2022: A year of missed opportunities in Lebanon

Nabih Berri, speaks after he was re-elected Lebanon's parliamentary speaker, as Lebanon's newly elected parliament convenes for the first time to elect a speaker and deputy speaker in Beirut, Lebanon May 23, 2018. (REUTERS)
Nabih Berri, speaks after he was re-elected Lebanon's parliamentary speaker, as Lebanon's newly elected parliament convenes for the first time to elect a speaker and deputy speaker in Beirut, Lebanon May 23, 2018. (REUTERS)
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Updated 31 December 2022

2022: A year of missed opportunities in Lebanon

  • Series of events deepened dire political, economic and social situation
  • People fear worse days ahead amid calls for rescue plan to ensure economic recovery

LEBANON: Lebanese celebrating New Year’s Eve are looking back on a period that deepened the political and economic crisis in the country, with 2022 being described as a year of missed opportunities.

In January, former Prime Minister Saad Hariri retreated, along with the Future Movement, from political life.

“There is no room for any positive opportunity in Lebanon in light of Iranian influence, international confusion and national division,” Hariri had said.

One of the repercussions of Hariri’s move was a gap in the Sunni representation in Parliament, resulting in a minimal role for the branch within national politics.

At the end of January, the Cabinet headed by Najib Mikati regained its ability to convene. This came after Hezbollah and the Amal movement returned to join the government once they ensured that their powerful street movement had succeeded in paralyzing the work of the judicial investigator in the Beirut port explosion.

BACKGROUND

The term of former president Michel Aoun ended on Oct. 30 after six years of disputes. Parliament has since failed to elect a new president despite holding 10 voting sessions.

The government failed to seize the opportunity to implement a recovery plan agreed upon with the International Monetary Fund, despite having the authority and ability to execute decrees and draft laws.

Most of the required reforms, especially those related to resolving the financial crisis, have yet to be enacted.

The Cabinet had to approve the bank restructuring strategy, amend the laws on banking secrecy, detect and investigate financial crimes, recover assets and conduct a special audit into the foreign assets of the Banque du Liban.

However, Parliament only approved the amended 2022 budget and the BDL initiated procedures to unify exchange rates.

The Mikati government’s sole achievement was holding parliamentary elections in May.

Many counted on the elections to end the hegemony of Hezbollah and its allies through a surge in votes from expatriates.

The elections did carry a glimmer of hope for change through the arrival of 13 new independent MPs from the 2019 protest movement.

However, the Change bloc quickly stumbled and its MPs were left divided.

Parliament later failed to elect a new president.

The smuggling of goods, fuel, medicine and wheat across the border with Syria surged in 2022, as well as illegal human trafficking to Europe on what became known as the “death boats.”

The biggest such tragedy of the year came on April 23 when a boat capsized, leading to 22 deaths, including children.

Mikati was designated to form a new government following the parliamentary elections, but was unable to reach a breakthrough following political differences between Hezbollah and its opponents.

Amid all of these failures, Lebanon signed a maritime border demarcation agreement with Israel on Oct. 27 through US mediator Amos Hochstein. Lebanon and Israel divided the disputed areas with Hezbollah’s approval.

In August, a wave of bank raids began. Employees and clients were taken hostage by depositors, whose savings were seized three years ago.

Among those who raided banks was a female MP in Lebanese Parliament, a young woman an elderly woman and several serving soldiers. They demanded their savings in order to pay hospital bills, educate their children or treat relatives suffering from cancer.

The worsening financial crisis forced the military and security services to wait for aid from allied countries.

The judiciary went on strike for the very first time to protest the decline in judge salaries.

The strike continued until the end of the year and led to the paralysis of the Public Prosecution Office and the inability of security services to make arrests. It represented a new stage in the collapse of state institutions.

Armed conflicts broke out in Hezbollah-dominated areas, with the party rebuffed from its attempts to use Christian lands in the southern border town of Rmeish to set up party facilities.

Public criticism of Hezbollah grew, especially following the death of an Irish peacekeeper after his UNIFIL vehicle was shot at in the southern town of Al-Aqabiya.

The party announced that the suspect in the shooting had been handed over to security services, although it denied ordering the attack.

New taxes were imposed on telephone and Internet services, and on state electricity, which had been completely cut off.

People took to the streets to protest declining wages as a result of inflation. The black market exchange rate was 25,000 Lebanese pounds/USD in January but now stands at 50,000.

Corruption files were opened in official sectors, including the BDL, Land Registry and Car Registration Authority, leading to dozens of arrests.

The term of former president Michel Aoun ended on Oct. 30 after six years of disputes.

Parliament has since failed to elect a new president despite holding 10 voting sessions.

