Study reveals average residential prices in Beirut

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by lebaneseexaminer.com = The average starting cost for apartments under construction in Beirut vary from $2,000 to $8,500 per square meter, according to a new study conducted by a Beirut-based real estate advisory firm. The firm RAMCO studied apartment asking prices in 67 Beirut neighborhoods, including popular downtown districts such as Saifi Village and Manara. According to the study, between 2016 and 2017, prices have dropped in 34 out of the 67 Beirut neighborhoods, especially in central neighborhoods between Bachoura and Kaskas. But researchers say there has not been a significant drop in apartment prices in the highest tier of the market. The most expensive neighborhoods, Manara and Saifi Village, have the same asking price as last year.

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Hariri meets U.S. officials in Washington, salutes Senator McCain

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The Daily Star BEIRUT: Prime Minister Saad Hariri Monday began his U.S. visit by meeting several senior U.S. officials and politicians to discuss Lebanese and regional matters ahead of his meeting with President Donald Trump later this week. According to a statement from the PM’s media office, Hariri met with Chris Brose, Staff Director at the Senate Armed Services Committee and Matthew Donovan, Policy Director at the U.S. Senate Committee on Armed Services. Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil, Central Bank Governor Riad Salameh as well as advisers to the PM and other Lebanese officials accompanied Hariri to the meeting. During the meeting, Hariri stressed the importance of strong Lebanese-American relations and also passed on his regards to long-serving senator John McCain, who was recently diagnosed with a brain tumor. “Lebanon is witnessing many challenges but is still stable despite the wars in the region,” Hariri said during the meeting, according to the statement. “It is still an example of moderation in the region that should be preserved ... to preserve minorities in the whole region.”

IS-held Lebanese hostages feared for their lives amid Hezbollah's Syria border operation

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BEIRUT, July 24 (Xinhua) -- The families of nine Lebanese servicemen being held hostage by Islamic State (IS) have expressed concerns over the fate of their sons, local LBCI TV reported. Hussein Youssef, the father of captive soldier Mohammed Youssef, said in an interview with LBCI that he was worried about his son, after Hezbollah launched an unprecedented offensive towards the Lebanese-Syrian border region held by the IS-linked al-Nusra Front group. "We have nine servicemen in IS captivity. What is their situation and what is their fate amid this pressure, bombardment and battles?" Youssef asked. He also warned that the families "will not accept that these servicemen turn into a victim" of any military developments. The fate of the nine servicemen has been shrouded with mystery for around two years now and their families have organized numerous street protests to exert pressure on authorities to unveil their fate and secure their release. The nine men were among more than 30 troops and policeman who were abducted by IS during the deadly 2014 battle between the Lebanese army and IS and al-Nusra militants in and around northeastern border town of Arsal. Four of the servicemen were executed by IS and al-Nusra while another died of his wounds. In 2015, al-Nusra released 16 hostages as part of a swap deal with the Lebanese state, however, the fate of the nine others remains unknown.

Mattis on ISIS leader Baghdadi: 'Until I see his body, I am going to assume he is alive'

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by Christopher Woody -Amid ISIS' defeat in the Iraqi city of Mosul and ongoing fighting in its self-declared capital in Raqqa, Syria, the fate of its leader, Abu Bark al Baghdadi, remains unknown. Russia said in late June that it believed he had been killed in a bombing raid on Raqqa, but earlier this week Moscow admitted that it was unable to confirm the death and said it was getting contradictory information. Despite an observer group saying Baghdadi has been killed, Defense Secretary James Mattis and other US commanders are skeptical. "I think Baghdadi’s alive," Mattis told reporters at the Pentagon on Friday, according to Military Times. Mattis has made similar statements before, and he told reporters that absent evidence Baghdadi was still commanding ISIS, it was possible he was acting in a religious or propaganda role for the terrorist group. “Until I see his body, I am going to assume he is alive,” Mattis said. The US intelligence community has also seen no evidence Baghdadi is dead. Army Lt. Gen. Stephen Townsend, the leader of the US-led coalition fighting ISIS in Iraq and Syria, hasn't confirmed the death either, but earlier this week he said he had no "reason to believe he's alive. I don't have proof of life."

