other electronic devices that automatically switch to daylight saving time, as many operators were not notified of the delay in time. Beirut-based author and regional expert Kim Ghattas tweeted that the government's abrupt move "throws travel plans, zoom calls and automatic phone times updates into utter disarray".

Outrage in Lebanon after PM’s last-minute decision to delay daylight savings

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By Najia Houssari - arabnews.com -- BEIRUT: An abrupt decision by Lebanese caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati to postpone the start of daylight saving time by one month has turned into a major political dispute, overshadowing the country’s dire economic crisis. Despite repeat IMF warnings over the state of the Lebanese economy, the latest political controversy surrounding the postponement from March 25 to April 21 is dominating debate in the country. The dispute over daylight saving time also involves religious and sectarian differences, and comes as Muslims mark the holy month of Ramadan. It means those fasting must break their fasts an hour earlier than planned. Lebanese institutions on Saturday took divergent positions on the move.Multiple media outlets (MTV Lebanon, LBCI and AlJadeed) said that it “will not abide by the decision and will commit to the universal time.” According to one political observer, the dispute reflects a “political vacuum, given that an absurd decision was explained in a sectarian way.”

This dispute “showed the loss of confidence in the ruling political class and the scale of randomness that political action in Lebanon can slip into.” The postponement caused confusion among institutions working with other states, notably the international airport, banks and mobile phone networks that automatically adjust to daylight savings each year. Airlines were forced to reschedule flights, and the two major mobile networks in the country sent a written message to subscribers, asking them to “manually adjust the time on their mobile phones before the midnight of Saturday-Sunday, to avoid the time change on their screens.” Secretary General of Catholic Schools Father Youssef Nasr said: “Private educational institutions and the Federation of Private Educational Institutions will abide by Mikati’s decision until it is reversed.” Mikati’s move was met with sarcasm on social media platforms. One political activist said: “We are in the republic of wasting time.” Another said: “It looks like Lebanon’s connection to the global system is not important.” Other warned that the decision “was taken by leaders who do not acknowledge the presence of others in the country.”

Clients pull money from small banks

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By Cate Chapman, Editor at LinkedIn News Americans have moved more than half a trillion dollars from smaller and regional banks since the implosion two weeks ago of two West Coast lenders and the emergency takeover in Europe of Credit Suisse, according to JPMorgan data. They’ve opened accounts in banks deemed "too big to fail" — including JPMorgan — as well as in money markets, Treasury bonds and even bitcoin. The massive migration underscores fear about the safety of deposits even as the federal government says it stands ready to back these in case of further bank failures. Citing the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank, 12% of Americans polled by Yahoo News/YouGov said they’ve moved funds from banks, while 18% said they were considering it.

Tear gas, clashes as Lebanon protesters try to storm govt HQ

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By BASSEM MROUE Associated Press -- BEIRUT -- Lebanese security forces Wednesday fired tear gas to disperse hundreds of protesters, mainly retired soldiers, who tried to break through the fence leading to the government headquarters in downtown Beirut. The violence came amid widespread anger over the harsh economic conditions in the country, where mismanagement by the ruling class has been rampant for years, preceding the economic meltdown that started in late 2019. The retired soldiers and policemen demanding better pay clashed with riot police and troops. Several people suffered breathing problems from the tear gas. The protesters hurled stones at the officers protecting the government headquarters and repeatedly tried to break through the fence. There was no immediate information about any injuries during the violence. The protest was called for by retired soldiers and depositors who have had limited access to their savings after local banks imposed informal capital controls amid the crisis. The controls restrict cash withdrawals from accounts to avoid folding amid currency shortages. People with dollar accounts can only withdraw small sums in Lebanese pounds, at an exchange rate far lower than that of the black market.

Since early Wednesday, riot police and army special forces were deployed around the government headquarters, an Ottoman-era three-story building known as the Grand Serail of Beirut. Nearly two hours after the violence broke out, the protesters dispersed. The Lebanese pound hit a new low on Tuesday, selling for more than 143,000 pounds to the dollar before making some gains. The pound has lost more than 95% of its value over the past three years. The official rate is 15,000 pounds to the dollar. “My monthly salary is $40. How can I survive,” screamed a retired army officer. Most people in Lebanon get paid in Lebanese pounds and have seen the value of their salaries drop over the past years as the pound crashed.

Lebanon to construct new terminal at Beirut airport

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BEIRUT (AP) — Lebanon will construct a $122 million terminal at Beirut’s Rafik Hariri International Airport to be operated by a leading Irish airport company when it’s completed in four years, officials said Monday. Lebanon’s only international airport had a major facelift after the country’s 1975-90 civil war and has been working at full capacity for years. The airport has not undergone an expansion since 1998. Caretaker Minister of Public Works and Transport Ali Hamie said Terminal 2 will bring in private sector investments worth $122 million and will handle 3.5 million passengers annually when operations begin in 2027. It will add six docking stands as well as remote ones, he said in a ceremony at government headquarters to announce the launch of the new terminal. Terminal 2 will be built where the airport’s old cargo building used to stand, according to Hamie. The project comes as Lebanon is in the throes of its worst economic and financial crisis in its modern history, rooted in decades of corruption and mismanagement by the country’s political class.

“The project opens more horizons for air aviation between Lebanon and the world,” caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati said. He added that it will help in solving several problems, including crowding at the current terminal. The project will create 500 direct jobs and 2,000 related jobs, Hamie said, adding that Terminal 2 will be for chartered and low-cost flights. Hamie said once Terminal 2 is ready it will be operated by leading European company daa International, an airport company in Ireland. Ireland’s Minister of State James Browne attended Monday’s ceremony in Beirut and was quoted in a statement released by the Lebanese prime minister’s office as saying that the contract signed will deepen business relations between the two countries. The airport currently handles 8 million passengers a year, and the plans are to reach 20 million in 2030, according to the website of national carrier Middle East Airlines.