Macron accuses Lebanese leaders of 'betrayal' over failure to form a government

Details

by AFP -- At a rare news conference devoted to Lebanon, Macron said the political elite had decided "to betray" their obligations and had committed "collective treason" by failing to form a government. Lebanon's premier-designate Mustapha Adib stepped down on Saturday, saying he had been unable to form a reform-minded government. "They have decided to betray this commitment (to form a government)," Macron told reporters, declaring he was "ashamed" of the country's leaders. "I see that the Lebanese authorities and political forces chose to favour their partisan and individual interests to the detriment of the general interest of the the country," he added. He also sent a pointed warning to the Iran-backed Shiite group Hezbollah, which was well represented in the outgoing government and some analysts accuse of holding up the process. Hezbollah should "not think it is more powerful than it is.... It must show that it respects all the Lebanese. And in recent days days, it has clearly shown the opposite," said Macron. The French leader gave Lebanon's political class four to six weeks to implement his roadmap, and said he would commit to holding a donor conference for Lebanon in October. He ruled out immediate sanctions.

Macron, who visited Lebanon twice in the wake of the explosion, had repeatedly urged the Lebanese not to waste any more time in forming a government. The August 4 explosion of hundreds of tons of ammonium nitrate at the Beirut port killed more than 190 people, wounded thousands and ravaged large parts of the capital. The disaster sparked new protests over corruption and mismanagement, prompting the previous cabinet to step down. (FRANCE 24 with AFP, Reuters)

Local NGOs rally to rebuild Beirut in wake of port explosion

Details

by upnewsinfo.com -- Matilda Coleman -- Lebanon’s political instability, failing economy, and the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has pushed the Lebanese pound to lose 80% of its value, since August, according to the Associated Press. Many Lebanese nationals have turned to real estate during this of crisis, in a bid to safeguard their money. According to Bank Audi, in the first five months of 2020, residential real estate sales increased rose more than 50 percent, valuing the overall real estate market at $3.7 billion in May. Moreover, according to Lebanon’s General Directorate of Land Registry, real estate transactions jumped more than 16% in the first quarter of this year. However, August’s port explosion in Beirut led to an estimated 70,000 destroyed houses, 40,000 damaged buildings and 30,000 people being displaced.

Local action: The International Monetary Fund said in April that Lebanon’s economy is expected to shrink 12% in 2020. The government also announced a plan aimed at restoring positive growth in 2022 and promised assistance for the needy, yet many remain skeptical. An IMF emergency bailout for the country is also still pending approval following many rounds of negotiation. In the meantime, local non-profit organisations have been rolling up their sleeves to help rebuild their communities. Some Beirut NGOs have raised around $10 million to help reconstruct the city. Eddy Bitar is the co-founder of Live Love Lebanon, and he estimates that the destruction of residential areas could total $5 billion.

Read more ...

Lebanese nominated premier resigns, in blow to Macron plan

Details

ZEINA KARAM ,Associated Press -- BEIRUT (AP) — Lebanon’s prime minister-designate resigned Saturday amid a political impasse over government formation, dealing a blow to French President Emmanuel Macron’s efforts to break a dangerous stalemate in the crisis-hit country. The announcement by Moustapha Adib nearly a month after he was appointed to the job further delays the prospect of getting the foreign economic assistance needed to rescue the country from collapse. Adib told reporters he was stepping down after it became clear that the kind of Cabinet he wished to form was “bound to fail.” The French leader has been pressing Lebanese politicians to form a Cabinet made up of non-partisan specialists that can work on enacting urgent reforms to extract Lebanon from a devastating economic and financial crisis worsened by the Aug. 4 explosion at Beirut port.

An official in Macron’s office, commenting on Adib’s resignation, described it as “a collective betrayal” by Lebanon's political parties. “It is indispensable to have a government capable of receiving international aid. France will not abandon Lebanon,” said the official, who was not authorized to be publicly named. Macron's office said he will hold a press conference Sunday to talk about the situation in Lebanon. Lebanon is in desperate need of financial assistance but France and other international powers have refused to provide aid before serious reforms are made. The crisis is largely blamed on decades of systematic corruption and mismanagement by Lebanon’s ruling class. But efforts by the French-supported Adib have hit multiple snags, after the country’s main Shiite groups, Hezbollah and Amal, insisted on retaining hold of the key Finance Ministry. Their insistence emerged after the U.S. administration slapped sanctions on two senior politicians close to Hezbollah, including the ex-finance minister.

Read more ...

Adib presents government proposal to Aoun as Hezbollah pressure grows

Details

by NAJIA HOUSSARI -- arabnews -- LEBANON: As Lebanon’s Prime Minister-designate Mustapha Adib continues his efforts to form a new government, on Friday he presented to President Michel Aoun a proposal for “distributing the ministries to various sects before setting a final formula on who will be nominated to these ministries,” sources said. The two men will meet again on Saturday for further discussions. Adib is facing sustained pressure from Hezbollah and the Amal Movement, who have raised their demands to insist that all ministerial positions are filled by Shiites, and not only the key role of minister of finance. This has jeopardized his efforts to form a “government that satisfies everybody,” based on a French initiative that calls for the appointment of a small team of independent specialists representing all religious sects, who are not members of the main political parties. Government sources said: “Adib, during his meeting with representatives of Hezbollah and the Amal Movement on Thursday evening, refused to accept from them a list of names of Shiites from which to choose a minister of finance.” During his Friday sermon the following day, the Grand Jaafari Mufti Ahmad Qabalan said: “We insist on nominating our ministers and we refuse to accept that anyone else will do that for us, no matter who he is.”