While Baghdadi's whereabouts remain unclear, the group he led appears to be on the wane. Iraqi forces have recaptured Mosul — after ISIS fighters there destroyed the mosque where Baghdadi declared ISIS' "caliphate" in summer 2014 — and US-backed fighters have advanced into Raqqa, though much hard fighting remains there. Like Baghdadi's fate, who will succeed him is also unclear. Experts believe that two lieutenants, ISIS war minister Iyad al-Obaidi and the group's security agency chief, Ayad al-Jumaili, are the most likely candidates. Both served in the Iraqi army under Saddam Hussein and then joined the Sunni Salafist insurgency in Iraq in 2003, after Hussein was deposed by the US invasion. Leadership questions aside, the group looks to remain present in some form. In June, US officials were quick to note that ISIS remained a threat in both Iraq and Syria after Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi announced the group was at its end. And even with ISIS eroding, the tensions that fostered or accompanied its rise and other drivers of conflict are likely to endure.

Catholic group sends 15 Virgin Mary statues to Iraq to replace ones destroyed by ISIS

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by catholicherald.co.uk - A Catholic charity has sent 15 statues of the Virgin Mary to the Middle East to replace ones destroyed by ISIS. The group Œuvre d’Orient, a French association dedicated to helping persecuted Christians, has sent the statues from Lourdes to Ankawa, a suburb of the city of Erbil in Iraqi Kurdistan, which has a majority Catholic population. Aleteia reports that once they arrive, they will be carried in procession through the town by Chaldean and Syriac Catholics, before being blessed and sent to their parishes. Œuvre d’Orient say the processions will be a testament to Jeremiah 31:17: “And here is hope for thy last end, saith the Lord: and the children shall return to their own borders.. In March, a senior aid worker described the Chaldean Catholic population in northern Iraq as “on the verge of extinction”, warning that the West must help. Stephen Rasche, legal counsel and head of resettlement programmes for the Chaldean Archdiocese of Erbil, said: “The future really does hang in the balance,” adding: “History could look back on this and say ‘in their time of greatest need, they didn’t get the support and the community disappeared’. That could happen. We need to be honest about that.” Christian families were forced to flee the Nineveh Plains when ISIS took control of the region in 2014, mainly finding refuge in Erbil. Although the terror group is slowly losing territory, many thousands of Christians remain in the city as IDPs (internally displaced persons). Since 2003, Iraq’s Christian population has collapsed from 1.4 million to 275,000.

Trump to host Lebanese Prime Minister: White House

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By AFP - US President Donald Trump will meet Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri in Washington next week for talks on issues including refugees and combatting terrorism, the White House announced Friday. Analysts also anticipate US aid will be high on the agenda of the July 25th talks at the White House, which has made clear its intent to slash its aid budget for Lebanon, on grounds that national forces there have not adequately applied US military support towards reining in Hezbollah. "The two leaders will discuss issues of mutual concern, including the fight against terrorism, the economy, and refugees," the White House said in a statement. "This meeting will serve as an important opportunity to strengthen the bilateral relationship," the statement said, adding that the talks "will encourage other international and regional partners to support Lebanon as it faces a wide range of challenges." The announcement comes days after US Ambassador Nikki Haley accused the Lebanon-based Hezbollah of amassing weapons and urged the international community to dial up pressure on the powerful paramilitary organization to disarm. There has been speculation about the possibility of a new war between Iran-backed Hezbollah and Israel, more than a decade after their last direct confrontation. On Thursday members of the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee introduced legislation aimed at bolstering sanctions targeting Hezbollah, dubbing the group a threat to Israel's security and criticizing its role as an active ally of President Bashar al-Assad's regime in Syria.