Lebanon to elect a president soon, officials tell US diaspora group

Lebanon to elect a president soon, officials tell US diaspora group
The dollar rate reached 92,000 Lebanese pounds at the beginning of this week. (Reuters/File)
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Updated 13 March 2023
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Lebanon to elect a president soon, officials tell US diaspora group

Lebanon to elect a president soon, officials tell US diaspora group
  • The Lebanese public are facing crisis after crisis amid a presidential vacuum that has continued for five months

BEIRUT: Lebanese officials on Monday suggested that the country could soon end its presidential vacuum and political deadlock by electing a new leader.

After meeting with Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, Edward Gabriel, president of the American Task Force for Lebanon, said that the speaker informed him that “a session will be held soon to elect a president.”

The American Task Force for Lebanon is an NGO made up of prominent Americans of Lebanese heritage who work to strengthen ties between Washington and Beirut.

Meanwhile, caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati said after meeting with Maronite Patriarch Bechara Al-Rahi that “Lebanon’s relief is around the corner and a president should be elected, as it is the door for salvation.”

The Lebanese public are facing crisis after crisis amid a presidential vacuum that has continued for five months. Moreover, Lebanese Parliament is unable to pass legislation before the election of a president, and the cabinet cannot take any decisions, since it is acting in a caretaker capacity.

The dollar rate reached 92,000 Lebanese pounds at the beginning of this week, while banks are set to close their doors again to protest judicial decisions issued against them, despite promises to suspend the measures.

Through its president, the American Task Force for Lebanon called for “the necessity to elect a president and carry out the needed reforms, especially with regard to electricity.” Gabriel said that “the task force reminded Berri of his earlier promise to elect a president by the end of 2022; however, this didn’t happen.”

Gabriel denied discussing the Saudi-Iranian agreement with Berri.

Saudi Ambassador to Lebanon Walid Bukhari on Monday also visited Berri. He said that the speaker “called for balanced rhetoric and stated that the current stage requires resorting, more than ever, to kind rhetoric and permanent wagering on good will.”

Lebanese political parties hold divergent opinions on the new Saudi-Iranian agreement. Hezbollah, through statements delivered by some of its officials, says the agreement “is a victory for its presidential choice,” deeming the election of its candidate Sleiman Frangieh to be crucial.

Meanwhile, the political camp opposing Hezbollah issued a statement that said: “It is still too soon to capitalize on an agreement that didn’t mention the Lebanese file and that provides for non-interference in the affairs of other states.”

The opposing camp also referred to comments by Saudi Minister of Foreign Affairs Faisal bin Farhan, who said that “Lebanon requires a Lebanese rapprochement, instead of a Saudi-Iranian rapprochement.”

Mikati, who is visiting the Vatican on Wednesday, discussed the presidential file during a private meeting with Al-Rahi as well as the implications of the ongoing political conflict. After the meeting, Mikati said: “There’s a consensus on the need to elect a president as soon as possible, to regulate the public work and the functioning of constitutional institutions.”

Mikati added: “Crises cannot be resolved without reaching a political solution that allows the parliament to carry out its natural role and opens the way for the formation of a fully constitutional cabinet.”

MP Marwan Hamadeh, member of the Democratic Gathering party, was surprised by the degree of optimism that Lebanese officials were expressing, including Mikati. He asked: “What relief is Mikati talking about? Was he referring to the dollar rate of 100,000 Lebanese pounds, or the deterioration of the state sectors?”

Hamadeh added: “There are no new developments in the presidential file and the stances are still the same in this regard. The Arab and international stance calls for the election of a sovereign president, who is accepted by all the internal components and the international community and able to restore Lebanon’s sovereignty and institutional functions, so he can be welcomed by everyone.”

Head of the Free Patriotic Movement Gebran Bassil heavily criticized Mikati last week for failing to sign a naturalization decree for people requesting Lebanese nationality, including Syrian businessmen. Mikati responded to critics by calling for “the election of a president as soon as possible.”

The Lebanese Council of Muftis announced on Monday at Dar El-Fatwa, headed by the Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdel Latif Derian, said it “upholds the coexistence provided for in the constitution and the Taif Agreement, abides by the rules of fraternal relations with Arab countries, and safeguards common interests with them.”

The council warned against the “continuation of the presidential vacuum, as it exposes Lebanon to unnecessary risks.”

It denounced “the repeated attacks targeting the premiership, leading to a new strife under the pretext of prerogatives.”
 


