Pope Francis: ‘Stop using Lebanon and the Middle East for outside interests and profits’

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By Courtney Mares -- catholicnewsagency.com -- Hosting a day of prayer for Lebanon with Catholic and Orthodox leaders on Thursday, Pope Francis said that the country should no longer be used to serve “unscrupulous interests.” “Stop using Lebanon and the Middle East for outside interests and profits,” the pope said July 1. “The Lebanese people must be given the opportunity to be the architects of a better future in their land, without undue interference.” Christian leaders from Lebanon spent the day at the Vatican in private roundtable discussions about the future of their country, which is facing a severe economic crisis.

Representatives from Lebanon’s Maronite, Melkite, Greek Orthodox, Syrian Orthodox, Chaldean, Syrian Catholic, and evangelical community came to the Vatican for the day of prayer. The day began with a moment of prayer in front of the high altar at St. Peter’s Basilica before the pope and the patriarchs placed lighted candles in the crypt chapel at the tomb of St. Peter. It ended with members of the Lebanese diaspora community gathered in the world’s largest Catholic basilica to pray for peace together with the pope and the patriarchs, with prayers offered in Arabic, Armenian, and Syriac.

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Opposition to H.R. 4230 and H.R. 4073, Anti-Lebanese Armed Forces Bills

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IDC Opposes H.R. 4230 and H.R. 4073, Anti-Lebanese Armed Forces Bills Tel: (202) 351-5480 Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. - Sarah Bassil 

Washington, DC- In Defense of Christians (IDC), the nation’s leading advocacy organization for Christians and religious minorities in the Middle East and Africa, opposes H.R. 4230: the Strategic Lebanon Security Reporting Act and H.R. 4073: Countering Hizballah in Lebanon’s Military Act. On June 22, Rep. Lee Zeldin (R-NY) introduced H.R. 4073 asserting the presence of “significant [Hezbollah] influence over the policies or activities of the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF)”, and further calling for the suspension of appropriated U.S. assistance to the LAF. On June 29, Rep. Elaine Luria (D-VA) introduced H.R. 4230, a similar yet separate bill, which also infers “Hezbollah's influence within the Government of Lebanon, including the Lebanese Armed Forces."

The premises upon which each bill is based have been investigated and discredited time and again by the U.S. State Department and Department of Defense. This legislation comes after a May 18 letter from House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Gregory Meeks—signed by 24 congressional colleagues—to Secretary of State Antony Blinken urging for increased assistance to the LAF. Days later, on May 21, the State Department announced a $15 million increase in Foreign Military Financing to the LAF.

In March, CENTCOM commander, General McKenzie, travelled to Lebanon and stated that “[o]ur relationship with the Lebanese Armed Forces is built upon a mutual desire for security and stability in the region and our ability to train together for collective benefit.” “The LAF maintains the firm support of the State Department, Department of Defense, the Administration, and bipartisan congressional support, all with good reason,” said IDC President Toufic Baaklini. “The U.S. has consistently certified the LAF to be in full compliance with End-Use-Monitoring reporting and security requirements. Continued U.S. support to the LAF is critical to U.S. interests in the region, namely countering Iran and supporting UNIFIL in the enforcement of UN Security Council Resolution 1701. The only actors that stand to benefit from wavering U.S. support for the LAF are Hezbollah and Iran,” he added. ###

Lebanese Waiting Hours to Fill Up Cars With Gas as Prices Rise 35 Percent Amid Shortage

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by Maggie Gile - Newsweek -- As the country entered its 20th month of an economic and financial crisis, many goods, from gasoline, medicine and electricity, are experiencing drastic shortages. "My life was already difficult," said Ibrahim Arab, a taxi driver who waited for hours in the hot summer to get gas for his car. "And now the gasoline crisis only made things worse." Arab works a second job at a Beirut grocery store, though his monthly income has lost 95 percent of its purchasing power. For more reporting from the Associated Press, see below. When he's not working, the 37-year-old father of two drives from one Beirut pharmacy to another, looking for baby formula for his 7-month-old son—any he can find—even though the infant got severe diarrhea and vomiting from an unfamiliar brand. He worries what would happen if his children got really sick. Once among the best in the region, Lebanon's hospitals are struggling amid the country's economic and financial crisis that has led to daily power outages that last for hours, shortages of diesel fuel for backup generators, and a lack of medical equipment and drugs. After 20 months of suffering with no end in sight, a new reality is setting in for most of Lebanon's estimated 6 million people: Days filled with severe shortages—from spare parts for cars to medicine, fuel and other basic goods in the import-dependent country.

The crisis, which began in late 2019, is rooted in decades of corruption and mismanagement by a post-civil war political class that has accumulated debt and done little to encourage local industries, forcing the country to rely on imports for almost everything. The Lebanese pound has nose-dived, banks have clamped down on withdrawals and transfers, and hyperinflation has flared. The liquidity crunch is crippling the government's ability to provide fuel, electricity and basic services. A shortage of dollars is gutting imports of medical supplies and energy. The fuel shortage has especially raised fears that the country could become paralyzed. Even private generators, used by the Lebanese for decades, have to be switched off for hours to conserve diesel. "We are really in hell," tweeted Firas Abiad, director general of Rafik Hariri University Hospital, which leads the country's coronavirus fight. Despite a heat wave, the hospital decided Monday to turn off the air conditioning, except in medical departments. Electricity cuts have affected internet connections in various cities, while bakeries warn they might have to close due to fuel shortages. The situation has become critical in recent weeks, with scuffles and shootings at gas pumps, including one in the northern city of Tripoli, where the son of one station's owner was killed.

