Lebanon PM-designate Nawaf Salam faces complex consultations to form government

Judge Nawaf Salam, president of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) speaks at the ICJ at the start of a hearing in The Hague Netherlands May 16, 2024. (Reuters)
Judge Nawaf Salam, president of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) speaks at the ICJ at the start of a hearing in The Hague Netherlands May 16, 2024. (Reuters)
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Updated 13 January 2025
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Lebanon PM-designate Nawaf Salam faces complex consultations to form government

Lebanon PM-designate Nawaf Salam faces complex consultations to form government
  • US military delegation meets President Aoun as Israel escalates attacks
  • Arab League chief says in Beirut: ‘Completing the pillars of the state allows Lebanon a new start’

BEIRUT: Lebanon’s President Joseph Aoun on Monday summoned Nawaf Salam, the Lebanese president of the International Court of Justice, to designate him as prime minister.

The prime minister-designate now faces complex consultations to form his government, determining whether it will be a consensus-based, technocratic or partisan Cabinet.

Salam, 72, secured the majority of votes from MPs and parliamentary blocs that nominated him to assume the premiership in the binding parliamentary consultations conducted by President Aoun on Monday.

Salam also previously served as Lebanon’s permanent representative to the UN in New York.

Salam may insist on forming a government that aligns with the changes in Lebanon and the region in recent months, especially following the significant blow Hezbollah suffered during the Israeli war on Lebanon and developments in neighboring countries.

He hails from a distinguished Beirut family, with two members who previously served as Lebanon’s prime ministers — Saeb Salam, a keystone of independence, and his son, Tammam Salam.

This is the fifth time Salam’s name has been suggested for the premiership.

On Monday, the competition for the premiership was limited to two candidates: Salam and the current caretaker prime minister.

Independent MP Fouad Makhzoumi and Change MP Ibrahim Mneimneh withdrew their candidacy this morning in favor of Salam.

MPs and parliamentary blocs continued to meet President Aoun at Baabda Palace, where the balance tipped in Salam’s favor in the first round of consultations.

In the second round of consultations, major blocs, including the Democratic Gathering parliamentary bloc headed by Taymour Jumblatt, continued to nominate Salam.

The Lebanese Forces bloc, which affirmed its support for the inaugural speech and called for its transformation into a ministerial statement, also nominated Salam, in addition to the Free Patriotic Movement bloc, the Kataeb party’s bloc, the Moderation bloc, and the majority of independent and Change MPs.

Hezbollah and its ally, the Amal Movement, have consistently opposed the nomination of Salam.

His name was first proposed following the widespread protests that erupted after the collapse of the Lebanese pound on Oct. 17, 2019, which led to the resignation of Saad Hariri’s government.

Salam’s name re-emerged as a potential candidate for the premiership after the Beirut port explosion and the resurgence of public protests in 2020.

Following the parliamentary elections in 2022, Nawaf Salam again emerged as a potential candidate for the position of prime minister.

His name was mentioned as the term of former President Michel Aoun drew to a close between 2022 and 2023.

Deputy Speaker of Parliament Elias Bou Saab said: “With the election of the president of the republic, we have entered a new phase and hope after the end of a long vacuum that was painful for Lebanon.

“It remains essential for us, as Lebanese, to reach an agreement to turn a new page, and it is now our responsibility to learn how to communicate effectively,” Bou Saab said.

The promises made to President Aoun by “our brothers in Saudi Arabia, along with the announcement from the UAE that it will soon reopen its embassy in Lebanon, are positive signals,” he said.

The parliamentary consultations took place during a visit by a US military delegation to Lebanon, which met President Joseph Aoun.

The delegation comprised Gen. Michael Kurilla, commander of the US Central Command; Gen. Jasper Jeffers, head of the monitoring committee overseeing the ceasefire agreement in Lebanon; Lisa Johnson, US ambassador to Lebanon; and several officers.

Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit, who arrived in Beirut, held talks with both caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati and Speaker of Parliament Nabih Berri.

Aboul Gheit expressed his hope in a statement that “there would be agreement on a prime minister in Lebanon, and that the pillars of the Lebanese state are completed so that Lebanon would be prepared for a new beginning to settle and to resolve many of the problems that have hindered it for years.”

In parallel with these developments, the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that “a high-level Emirati delegation is in Beirut to make arrangements for the reopening of the UAE Embassy in Beirut.”

This initiative “is in response to the directives of President Mohamed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan, following a phone call he had with Lebanese President Joseph Aoun.”

The UAE Foreign Ministry said that “reopening the embassy reflects the historical fraternal relations between the two countries and peoples.”

It stressed “the UAE’s firm position toward Lebanon’s unity, national sovereignty and territorial integrity, and its support for the brotherly Lebanese people.”

The ministry said that “reopening the embassy comes as part of the UAE’s keenness to support stability and development efforts in Lebanon, and the state’s deep commitment to helping the Lebanese people and providing them with all forms of support.”

Also on Monday, Israeli forces carried out an incursion into southern Lebanon and swept the neighborhoods of the towns of Mays Al-Jabal and Hula.

They also blew up and destroyed homes in the town of Aita Al-Shaab, in the Bint Jbeil district.

Meanwhile, Lebanese civil defense teams, accompanied by the Lebanese army and UNIFIL forces, were recovering the bodies of Hezbollah fighters from towns in the western sector.

On Sunday night, Israeli army airstrikes targeted southern Lebanon and a border crossing in Hermel, near the Syrian border.