Algeria expands English-language learning as France’s influence ebbs

Algeria expands English-language learning as France’s influence ebbs
Updated 18 sec ago
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Algeria expands English-language learning as France’s influence ebbs

Algeria expands English-language learning as France’s influence ebbs
  • Mali this year changed its constitution to remove French from its list of official languages, and Morocco made English classes compulsory in high schools

ALGIERS: More than a year after Algeria launched a pilot program to teach English in elementary schools, the country is hailing it as a success and expanding it in a move that reflects a widening linguistic shift underway in former French colonies throughout Africa.

Students returning to third and fourth-grade classrooms this fall will participate in two 45-minute English classes each week as the country creates new teacher training programs at universities and eyes more transformational changes in the years ahead. Additionally, the government is strengthening enforcement of a preexisting law against private schools that operate primarily in French.

“Teaching English is a strategic choice in the country’s new education policy,” Education Minister Abdelkrim Belabed said last week, lauding the move as an immense success.

English is the world’s most widely spoken language, accounts for the majority of content on the internet, and remains a lingua franca in business and science. As France’s economic and political influence wanes throughout Africa, Algeria is among a longer list of countries gradually transitioning toward English as their primary foreign language.

This year, neighboring Mali changed its constitution to remove French from its list of official languages, and Morocco made English classes compulsory in high schools.

Algeria has more French speakers than all but two nations — France itself and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. According to the International Organization of the French Language, nearly 15 million out of the country’s 44 million speak it. Its officials frame English classes as a practical rather than political shift, noting the language’s importance in scientific and technical fields.

But questions about France’s position in Algerian society have long been polarizing, as teachers and former education policy officials acknowledge.

Retired high school principal Mohammed Arezki Ferdi believes Algeria should have begun the shift to English decades ago. 

The current initiative was launched by Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune, who came to power in 2019. 

Previous leaders also tried to expand English but failed to overcome the French-educated elites who had long wielded power in the country.

“We lost a lot of time,” Ferdi said. 

“We should have introduced English in primary schools when President (Abdelaziz) Bouteflika laid out his reform after coming to power in 1991. But at that time, French-speaking factions in Algeria had a lot of decision-making power in institutions.”

The expansion of English language learning comes as tensions increasingly flare between France and Algeria. 

The two share security interests over the political upheavals shaping contemporary West Africa. 

However, in recent years, they have sparred repeatedly over immigration, extradition, and how each country memorializes colonialism and the brutal war that resulted in Algeria’s independence in 1962. Algeria plans to expand its current program to fifth grade next year. 

It will continue instructing students in French for three hours each week in elementary schools.

When English-language learning was introduced last year, Algerian officials reaffirmed their commitment to French and said it would continue to be taught widely. 

But in remarks this week at the beginning of the school year, Kamal Bedari, Algeria’s minister of Higher Education, said expanding the program was to enable elementary school students to take technical courses later on in English — not French.

Though few dispute that English is essential, some worry about how Algeria is implementing such a shift and caution against declaring victory too soon. Ahmed Tessa, a former adviser to Algeria’s Ministry of Education, believes getting students to master English can only happen gradually and will likely require more than simply adding classes.

“We need to get back to basics,” he said. “This is no small task.”

Regardless of how quickly schools transition to English, signs of pushback against French are clear elsewhere.

Authorities have slowly replaced French with English in the official titles of various government ministries. And on his trip last year to Algiers, the country had French President Emmanuel Macron provide remarks from a podium noting his title and the date in English and Arabic, one of Algeria’s two official languages, along with indigenous Tamazight.


Lion cubs, rare eagle in illegal shipment seized in Lebanon

Lion cubs, rare eagle in illegal shipment seized in Lebanon
Updated 30 September 2023
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Lion cubs, rare eagle in illegal shipment seized in Lebanon

Lion cubs, rare eagle in illegal shipment seized in Lebanon
  • Smuggled animals in ‘terrible’ condition after being found hidden in cages, boxes
  • Minister pledges crackdown under global agreements to curb wildlife trafficking

BEIRUT: Lebanon has pledged to crack down on trafficking in wild animals following the seizure of an illegal shipment that included two lion cubs and a rare eagle near the border with Syria.

Agriculture Minister Abbas Hajj Hassan said on Saturday that Lebanon will adhere to international agreements to prevent smuggling of wildlife, and convicted smugglers will be punished. 

