Lebanese president must be elected within constitutional deadline, France tells Aoun

Lebanon’s President Michel Aoun gives a televised speech at the presidential palace in Baabda, east of Beirut. (File/Dalati and Nohra/AFP)
Lebanon’s President Michel Aoun gives a televised speech at the presidential palace in Baabda, east of Beirut. (File/Dalati and Nohra/AFP)
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Updated 13 July 2022

Lebanese president must be elected within constitutional deadline, France tells Aoun

Lebanese president must be elected within constitutional deadline, France tells Aoun
  • France’s ambassador to Lebanon clarified the French position amid growing concerns of a possible presidential vacuum
  • Lebanon faces a political deadlock in forming a new government until a new president is elected

BEIRUT: France’s ambassador to Lebanon has urged President Michel Aoun to respect constitutional deadlines on the election of his replacement as the country struggles to avoid a crippling political stalemate.

In talks with Aoun on Wednesday, Anne Grillo clarified the French position amid growing concerns of a possible presidential vacuum after Aoun’s term ends on Oct. 31.

She highlighted “the importance of speeding up parliament’s approval of the necessary laws to restore the economic and financial situation, in addition to following up on the Beirut port blast and fixing responsibilities.”

Lebanon faces a political deadlock in forming a new government until a new president is elected. Meanwhile, parliament is scheduled to start holding sessions to elect a president as of September.

The government is yet to be formed due to the campaigns launched by the Free Patriotic Movement headed by Gebran Bassil against Prime Minister-designate Najib Mikati, despite the latter presenting to Aoun what he called a “full-featured” government formation.

Those close to the president said he rejected it because the Ministry of Energy was not given to a Christian FPM-affiliated figure. Instead, Mikati suggested a Sunni figure, not affiliated with the FPM, and kept the Ministry of Finance for the Shiite duo, Hezbollah and the Amal movement.

Bassil said: “Mikati does not want to form a new government and is looking for constitutional loopholes to keep his resigned caretaker government.”

There are growing rumors that the current FPM-affiliated ministers may withdraw from the caretaker government, ending its legitimacy, should Mikati decide to transfer the president’s powers to the premier in the event of a presidential vacuum.

However, constitutional expert Saeed Malek said that withdrawing from an already resigned government does not mean anything.

“The constitutional principle stipulated the continuity of this public facility. Shouldn’t ministers, in this case, remain in charge until a new government is formed or other ministers replace them?”

Malek said: “If these people unilaterally quit their job, they could be held accountable and prosecuted by parliament for the offense of not fulfilling their duties.”

In light of the political stalemate, state institutions are facing new strikes by public employees.

Georges Brax, a member of the gas station owners’ syndicate, said the fuel price table was not issued due to the strike staged by the General Directorate of Oil employees.

Fadi Abu Shakra, a representative of the union for fuel distributors and gas stations in Lebanon, said: “If the strike continues, the import of fuel ships will stop because import licenses will be suspended since public employees will not be doing their jobs. The situation is critical.”

The crisis has been worsened by leaked new measures to pay the salaries of judges based on the exchange rate of 8,000 Lebanese pounds to the dollar, thus multiplying their value, since they still get paid based on the official rate of 1,507 Lebanese pounds to the dollar.

Before the economic crisis in 2019, a judge’s salary in Lebanon was equivalent to about $5,000 (7.5 million Lebanese pounds.) But since the national currency’s depreciation, it became equivalent to $150. If judges were to be paid based on the 8,000 LBP/USD rate, they would make $937, which is far more than Lebanese university professors, high-ranking public employees and military officers are currently making.

Parliamentary Speaker Nabih Berri demanded on Wednesday all discriminatory measures against different public sector employees be stopped, claiming they will lead to collapses greater than the financial and economic slumps.

Public employees are demanding that their salaries, benefits, transportation allowances, and compensation be increased according to the prevailing conditions and inflation.

The heads of departments in the Directorate of Public Finance, in coordination with the Directorate of Treasury, the Directorate of Budget and Expenditure Control, and the Directorate of Administrative Affairs, joined the protest movement by announcing Wednesday that they are going on strike until the salaries of Ministry of Finance employees are increased based on the 8,000 LBP/USD rate, and their transportation allowances raised according to the new gas prices.

Member of the Development and Liberation bloc, MP Mohammed Khawaja, described the decision of the Banque du Liban governor regarding the judges’ salaries as bribery.

MP Halima Kaakour warned against adopting different exchange rates in different sectors, and stressed the need to modify the salaries of public employees within a comprehensive recovery plan that does justice to the employees and protects them from inflation.