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Lebanon, a haven for Christians, is in deep trouble

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by aleteia.org -- The economic and political crisis in Lebanon, home to the Middle East’s largest Christian community, has deepened ahead of a historic July 1 meeting between Pope Francis and Christian leaders from the country. This week, the country’s currency plunged to a record low of 17,000 to the U.S. dollar, having lost 90% of its value since an economic crisis began in 2019. Mounting anger against the government has been exacerbated by a fuel crisis. A shortage of foreign reserves necessary to import fuel has left many Lebanese waking up at 3:00 a.m. to line up at petrol stations, in scenes more reminiscent of Venezuela than one of the region’s more prosperous countries. For years, Lebanon has stood apart in the Middle East as a haven for Christians. It does not mandate Islam as a state religion, and an informal agreement even dictates that the President be a Maronite Catholic. For this reason, it has welcomed thousands of Christian refugees fleeing persecution in Iraq or Syria. “Over the years, when we have seen a rise in extremism in other countries, Lebanon has been a place where the Christians and the Muslims could live together, be educated together, to work together, and we would like to see this continue”, said Regina Lynch, Director of projects of the charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN).

Today, however, its status as a haven for Christians is under threat. The currency crisis has been exacerbated not only by the economic fallout of the pandemic but also by the impact of an explosion last year in Beirut, one of the largest non-nuclear explosions ever recorded. The blast decimated the mostly Christian neighborhoods around Beirut’s port area, killing at least 200 people. Almost 100,000 buildings were destroyed and several hundred thousand people were left homeless in one fell swoop. “The Catholic schools are in danger of closing. The Catholic institutes like hospitals and clinics are struggling to survive, even to find the funds they need to buy important medicines and important medical equipment, so it’s really five minutes to zero hour now at the moment in Lebanon”, stated Regina Lynch.

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Lebanon raises fuel prices by more than a third in bid to ease shortages

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by reuters -- The government last week effectively cut fuel subsidies as Lebanon grapples with a catastrophic economic collapse that has sunk its currency by more than 90% in less than two years. The energy ministry said the average price of 20 litres of 95-octane gasoline was increased by 35% to 61,100 pounds. That is the equivalent of $40 at Lebanon's official exchange rate but less than $4 at Tuesday's parallel market exchange rate. Diesel was increased by 12,800 pounds, or 38%, to 46,100 pounds. Scuffles have become commonplace as motorists queue for hours to part-fill their tanks amid expectations of new deliveries. A knife was drawn during a fight at one petrol station, a Reuters witness said.

The spokesman for fuel distributors said six ships had started unloading cargos overnight, the National News Agency reported. "What breaks my heart the most is the old people, people older than my dad, sitting at gas stations - the ones with blood pressure, diabetes and the ones who will collapse for God knows what reason - and nobody is providing for them," said a man waiting his line who gave his name as Nour. Protesters blocked roads with burning garbage and tyres in Beirut on Monday. President Michel Aoun said the new prices should ease the crisis. The central bank said on Monday it would start giving credit lines to import fuel at 3,900 pounds to the dollar, weaker than the official exchange rate of 1,500 pounds that was being applied under the subsidy programme. Dollars were changing hands at about 16,700 pounds on Tuesday on the parallel market, a dealer said. (REUTERS)

Lebanese Army offers tourists helicopter joyrides to boost country's income

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by Soraya Ebrahimi -- thenationalnews.com -- The Lebanese Army will start offering tourists helicopter joyrides this week in a bid to fill the coffers of one of the crisis-hit country's key institutions. Lebanon's economic crisis — which the World Bank describes as possibly one of the world's worst since the 1850s — has hit the Lebanese military hard, leaving it struggling to pay troops a living wage. In an announcement on its website, the army said it would be offering civilians the chance to see “Lebanon … from above” on 15-minute flights.

The joyrides on-board the army's Robinson R44 Raven helicopters will start on Thursday and will be open to passengers aged three and above. Up to three passengers will be allowed on-board per flight, which costs about $150 and must be paid in cash. The aim is “to encourage Lebanese tourism in a new way, in addition to supporting the air force”, a military source told AFP. The economic crisis has eaten away at the value of soldiers' salaries and slashed the military's budget for maintenance and equipment. Towards the middle of last year, the army said it had scrapped meat from the meals offered to on-duty soldiers due to rising food prices. Lebanon has been without a functioning government since a massive blast in Beirut in August last year killed more than 200 people and ravaged sections of the Mediterranean port city. Politicians have failed to agree on a new Cabinet line-up even as foreign currency cash reserves plummet, causing fuel, electricity and medicine shortages. Earlier this month, France hosted a donor conference in which 20 nations agreed to provide emergency aid to Lebanon's military.