US Special Forces Deploy To Support Lebanese Army’s Operations Against ISIS

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by southfront.org

The US-based Arabic TV channel Alhurra claimed that dozens of US soldiers have been deployed in Lebanon to support the Lebanese Army in its upcoming operation against ISIS at the Syrian-Lebanese border. Alhurra claimed that 70 servicemen from US Special Operations Forces are currently in Lebanon but did not reveal the tasks of these soldiers or how they will support the Lebanese Army. Meanwhile, the Lebanese Al-Jumhoria newspaper claimed that the Lebanese government may ask the US-led coalition to provide an air support for the Lebanese Army during its operation against ISIS in the border area. According to the report, Lebanese officials may have contacted Russia and asked them to pressure Syria and Iran to allow US-led coalition warplanes to operate at the Syrian-Lebanese border. However, it appears that Syria is opposing this idea that might lead to establishing of the US-led coalition foothold at the Syrian-Lebanese border. Back in 2014, ISIS fighters captured Jorud Ras Baalbek and Jorud Ras al-Qaa in northeastern Lebanon and Jorud Qara and Grijer in Western Qalamoun inside Syria at the Syrian-Lebanese border. Major General Abbas Ibrahim General director of the Lebanese General Directorate of General Security said that the Lebanese authorities are ready to negotiate with ISIS fighters in Ras Baalbek area if they agree to withdraw like HTS, or they will face a military operation. According to the recent reports, the Lebanese Army will be the main force in the military operation against ISIS in the area. Hezbollah may participate in the operation from the Syrian side. According to Lebanese sources, the operation was delayed because the Lebanese Army had not finished preparations for the effort.

Support to the Lebanese Army

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لجيش اللبناني يواجه الارهاب. لك منّا الدعم الكامل يا جيشنا البطل فنحن كلّنا جيشك # لبّيك لبنان# لبّيك يا جيش #لبّيك Khazen.org

Lebanon: No coordination with Syrian army in the war against ISIS

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Reuters - The Lebanese army will not coordinate with the Syrian army to fight against ISIS in the Lebanese-Syrian border zone, a military source told Reuters on Saturday, rejecting a local media report of direct military cooperation between the two. The source said the Lebanese army had the military capability to confront and defeat the group without any regional or international support. The presence of ISIS and Nusra Front militants in pockets on Lebanon's border is the biggest military spillover into the country from Syria's civil war. An offensive launched last month by Lebanon's Hezbollah - a key ally of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad - forced Nusra Front militants to leave for a rebel-held area in northwest Syria under an evacuation deal. The Lebanese army did not take part in that offensive, but has been widely expected to lead an attack against the ISIS pocket. On Friday Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said an assault on ISIS militants in the border zone would begin in a few days. He said the Lebanese army would attack ISIS from the Lebanese side of the border while Hezbollah and the Syrian army would simultaneously attack from the Syrian side. Hezbollah has been fighting alongside the Syrian army against rebels including hardline Sunni Islamists in Syria. On Saturday Lebanese newspaper al-Joumhouria reported from sources that direct military coordination had occurred between the Syrian and Lebanese armies regarding the upcoming offensive against ISIS. The military source said the Lebanese army had been attacking ISIS for some time, by preventing it spreading further and cutting supply routes. Lebanese state news agency NNA and a Hezbollah media unit said on Saturday the Lebanese army had shelled ISIS positions in the Ras Baalbek and al-Qaa areas of northeast Lebanon. Last Update: Saturday, 5 August 2017 KSA 15:56 - GMT 12:56

Cyclists get a bumpy ride in Beirut

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Al Monitor - By Florence Massena - Beirut could be considered one of the world's least bike-friendly cities due to its air pollution and traffic jams. But more and more residents are riding bikes during the day — and night. Every Thursday night, cyclists wearing helmets and reflective yellow cuffs for visibility cruise bravely on the main roads with Cycling Circle, a company that specializes in cycling projects in Lebanon. Karim Sokhn founded the company in 2012 to share his passion for cycling with others. Since then, he has organized rides in Beirut and biking trips to villages and historical sites around Lebanon. “I used to bike between my house and the university every day, and everyone looked at me strangely,” Sokhn told Al-Monitor. “Biking was either for the very rich or the very poor. The very rich who could afford expensive bikes used them for exercise, and the very poor who couldn’t afford any other way of transportation used bikes out of necessity.”

Sokhn pointed out that everyone used to bike before the Lebanese Civil War (1975-1990), but the war destroyed the country's infrastructure and also changed how people lived. “It is now a challenge to get people to bike as a way of life,” he said. He started the night rides with his friends, and more and more people who heard about the rides through word of mouth joined them. This eventually led to his starting Cycling Circle. “My goal is to promote biking as a way of transportation and create a safe and secure environment for people to have the best experience, with guides, insurance and security measures taken during the rides we organize,” Sokhn told Al-Monitor. “I also want to develop bicycle tourism in Lebanon.”

He added, “I even started a delivery service on bikes — called ‘Deghri Messengers’ — after watching the movie 'Premium Rush' about a delivery service in New York. We stopped this year, but at least it made us known and gave a positive image of the bike in Beirut.” Sokhn opened a boutique and community space last year in Badaro, a popular Beirut neighborhood. He developed new bike tours, gave biking lessons to all skill levels, held technical workshops to teach bikers how to repair their bikes and started sales of secondhand bikes. “It’s a very slow process, but we see more and people interested in bicycling,” he said.

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Hotel occupancy up, so are five-star rates

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by Rania Ghanem -businessnews.com.lb Hotels are breathing a sigh of relief after four difficult years, according to a special report about hospitality in the August issue of Lebanon Opportunities. Rami Sayess, Regional Vice President and General Manager of Four Seasons Hotel Beirut, said: “Business began improving in October 2016.” He said that if business were to continue at the same pace, profits would more than double than those achieved since operations began. Sayess said that the difference this year is the influx of French, British, Italian, German visitors, and expats living in Dubai. Saudis, followed by Kuwaitis and Qataris, are among the top Gulf nationals visiting the country. However, the length of time booked has decreased from several weeks to ten days on average.  Average occupancy rates in Beirut hotels rose 6.6 points to reach 61.1 percent in the first half of the year, according to a report on the performance of four and five star hotels by Ernst and Young. Ernst and Young reported that the average room rate increased by seven percent to reach $145. Room yield increased 19 percent to $89. The number of tourists grew 14 percent, reaching 826,000 visitors, according to the Ministry of Tourism. Fadi Kaedbey, General Manager of Ramada Plaza Beirut, said: “We increased occupancy rates by targeting a new demographic.” The hotel readjusted its tariffs to appeal to tourist groups from Egypt, Jordan, and Turkey. Occupancy rates increased to more than 60 percent last year, with a better room yield. To compensate for the fall in pure touristic activity, hotels are implementing other strategies such as creating additional food and beverage outlets, and targeting the conference and meeting (MICE) business.

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