Hezbollah and its allies cast blank votes or disrupted activities because officials did not approve of the available candidates.

In December, a political row erupted between two allies, the Free Patriotic Movement and Hezbollah, after ministers took part in a Cabinet session that the FPM deemed illegal.

The repercussions of the dispute are ongoing and could affect Hezbollah’s choice of presidential candidate.

The probe into the Beirut port explosion is still suspended, obstruction of justice is ongoing, and more than 1 million Syrian refugees remain in Lebanon.

The country succeeded in attracting more than 1 million tourists in 2022, mainly during the summer season.

The Lebanese public rejoiced at dance group The Mayyas being crowned winners of US talent show “America’s Got Talent.” The win gave people in the country a much-needed dose of patriotism at a time when many remain skeptical of Lebanon’s future.

 

 


France urges Lebanon to lift immunity of envoy accused of rape, violence

France urges Lebanon to lift immunity of envoy accused of rape, violence
Updated 25 sec ago

France urges Lebanon to lift immunity of envoy accused of rape, violence

France urges Lebanon to lift immunity of envoy accused of rape, violence
  • The Lebanese Foreign Ministry claimed on Saturday that it did not receive any French request to lift immunity for Rami Adwan
  • Authorities in France opened an investigation into Adwan following the complaints issued by the two former embassy employees

BEIRUT: Lebanon’s ambassador to France is being investigated over rape and assault allegations following complaints by two former embassy employees, with French authorities requesting the lifting of his diplomatic immunity.
The Lebanese Foreign Ministry claimed on Saturday that it did not receive any French request to lift immunity for Rami Adwan, 48.
But the French Foreign Ministry told AFP late on Friday: “In view of the seriousness of the facts mentioned, we consider it necessary for the Lebanese authorities to lift the immunity of the Lebanese ambassador in Paris in order to facilitate the work of the French judicial authorities.”
Authorities in France opened an investigation into Adwan following the complaints issued by the two former embassy employees.
Adwan’s lawyer, Karim Beylouni, told AFP: “My client contests all accusations of aggression in any shape or form: verbal, moral, sexual.
“Between 2018 and 2022 he had with these two women romantic relationships punctuated by arguments and breakups.”
A Lebanese lawyer and expert in international law told Arab News on condition of anonymity that “lifting the immunity of the Lebanese ambassador is taken by the competent minister, the minister of foreign affairs, without referring to the Cabinet, which appoints ambassadors to their positions.”
The lawyer added: “However, the matter requires the Ministry of Justice to request the French Foreign Ministry to provide the file of the diplomat targeted by the investigations. After studying the file, the Lebanese Foreign Ministry gives permission to prosecute him in France because the alleged crime was committed in France.”
French investigative website Mediapart reported that the investigation was being conducted based on a complaint “filed by a former employee of the Lebanese Embassy named Ava, who is 31 years old and who said in the police report that she was raped in May 2020 in a private apartment belonging to Ambassador Adwan.”
According to the complaint report, Ava “expressed her refusal to have a sexual relationship and resorted to screaming and crying.”
The 31-year-old alleged that Adwan assaulted her during a fight in his office, but she did not file a complaint “because she did not want to destroy the life of this man, who is married and has a family.”
However, the ambassador “denied raising his hand against her and denounced the baseless accusations.”
He said that Ava “was trying to use their relationship to enhance her position within the embassy.”
In April 2021, the employee informed Adwan that she was leaving her position, and immediately filed a report.
Mediapart reported that Ava “provided the police with WhatsApp messages on that evening and the following day, explicitly accusing him (Adwan) of rape.”
The newspaper said that the French judicial investigation is also communicating with a second complainant, “a 28-year-old Lebanese student named Gabrielle, who had a close relationship with Adwan after starting her internship at the embassy in 2018.
“She worked in the embassy for four years until the end of 2022 and filed a complaint in February of last year, alleging that she was subjected to a series of physical assaults, often resulting from her refusal to have a sexual relationship.”
The report quoted one of Gabrielle’s neighbors, who was also contacted by Mediapart and questioned by the police, as saying that she “woke up around 2 a.m. that night and heard muffled screams.”
The neighbor said she had met the Lebanese ambassador several times and recognized him.
Adwan, previously envoy to Monaco, was appointed ambassador to France in 2017.
 


Egypt population reaches 105m

Egypt population reaches 105m
Updated 03 June 2023

Egypt population reaches 105m

Egypt population reaches 105m
  • On Oct. 1, 2022, the database put the population at 104 million
  • Increase of 1 million in 245 days — eight months and five days

Cairo: Egypt’s population reached 105 million on Saturday, according to the population clock linked to the government’s birth and death registration database.