US slaps sanctions on Iranian, Chinese targets in action over Tehran’s missile, military programs

US slaps sanctions on Iranian, Chinese targets in action over Tehran’s missile, military programs
Updated 18 sec ago

US slaps sanctions on Iranian, Chinese targets in action over Tehran’s missile, military programs

US slaps sanctions on Iranian, Chinese targets in action over Tehran’s missile, military programs
  • The network conducted transactions and facilitated the procurement of sensitive and critical parts and technology for key actors in Iran’s ballistic missile development

WASHINGTON: The United States on Tuesday imposed sanctions on over a dozen people and entities in Iran, China and Hong Kong, accusing the procurement network of supporting Iran’s missile and military programs as Washington ramps up pressure on Tehran.
The US Treasury Department in a statement said the network conducted transactions and facilitated the procurement of sensitive and critical parts and technology for key actors in Iran’s ballistic missile development, including Iran’s Ministry of Defense and Armed Forces Logistics, which is under US sanctions.
Among those hit with sanctions was Iran’s defense attache in Beijing, Davoud Damghani, whom the Treasury accused of coordinating military-related procurements from China for Iranian end-users.
“The United States will continue to target illicit transnational procurement networks that covertly support Iran’s ballistic missile production and other military programs,” Treasury’s Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, Brian Nelson, said in the statement.


Egypt, Israel pledge cooperation after border bloodshed

Egypt, Israel pledge cooperation after border bloodshed
Updated 06 June 2023

Egypt, Israel pledge cooperation after border bloodshed

Egypt, Israel pledge cooperation after border bloodshed
  • Egypt has said the policeman crossed into Israel while chasing drug smugglers

CAIRO: Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to boost cooperation Tuesday after an Egyptian policeman shot dead three Israeli soldiers before being killed, officials said.
El-Sisi received a telephone call from Netanyahu about Saturday’s deadly violence on the normally calm border, the spokesman for the Egyptian president said.
During the conversation, the two leaders stressed “the importance of coordination between the two countries to clarify the circumstances,” he said.
Egypt has said the policeman crossed into Israel while chasing drug smugglers, leading to exchanges of fire with Israeli soldiers.
On Saturday, Netanyahu called the Egyptian shooter a “terrorist” although he has since mostly spoken of the shootings as an “incident.”
El-Sisi offered Netanyahu his “deep condolences,” the Israeli prime minister’s office said.
“The two leaders expressed their commitment to further strengthening peace and security cooperation, which is an essential value for both countries,” it added.
Israel’s border with Egypt has been largely quiet since Egypt became the first Arab country to make peace with Israel following the Camp David accords of 1978.
In recent years, there have been exchanges of fire between smugglers and Israeli soldiers stationed along the border.
Questions have been raised about why the Egyptian assailant — reported by Egyptian media to have been a 22-year-old conscript — crossed into Israel and opened fire.
Speaking at the opening of a cabinet meeting on Sunday, Netanyahu said his government had sent a “clear message” to Egypt: “We expect that the joint investigation will be exhaustive and thorough.”
On Tuesday, his office said he had “thanked the Egyptian president for... his commitment to an exhaustive and joint investigation of the incident.”


Iran debates new penalties for veil violations

Iran debates new penalties for veil violations
Updated 06 June 2023

Iran debates new penalties for veil violations

Iran debates new penalties for veil violations
  • Women have been required to cover their hair after the Islamic revolution of 1979
  • But a growing number are defying the law and appearing bareheaded in the streets