Economic experts said on Friday that the continuing debates about the formation of the government are a “waste of precious time,” which is a luxury Lebanon does not have. They criticized the continued prioritization of political interests over the best interests of the country and warned that “it is a matter of life or death for the Lebanese people.” They pointed out “thousands have lost their businesses and tens of thousands have lost their jobs, and 55 percent of the Lebanese people are living below the poverty line. There is a shortage of essential products, and the reserves of the Banque du Liban (the Lebanese Central Bank) have withered away.” Meanwhile there has been a brain drain of professionals and businessmen leaving the country, “which threatens to deprive Lebanon of one of its strongest and most important assets.” Adib faced further obstacles from Hezbollah allies on Friday when Suleiman Frangieh, leader of the Marada Movement, announced that he does not agree that the Prime Minister-designate should choose who represents his party in the government without consulting with him.

Meanwhile, Talal Arslan, leader of the Lebanese Democratic Party, called on Adib to “show respect to parliamentary blocks.” Others warned that the president cannot approve a list of ministers he does not know, and that giving a Shiite party the finance portfolio must not deny other sects the right to ministries that they claim. “The French initiative is blocked due to the conflict between particular interests and regional and international calculations,” said Lebanese MP Bilal Abdallah. “The country cannot stand this any more and it might collapse if things continue the way they are.” He added that he hopes Adib will continue his efforts to form a government and give the French initiative a chance.

Lebanese academic Dr. Hares Sleiman said: “The options of Hezbollah and Amal Movement are determined by their priorities: do they want to defend Iran’s quota … or do they want to have the livelihood of the Lebanese people as their priority, including their supporters and the Shiites of Lebanon?” He added: “(Amal Movement leader and Speaker of the Parliament Nabih) Berri wants the Ministry of Finance at a time when there is a shortage of money, and the international community is demanding the dismissal of those who are corrupt and the implementation of reforms to save the Lebanese economy. “So would Berri accept an independent government that satisfies the demands of protesters in the streets so that Lebanon would enjoy internal, Arab and international support? If he does that, he would be conspiring against Hezbollah and its allies in power. If he does not, then the caretaker government of Hassan Diab will stay, and the crisis and the sanctions will continue.”

Saudi heir and Jared Kushner inch kingdom towards deal with Israel

Details

by Martin Chulov Middle East correspondent -- theguardian.com -- As the UAE and Bahrain prepared to sign a deal to normalise diplomatic relations with Israel this summer, Saudi Arabia – the regional heavyweight – was quietly urging them on. For several months before the deals were signed at the White House, the Saudi crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, had been laying out his rationale for a pact that would overturn regional policies towards a long-term foe. There were state-of-the-art fighter jets on offer, political favours with Washington to be won and bigger, better access to Donald Trump’s America, with all the connections a nakedly transactional president saw fit to muster. There was also another inducement: if Saudi Arabia’s allies came to terms with Israel first, it would give the Kingdom cover to follow. Such a move would mark a seismic shift in the region’s geopolitics, easily eclipsing Israeli accords with Egypt in 1978 and Jordan 16 years later.

While a pact between Israel and Saudi Arabia is growing closer, Prince Mohammed is unlikely to give Trump what would be his biggest foreign policy achievement before the US election, according to three sources close to the royal court. Instead, the Kingdom is likely to continue its role of urging regional allies across the line – effectively in its s name. Sudan and Oman are firm favourites to strike a deal before the year is out. But the old guard of the region, Riyadh and Kuwait, are likely to bide their time and hold out for bigger prizes. Both countries are ruled by long-term monarchs, now well into their 80s and ailing, and both remain invested in long-term formulas for Arab-Israeli peace, which have been shredded by the region’s younger leaders, such as Prince Mohammed. Addressing the United Nations general assembly on Wednesday, the Saudi monarch, King Salman, stuck to the script of the 2002 Saudi-sponsored Arab Peace Initiative, which had been seen as a template until the past few years. “The initiative provides the basis for a comprehensive and just solution to the Arab-Israeli conflict that ensures the fraternal Palestinian people obtain their legitimate rights,” said King Salman. “At the forefront of which is establishing their independent state with East Jerusalem as its capital.”

Read more ...

Lebanese maneuvers produce same mediocre results

Details

by DR. DANIA KOLEILAT KHATIB -- .arabnews -- In a press briefing on Monday, ailing Lebanese President Michel Aoun, who had problems reading a scripted speech properly, answered a journalist who asked where the country was heading to if a new government was not formed. He answered with a cold tone: “We are heading to hell.” The gimmick of the formation of a new government will not save Lebanon, as French President Emmanuel Macron is promoting. The problems and the solutions do not end with Prime Minister-designate Mustapha Adib or his predecessor Hassan Diab and their Cabinets, as both men are a cover-up for a corrupt power structure that uses every maneuver possible to stay afloat.

The first maneuver is the apparent rift between the Free Patriotic Movement (FPM) and Hezbollah. The president’s party said it refuses Hezbollah’s claim to the finance portfolio in the next government, stating that the different ministries are not dedicated to a particular confession. However, this show of integrity will not fool a sharp observer. The accord that laid the foundation of the Hezbollah-Aoun alliance will not be broken anytime soon. The FPM is a client of Hezbollah and it is impossible for Aoun to maintain his entourage and his base of supporters without the financial support of the Iran-sponsored group. Nevertheless, as the ghost of potential sanctions comes to haunt Gebran Bassil, Aoun’s son-in-law, the apple of his eye and the head of his political party, some distancing — at least publicly — and a controlled feud are deemed necessary. This will allow for the formation of a government: A government in which Aoun will have his share and that will have the blessing of Macron, who is supposed to offer legitimacy for this botched project among the international community.

Read more ...