On Oct. 1, 2022, the database put the population at 104 million, meaning that there has been an increase of 1 million in 245 days — eight months and five days.

“The increase of 1 million people in eight months is deeply concerning. This level of population growth presents a formidable challenge and a hindrance for the Egyptian state as it disrupts the path to development,” Fatima Mahmoud, a specialist at the Demographic Center in Cairo, told Arab News.

Mahmoud emphasized the government’s strong intent to manage population growth, highlighting that it significantly strains the state’s resources and budget.

“While the increase is indeed alarming, the situation isn’t entirely bleak. An analysis of the data on the difference in birth and death rates reveals that the recent increase of 1 million was reached in 245 days.

“Comparatively, the prior million increase was achieved in just 221 days, nearly 24 days (fewer). This indicates a noticeable decline in birth rates, a positive trend that should be supported by the government,” she said.

“Aid packages should be granted to families with two children, while community assistance should be withheld for those with more than two children. The government must innovate beyond conventional means to effectively control population growth as it poses a substantial threat to development,” Mahmoud added.

Meanwhile, the latest report from the Maat Foundation, which specializes in community studies, said that Egypt’s population growth “negatively impacts” the country’s ability to achieve sustainable development.

It explained: “The economic consequences of population increase include higher consumption among individuals, increased state expenditures on services, widespread unemployment, reduced wages in both public and private sectors, rising housing prices, urban expansion onto agricultural lands, deterioration of public facilities, and inflated allocations of public spending on essential services such as education, health, transportation, housing, social protection, and security.

“All these effects are unfortunately at the expense of capital expenditure on developmental projects in primary productive sectors like agriculture and the transformative industry.”

However, Dr. Alia Al-Mahdi, a professor at the faculty of economics and political science at Cairo University, argued that population increase “is not necessarily a barrier to economic development.”

She said: “A large population can become a positive factor for achieving growth and economic development if the state effectively utilizes the human resources, as demonstrated in countries like India and China, each with a population exceeding 1 billion.”

Al-Mahdi added: “Economic decline, deterioration, and sluggish growth rates are usually the catalysts for increased population growth. Conversely, population growth rates decrease when the economy is performing well and incomes are rising. This is reflected in citizens’ growing desire to enhance their quality of life, consequently reducing the birth rate.”


Tunisian FM hails Italy’s support over IMF loan

Tunisian FM hails Italy’s support over IMF loan
Updated 03 June 2023

Tunisian FM hails Italy’s support over IMF loan

Tunisian FM hails Italy’s support over IMF loan
  • International Monetary Fund seeks govt reforms but Rome backs disbursement ‘without preconditions’
  • Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni to pay official visit to North African country next week

ROME: Tunisia’s foreign minister has hailed “Italy’s clear understanding of the … need to support the … economic recovery underway” in his country.

Nabil Ammar was speaking on Friday night at a ceremony in the residence of Italy’s ambassador in Tunis on the occasion of Italy’s National Day. The event was attended by representatives of Tunisia’s government and business community.

Ammar thanked Italy for all its efforts to explain Tunisia’s viewpoint to other countries regarding negotiations for a loan of nearly $1.9 billion from the International Monetary Fund.

The IMF requires Tunisia’s government to carry out a series of reforms before giving the loan. However, Tunisia is asking for a first tranche of funding to be released immediately by the IMF, while the rest of the loan can be paid in line with the progress of reforms.

Ammar described Italy’s backing of Tunisia on this point as “intelligent and constructive.” He recalled that Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni urged the IMF at last month’s G7 Summit to adopt a “practical” approach to disbursing funds to Tunisia “without preconditions.”

Ammar stressed that the challenges facing all Mediterranean countries and others worldwide on migration “go beyond the capacities of individual states and require all of us to raise solidarity to the level of a fundamental value more quickly than ever before.”

He expressed his hope that the proposal by Tunisian President Kais Saied to organize a regional conference on migration will be accepted “so that this phenomenon can be effectively tackled in a way that takes account of the humanitarian dimension.”

Saied made the proposal during his meeting in Tunis with Italian Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi on May 15.

Meloni and Saied on Friday night discussed bilateral relations during a phone call. According to a press release by Meloni’s office, she accepted Saied’s invitation to pay an official visit to Tunisia next week.