Lebanese troops on Friday found two lion cubs, an eastern imperial eagle, 350 goldfinches and more than 1,350 ornamental birds of various types hidden in wooden cages and cardboard boxes on a truck after a routine search at a checkpoint in Batroun on the Tripoli-Beirut highway, 50 km north of Beirut.

The truck driver was arrested, and the smuggled animals were confiscated.

Internal Security Forces are now investigating the shipment, one of the largest in years and believed to have been destined for a well-known Beirut businessman.

Environment Minister Nasser Yassin said the confiscated animals were in “terrible” condition.

“We do not know how many days they had been kept in cages without food or water to be smuggled across the border, or the circumstances surrounding the smuggling operation,” he said.

The two lion cubs were treated and some of the birds released. However, the eagle was in poor condition and might not survive, the minister added.

Yassin said the businessman is likely to face prosecution.

“Out of concern with the issue of wild animals, we will sue everyone behind this operation,” he said.

“We are committed to the global CITES — Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora — the agreement that regulates this trade.”

Smuggling is a growing problem on the Lebanese-Syrian border amid widespread chaos in the region.

Most operations involve human trafficking, mainly Syrians who want to work in Lebanon or travel through the country illegally en route to Europe.

Smugglers also move medicine, fuel and illegal drugs. However, seizures of wildlife are rarely reported.

Hajj Hassan, the agriculture minister, also said: “It is not the first time that animals have been smuggled and it will not be the last. However, this is the largest shipment that has been confiscated.”

Animal rights activist Ghina Nahfawi told Arab News that the animals were destined for a businessman “known for this type of trade.”

The merchant sells animals in the Al-Awza’i neighborhood in the southern suburbs of Beirut, according to Nahfawi.

Rare and exotic creatures are sold to wealthy people, who boast about having them in their gardens, she said.

The confiscated animals were inspected by the Department of Livestock in North Lebanon and either released or given further treatment.

The eastern imperial eagle is being cared for by the Lebanese Association for Migratory Birds, while the two lion cubs were deposited with the welfare group Animals Lebanon.


Houthis told to release citizens detained for celebrating revolution

Houthis told to release citizens detained for celebrating revolution
Updated 30 September 2023
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Houthis told to release citizens detained for celebrating revolution

Houthis told to release citizens detained for celebrating revolution
  • Yemenis marched through the streets of Sanaa with flags and chanted slogans in praise of the republic
  • The Geneva-based SAM Organization for Rights and Liberties condemned Houthi attacks on peaceful gatherings in the cities it controls

AL-MUKALLA: Yemeni officials and international human rights organizations have demanded the Iran-backed Houthis release hundreds of detained citizens who took to the streets of Sanaa and other Yemeni cities last week to commemorate the 61st anniversary of the Sept. 26 revolution.
Yemenis marched through the streets of Sanaa with flags and chanted slogans in praise of the republic.
Social media videos show armed Houthi militia in military uniform and civilian clothing violently suppressing gatherings in the capital and the city of Ibb, dragging dozens of people from the streets and forcing them into military vehicles.
The Geneva-based SAM Organization for Rights and Liberties condemned Houthi attacks on peaceful gatherings in the cities it controls. The body demanded that the militia cease harassing those who lawfully express their opinions.
The organization said: “We call on the Houthi group to halt its brutal attacks, release all detainees, and instruct its members to respect the rights of individuals to express their opinions, and peaceful assembly.
“In addition, the Houthi group is required to prosecute all individuals involved in the attacks and arrests for their grave violations.”
Sanaa residents said the Houthis had deployed security forces throughout the capital, primarily around Al-Sabeen Square, in response to calls for demonstrations against the mass arrests following Friday prayer.
Amnesty International has demanded that the Houthis “immediately and unconditionally” release the detained individuals, adding that the Yemenis were arrested and assaulted for commemorating a national day.
It said: “In a draconian show of force, Houthi de facto authorities have carried out a wave of sweeping arrests, demonstrating their flagrant disregard for the right to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly.”
Grazia Careccia, Amnesty International’s deputy regional director for the Middle East and North Africa, said in a statement: “The authorities must immediately and unconditionally release anyone detained solely for exercising their rights.”
The Houthis have not officially commented on the arrests, but activists in Sanaa, including legal activist Abdul Wahab Qatran — who has contacted Houthi security agencies — say those seized are being questioned about “possible affiliations” with external groups.
Analysts say the gatherings in Sanaa have been occurring at a time when public pressure has been mounting on the Houthis to compensate thousands of state employees who have not been paid for years.
They add that the Houthis do not acknowledge the 1962 uprising against the imams.
Faisal Al-Shabibi, a Yemeni journalist, told Arab News: “They (the Houthis) view the events of Sept. 26 as a rebellion, not a revolution as the Yemenis do. They intend to transform the republic into a monarchy gradually.”
The Houthis, who took military control of Yemen in late 2014, have detained thousands of Yemeni politicians, activists, journalists, and members of the general public, as well as forcing tens of thousands to abandon their homes.


