Lebanese Hezbollah condemns Charlie Hebdo cartoons in France

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BEIRUT (AP) — Lebanon’s militant Hezbollah group on Tuesday condemned the cartoons published recently by the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo that mocked Iran's ruling clerics and urged France to punish the publication. The Iran-backed Hezbollah said the offensive caricatures were an “ugly act by the magazine” that targeted Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, revered as the spiritual leader for tens of millions of pious Shiites throughout the world, including in Lebanon. There was no immediate comment from France. Charlie Hebdo has a long history of publishing vulgar cartoons mocking Islamists, which critics say are deeply insulting to Muslims. Two French-born al-Qaida extremists attacked the newspaper’s office in 2015, killing 12 cartoonists, and it has been the target of other attacks over the years.

Its latest issue features the winners of a recent cartoon contest in which entrants were asked to draw the most offensive caricatures of Khamenei. The contest was billed as a show of support for the monthslong anti-government protests rocking Iran. One of the finalists depicts a turbaned cleric reaching for a hangman’s noose as he drowns in blood, while another shows Khamenei clinging to a giant throne above the raised fists of protesters. Others depict more vulgar and sexually explicit scenes. “We call upon the French government to take decisive measures to punish those behind the act for attacking dignitaries of a whole nation,” Hezbollah said in a statement. “The French government ... should not be a partner in this offense.” Members of Hezbollah, a Shiite group, also consider Khamenei as their religious leader. Charlie Hebdo, which has published similarly offensive cartoons about dead child migrants, virus victims, neo-Nazis, popes, Jewish leaders and other public figures, presents itself as an advocate for democracy and free expression. But it routinely pushes the limits of French hate speech laws with often sexually explicit caricatures that target nearly everyone.

US sales drive Rolls Royce to record

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By Alessandra Riemer, Editor at LinkedIn News, Record-high inflation doesn't seem to be driving away buyers in the luxury auto market, especially in the U.S. British carmaker Rolls-Royce made about 35% of its sales across the pond last year, at an average $534,000 a pop. The BMW-owned company also sold the most vehicles in its nearly 120-year history overall during 2022, totaling 6,021 — a 8% jump from the year prior, The Financial Times reports. The sales came despite a "single-digit drop" in China, as lockdowns hindered sales its second-largest market. CEO Torsten Müller-Otvös said growth was helped by its customization program called Bespoke, which allows buyers to personalize their own vehicle.

Irregular migrants from Lebanon +176% in 2022, UN

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(ANSAmed) - BEIRUT, JANUARY 9 - The number of people who attempted last year to reach Europe from Lebanon irregularly increased by 176%, according to figures just released by the Beirut office of the UN Refugee Agency UNHCR. UNHCR spokesperson Lisa Abou Khaled was quoted as saying by French-language Lebanese daily L'Orient-Le Jour that from January to December 2022, a reported 4,334 people tried to flee dire living conditions in Lebanon, which has struggled with financial collapse over the past three years and for the past decade has suffered the effects of the war in neighbouring Syria. In 2021, 1,570 irregular migrants departed from Lebanon, according to data provided by UNHCR. And in 2020, 794 fled by sea.

Last year, 62% of irregular migrants from Lebanon were Syrian, 11% Palestinian and 28% Lebanese. The figure was on the rise compared to the previous years: in 2021 Lebanese migrants were 11% (186 out of 1,570) and in 2020 they were 18% (148 out of 794). The significant increase of irregular migrants from Lebanon and the rising percentage of Lebanese nationals fleeing the country was attributed to worsening social and economic conditions in the country, which has been rocked by the worst financial crisis in its history. According to the UN, more than 80% of the population residing in Lebanon - including Syrian refugees, Palestinians and seasonal workers of other nationalities - live below the poverty line.(ANSAmed).

Saudi Arabia set to overtake India as fastest-growing major economy this year

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by arabnews.com -- NIRMAL NARAYANAN -- RIYADH: Saudi Arabia is set to overtake India as the fastest-growing major economy in 2023, driven by gains from energy prices. According to official data released by India’s Ministry of Statistics and Program Implementation, Saudi Arabia is expected to outpace India with 7.6 percent gross domestic product growth as the rising revenues from higher energy prices continue to bolster the Kingdom’s economy. This puts India in the second position with an expected GDP growth rate of 7 percent in the fiscal year ending March, as weakening demand has hampered the growth prospects of Asia’s third-largest economy. “The growth in real GDP during 2022-23 is estimated at 7 percent, compared to 8.7 percent in 2021-22,” said the Indian ministry in a statement.

The Indian government is using this estimate to decide its spending priorities in the upcoming union budget that will be presented on Feb.1, 2023, which will also be the last full-year expenditure plan of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government before elections in 2024. Even though India started the ongoing fiscal year on a good note, monetary policies adopted by the Reserve Bank of India to combat inflation have apparently tampered with the growth curve of the nation. India's central bank, which has raised its benchmark rate by 225 basis points so far this fiscal year, is expected to announce further hike after its policy review meeting scheduled between Feb. 6 to 8.

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AI got $1.37B of investments last year

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By Ruiqi Chen, Editor at LinkedIn News -- OpenAI’s expected $29 billion valuation is only the latest signal of the artificial intelligence craze even as the tech industry faces layoffs and tough economic conditions. Investors funneled more money into generative AI companies in 2022 than in the previous five years combined, reaching a total of $1.37 billion, according to Pitchbook. The excitement saw companies like AI text startup Jasper valued at $1.5 billion in October, around a year after it was founded, and image generator Stability AI reached a $1 billion valuation at the same time. LinkedIn parent company Microsoft invested $1 billion in OpenAI in 2019 and is in talks with the company for more funding.

Lebanese judges to end months-long strike on Monday

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Lebanese judges are set to end their five-month strike after an agreement on financial assistance was reached. Judicial work should resume progressively on Monday, The National has been told. The deal struck with the judges’ mutual fund for financial assistance aims to improve judges' purchasing power after their salaries were slashed by more than 95 per cent amid a sharp currency depreciation. Lebanon's unprecedented economic crisis, described by the World Bank as one of the worst in modern history, has taken a huge toll on judicial staff — and all the public sector’s professions. Judges started a strike in mid-August to protest against the decline of their salaries and the deterioration of their work conditions. As judges join strike for better pay and conditions ordinary Lebanese suffer This led to paralysis of the judicial system, with some of the nation’s top courts completely halting their activities, including for urgent judiciary matters.

Last week, the general assembly of judges agreed on new financial support, “ranging between $500 and $1200 per month, which will be financed by the Ministry of Finance, through the judges’ mutual fund”, a judicial source told The National. This is a type of monthly bonus, and not a salary increase, because “this would have implied a revaluation of the end-of-service indemnities”, the person said, who was not involved in the negotiations. Following the decision, the Supreme Judicial Council called “judges to return to the exercise of their duties, in a way that secures the continuity of the judicial public service”, in a statement published on Thursday. It is not known how the cash-strapped country will finance this new financial support in dollars, as details remain sparse. A Ministry of Finance representative said they did not have information on the mechanism and The National could not reach the Ministry of Justice for comment.

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