180 dead from Sudan fighting buried unidentified: Red Crescent

180 dead from Sudan fighting buried unidentified: Red Crescent
Updated 03 June 2023

180 dead from Sudan fighting buried unidentified: Red Crescent

180 dead from Sudan fighting buried unidentified: Red Crescent
  • Volunteers have buried 102 unidentified bodies in the capital’s Al-Shegilab cemetery and 78 more in cemeteries in Darfur

KHARTOUM: Persistent fighting in Sudan’s twin flashpoints of Khartoum and Darfur has forced volunteers to bury 180 bodies recovered from combat zones without identification, the Sudanese Red Crescent said.
Since fighting between Sudan’s warring generals erupted on April 15, volunteers have buried 102 unidentified bodies in the capital’s Al-Shegilab cemetery and 78 more in cemeteries in Darfur, the Red Crescent said in a statement Friday.
Both regular army chief Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan and his deputy-turned-rival, paramilitary commander Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, have issued repeated pledges to protect civilians and secure humanitarian corridors.
But Red Crescent volunteers — supported by the International Committee of the Red Cross — have found it difficult to move through the streets to pick up the dead, “due to security constraints,” the Red Crescent said.
In cease-fire talks in Saudi Arabia last month, the warring parties had agreed to “enable responsible humanitarian actors, such as the Sudanese Red Crescent and/or the International Committee of the Red Cross to collect, register and bury the deceased in coordination with competent authorities.”
But amid repeated and flagrant violations by both sides, the US- and Saudi-brokered truce agreement collapsed.
Entire districts of the capital no longer have running water, electricity is only available for a few hours a week and three quarters of hospitals in combat zones are not functioning.
The situation is particularly dire in the western region of Darfur, which is home to around a quarter of Sudan’s population and has never recovered from a devastating two-decade war that left hundreds of thousands dead and more than two million displaced.
Hundreds of civilians have been killed, villages and markets torched and aid facilities looted, prompting tens of thousands to seek refuge in neighboring Chad.
More than 1,800 people have been killed in the fighting, according to the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project.
Medics and aid agencies have said repeatedly that the real death toll is likely to be much higher, because of the number of bodies abandoned in areas that are unreachable.


3 Israeli soldiers, Egyptian guard killed in border gunbattle

3 Israeli soldiers, Egyptian guard killed in border gunbattle
Updated 27 min 2 sec ago

3 Israeli soldiers, Egyptian guard killed in border gunbattle

3 Israeli soldiers, Egyptian guard killed in border gunbattle
  • Egypt confirms security force member killed in Israel border shooting while "chasing a drug smuggler"
  • The exchange of fire reportedly took place around the Nitzana border crossing between Israel and Egypt
  • Egypt and Israel coordinating on border incident; fighting along their shared border is rare

RAMALLAH: A gunbattle along Israel’s southern border with Egypt left three Israeli soldiers and an Egyptian officer dead on Saturday, officials said. 

An Egyptian border guard crossed into Israel and killed the three soldiers before he was fatally shot by troops. 

The Egyptian military said in a statement that he had been chasing drug smugglers when he entered Israel.

While the soldier was in pursuit of the smugglers, he breached the security checkpoint and opened fire, which led to the killing of three Israeli security personnel and the injury of two other persons, it added.

An investigation into the incident was underway, the statement said.

The Egyptian army offered its condolences to the families of the deceased and wished the injured a speedy recovery.

An Israeli source said a male and a female soldier were found dead at 8 a.m. outside their watchtower after contact was lost with them at 6 a.m. 

The Israeli army said the Egyptian border guard was killed in a second exchange of fire in which the third Israeli soldier was killed.

Immediately after the incident, the Israeli army mobilized its forces and evacuated the injured to Soroka Hospital in Beersheba, southern Israel. 

They also conducted a combing operation in the area in anticipation of the presence of other gunmen.

Political analyst Yoni Ben Menachem told Arab News that the Israeli-Egyptian investigation is currently focused on determining whether the Egyptian soldier was affiliated with any organization. 

He said after this incident, the Israeli army would boost its military presence in the border area.

“This is an exceptional incident, but it is important to examine its motives (and) learn lessons … for the future,” Ben Menachem said.

Israel and Egypt have been at peace for over 40 years and have strong security cooperation. Fighting between the sides is extremely rare.

Lt. Col. Richard Hecht, an Israeli army spokesperson, said the fighting began overnight when soldiers thwarted a drug-smuggling attempt across the border.

Hecht said that an investigation was being conducted in full cooperation with the Egyptian army and that troops were searching for other possible assailants.

This was the first deadly exchange of fire along the Israel-Egypt border in over a decade.

It reportedly took place around the Nitzana border crossing, located about 40 km southeast of the point where Israel’s borders with Egypt and the Gaza Strip converge. It is used to import goods from Egypt destined for Israel or the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip.

Israel built a fence along the porous border a decade ago to halt the entry of African migrants and militants who are active in Egypt’s Sinai desert.