Calls for justice one year after Iran’s ‘Bloody Friday’

Calls for justice one year after Iran’s ‘Bloody Friday’
Updated 30 September 2023
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Calls for justice one year after Iran’s ‘Bloody Friday’

Calls for justice one year after Iran’s ‘Bloody Friday’
  • Iranian security forces used live fire to suppress a protest on September 30, 2022 in Zahedan
  • "No official has been held accountable for the unlawful killings of scores of men, women and children from Iran's oppressed Baluchi minority on Sept 30, 2022," Amnesty International said

PARIS: Campaign groups on Saturday demanded the perpetrators of the killing of dozens of protesters in southeast Iran one year ago be brought to justice, accusing authorities of using force to quell the latest demonstration in the region.
According to activists, Iranian security forces used live fire to suppress a protest on September 30, 2022 in Zahedan, the main city of southeastern Sistan-Baluchistan province.
At least 104 people were killed, according to the Norway-based Iran Human Rights NGO, in what is known as Zahedan’s “Bloody Friday.”
The violence marked the single deadliest day of months-long protests that erupted in Iran last year.
The Zahedan protests were triggered by reports a teenage girl was raped in custody by a police commander in the region and took place in parallel to nationwide demonstrations sparked by the September 16 death in custody of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old Iranian Kurd, after her arrest in Tehran for an alleged breach of the country’s dress code for women.
Activists have long complained that the minority Baluch population in Sistan-Baluchistan, who adhere to Sunni Islam rather than the Shiism dominant in Iran, suffer from economic and political discrimination and are also disproportionately targeted by capital punishment.
“No official has been held accountable for the unlawful killings of scores of men, women and children from Iran’s oppressed Baluchi minority on Sept 30, 2022,” Amnesty International said in a statement.
“On the solemn anniversary of ‘Bloody Friday’, we remember the victims and stand together in the pursuit of justice.”
Even as the protest movement dwindled elsewhere in Iran, residents of Zahedan have held regular Friday protests throughout the last 12 months, and despite heavy security held a new protest this Friday, campaigners said.
Security forces used live fire and tear gas against protesters, wounding at least 25 people, including children, according to the Baloch Activists Campaign group.
Iran’s top Sunni cleric Molavi Abdolhamid, the Zahedan Friday prayer leader who has been outspoken in his support of the protesters during the past year, had in his sermon issued a new call for justice over “Bloody Friday,” telling the faithful to “know your rights.”
Footage posted on social media showed chaotic scenes as hospitals filled with patients including children, while people on the streets sought to flee to safety amid a sound of heavy gunfire on the streets.
“This is a horrifying display of indiscriminate violence by the Islamic republic as the state attempts to suppress peaceful demonstrations,” said Hadi Ghaemi, executive director of the New York-based Center for Human Rights in Iran.
“It is imperative for the international community to shine a spotlight on this violence and to hold Iranian officials accountable in international courts, invoking the principle of international jurisdiction,” he said.


US Central Command captures Daesh official in Syria raid

US Central Command captures Daesh official in Syria raid
Updated 30 September 2023
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US Central Command captures Daesh official in Syria raid

US Central Command captures Daesh official in Syria raid
  • Last week, the Central Command forces said it had captured Abu Halil Al-Fad’ani, a Daesh Syria Operational and Facilitation official

DUBAI: US Central Command forces conducted a helicopter raid in northern Syria on Sept. 28 capturing Mamduh Ibrahim Al-Hajji Shaykh, a Daesh facilitator, Central Command said on Saturday.
Last week, the Central Command forces said it had captured Abu Halil Al-Fad’ani, a Daesh Syria Operational and Facilitation official, who was assessed to have relationships throughout the Daesh network in the region, during a raid on Sept. 25.
No civilians were injured or killed during both operations, both Central Command statements said.