TEHRAN: An Iranian draft law that would set new penalties for women not wearing a headscarf in public has sparked heated debate within the Islamic republic’s leadership as more women flout the country’s strict dress code.
Since the aftermath of the Islamic revolution of 1979, women have been required to cover their hair and neck in public places, with offenders facing fines or prison terms of up to two months.
But a growing number are defying the law and appearing bareheaded in the streets.
The trend accelerated during the nationwide protests sparked by the September death in custody of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old Iranian Kurdish woman arrested for allegedly violating the law.
The protests rocked Iran, provoking a crackdown by authorities that claimed the lives of hundreds of people, including dozens of security personnel, and saw thousands more arrested.
Iran’s conservatives, who dominate the country’s parliament and leadership, have passionately defended the dress code and believe relaxing rules would begin a process leading to profound shifts in “social norms.”
But with many Iranians demanding change, in May the judiciary and the government proposed a “Support for the Culture of Hijab and Chastity” bill, to “protect society” and “strengthen family life.”
The text proposes increased fines for “any person removing their veil in public places or on the Internet” but withdraws the threat of a prison sentence.
“This bill reduces the removal of the hijab from a felony to a misdemeanour, similar to a traffic violation but with heavier fines,” sociologist Abbas Abdi said.
After Amini’s death and the subsequent protests, society “no longer accepts that we imprison a woman because she does not wear the veil,” he said.
Since the protests, authorities have imposed a series of measures to enforce Iran’s strict dress code, including the closure of businesses whose staff do not conform with the rules and installing cameras in public places to track down offenders.
In recent days, at least three officials have been sacked or arrested for failing to prevent unveiled women from entering historic sites.
Under the proposed law, the text of which has been published in government-affiliated media, offenders will first receive a warning text message from the police.
A second breach will incur fines of between five million and 60 million rials (around $10 to $120), a large sum for many Iranians. The law would also provide for other penalities, including the confiscation of a woman’s vehicle for up to 10 days.
Defending the bill, judiciary chief Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei stressed the need to avoid polarizing society, saying he understood the “concerns of believers” supportive of the dress code.
As the bill awaits examination by lawmakers, it faces accusations of not being tough enough from ultra-conservatives, an influential bloc in the current parliament.
Relaxing punishments for violations will see “the expansion of a repugnant phenomenon” by “removing legal barriers” for women not wearing a veil, the ultra-conservative newspaper Kayhan said.
Those supporting the law “do not know that the enemy” seeks to “destroy the family as an institution and ultimately, to attack the foundations of the Islamic system” by removing headscarves, the newspaper said.
Social networks and foreign media, particularly television channels broadcasting in Persian, are calling for “social disobedience,” according to some ultra-conservatives.
Within Iran’s leadership “there is no consensus on the hijab,” as some favor repression, while others “believe that other means must be tried,” the sociologist Abdi said.
“The bill satisfies neither the supporters of compulsory hijab nor, of course, the supporters of the freedom to cover up or not.”
A similar situation developed in the 1990s with a law prohibiting the use of satellite dishes, he said.
“It was only implemented for a while before it was dropped.”


Kuwaitis turn out to cast vote in parliamentary elections

Kuwaitis turn out to cast vote in parliamentary elections
Updated 06 June 2023

Kuwaitis turn out to cast vote in parliamentary elections

Kuwaitis turn out to cast vote in parliamentary elections

Polling stations opened across Kuwait on Tuesday where the country is electing its third parliament in three years. 

There was a “great turnout” by senior citzens who were casting their vote for the 2023 National Assembly, state news agency KUNA reported. 

Kuna went on to report that Kuwaitis were hoping the election would bring political stability with cooperation between the legislative and executive authorities. 

The general election was called by the Kuwaiti Emir, Sheikh Nawaf al-Ahmad al-Sabah last month.


Iran unveils Fattah, its first hypersonic ballistic missile

Iran unveils Fattah, its first hypersonic ballistic missile
Updated 06 June 2023

Iran unveils Fattah, its first hypersonic ballistic missile

Iran unveils Fattah, its first hypersonic ballistic missile
  • Hypersonic missiles can fly at least five times faster than the speed of sound and on a complex trajectory

DUBAI: Iran claimed on Tuesday that it had created a hypersonic missile capable of traveling at 15 times the speed of sound, adding a new weapon to its arsenal as tensions remain high with the United States over Tehran’s nuclear program.

The new missile — called Fattah, or “Conqueror” in Farsi — was unveiled in a tightly choreographed segment on Iranian state television, which apparently sought to show that Tehran’s hard-line government can still deploy arms against its enemies across much of the Middle East.

“Today we feel that the deterrent power has been formed,” Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi said at the event. “This power is an anchor of lasting security and peace for the regional countries.”

Gen. Amir Ali Hajjizadeh, the head of the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard’s aerospace program, unveiled what appeared to be a model of the missile. Hajjizadeh claimed the missile had a range of up to 1,400 kilometers.

That’s about mid-range for Iran’s expansive ballistic missile arsenal, which the Guard has built up over the years as Western sanctions largely prevent it from accessing advanced weaponry.

“There exists no system that can rival or counter this missile,” Hajjizadeh claimed.

That claim, however, depends on how maneuverable the missile is. Ballistic missiles fly on a trajectory in which anti-missile systems like the Patriot can anticipate their path and intercept them. Tuesday’s event showed what appeared to be a moveable nozzle for the Fattah, which could allow it to change trajectories in flight. The more irregular the missile’s flight path, the more difficult it becomes to intercept.

Iranian officials also did not release any footage of a successful launch of the Fattah.

Hypersonic weapons, which fly at speeds in excess of Mach 5, or five times the speed of sound, could pose crucial challenges to missile defense systems because of their speed and maneuverability. Iran described the Fattah as being able to reach Mach 15 — which is 15 times the speed of sound.

China is believed to be pursuing the weapons, as is America. Russia claims to already be fielding the weapons and has said it used them on the battlefield in Ukraine. However, speed and maneuverability isn’t a guarantee the missile will successfully strike a target. Ukraine’s air force in May said it shot down a Russian hypersonic Kinzhal missile with a Patriot battery.