Israeli military spokesman Avichay Adraee said that “the air force hit Hezbollah targets after the threat they posed to the Israeli homefront and the army was presented to the monitoring mechanism of the ceasefire understandings between Israel and Lebanon, but was not addressed.”

Adraee also said that “among the targets struck were a rocket-launcher site, a military site, and routes along the Syria-Lebanon border used to smuggle weapons to Hezbollah.”

He said that the Israeli forces “continue to act to remove any threat to Israel and prevent any attempt by Hezbollah to reposition or rebuild its forces, under the ceasefire understandings.”

 


Kuwait’s defense, interior minister meets Egyptian president in Cairo

Kuwait’s defense, interior minister meets Egyptian president in Cairo
Updated 7 sec ago
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Kuwait’s defense, interior minister meets Egyptian president in Cairo

Kuwait’s defense, interior minister meets Egyptian president in Cairo
  • Sheikh Fahd, President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi discuss relations between Kuwait, Cairo
  • Sheikh Fahd on 2-day official visit to Cairo

LONDON: Sheikh Fahd Yousef Saud Al-Sabah, Kuwait’s minister of defense and the minister of interior, met Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi on Sunday during a two-day official visit to Cairo.

Sheikh Fahd conveyed greetings to El-Sisi from the Emir of Kuwait Sheikh Mishal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, and Crown Prince Sheikh Sabah Al-Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Mubarak Al-Sabah.

Sheikh Fahd and El-Sisi discussed relations between Cairo and Kuwait and the enhancement of collaboration in various fields. They also discussed recent developments in regional and international affairs, the Kuwait News Agency reported.

Ghanem Al-Ghanem, Kuwait’s ambassador to Egypt, attended the meeting, along with several senior officials.

Sheikh Fahd, who also serves as first deputy prime minister, has started a three-leg Middle Eastern tour, which includes visits to Jordan and Oman.

His first official visit to Egypt took place in June, during which he met Mahmoud Tawfik, the Egyptian interior minister, and Mohamed Zaki, the former minister of defense.


Netanyahu agrees to begin talks on 2nd phase of ceasefire

Netanyahu agrees to begin talks on 2nd phase of ceasefire
Updated 15 min 5 sec ago
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Netanyahu agrees to begin talks on 2nd phase of ceasefire

Netanyahu agrees to begin talks on 2nd phase of ceasefire
  • Hamas and Islamic Jihad have so far handed over 18 hostages to the International Committee of the Red Cross, the Israelis among them, in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners, many of them women and children

JERUSALEM: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will begin talks on a second phase to the Gaza ceasefire in Washington on Monday, his office said hours after the completion of the fourth hostage-prisoner exchange of the truce.
Netanyahu spoke with the US President’s Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, on Saturday and agreed that negotiations would “begin when they meet in Washington.”
A date for formal talks involving mediators and delegations from Hamas and Israel has not been set, with the 42-day first phase due to end next month.
Netanyahu’s office said Witkoff would talk to key mediators before discussing with the Israeli premier “steps to advance the negotiations, including dates for delegations to leave for talks.”
The second phase is expected to cover the release of the remaining captives and to include discussions on a more permanent end to the war, something several members of Netanyahu’s government oppose.

FASTFACT

The second phase is expected to cover the release of the remaining captives and to include discussions on a more permanent end to the war, something several members of the Israeli government oppose.

As part of the first phase, Hamas on Saturday freed three Israeli hostages in exchange for more than 180 Palestinian prisoners released from Israeli custody.
Hostages Ofer Kalderon and Yarden Bibas were paraded on stage by militants before being handed over to the Red Cross in the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis.
US-Israeli Keith Siegel was freed in a similar ceremony at Gaza City’s port in the north.
The Israeli military later confirmed that all three were back in Israel.
Israeli campaign group the Hostages and Missing Families Forum hailed their release as “a ray of light in the darkness.”
“I hope that this is a sign of the rebirth of the people of Israel, not just of Ofer, not just of the hostages,” Kalderon’s uncle Shemi said, overcome with emotion.
Later in the day, a bus carrying released Palestinian prisoners was greeted by a cheering crowd in the West Bank city of Ramallah, while three other buses were met by hundreds of well-wishers in Khan Younis.
“I need a great deal of composure to control myself, to steady my nerves, to absorb this overwhelming moment,” said one released prisoner, Ata Abdelghani, as he prepared to meet his now 10-year-old twin sons for the first time.
After holding the hostages for more than 15 months, militants in Gaza began releasing them on Jan. 19 under the terms of the ceasefire deal with Israel.
Hamas and Islamic Jihad have so far handed over 18 hostages to the International Committee of the Red Cross, the Israelis among them, in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners, many of them women and children.
A total of 183 prisoners were freed Saturday, all of them Palestinian except for one Egyptian.
The ceasefire’s six-week first phase hinges on the release of a total of 33 hostages in exchange for around 1,900 people, mostly Palestinians, held in Israeli jails.
Hundreds had gathered in the Tel Aviv plaza dubbed “Hostage Square” to watch live television coverage of the latest releases.
Sighs of relief ran through the crowd as the three were freed, though the mood was mostly somber. Ahead of the releases in Khan Younis and Gaza City, scores of masked Hamas fighters stood guard in an apparent effort to prevent large crowds from forming.
It was a sharp contrast to the chaotic scenes that accompanied Thursday’s handover, which prompted Israel to delay its release of Palestinian prisoners in protest briefly.
After Saturday’s hostage release, Gaza’s key Rafah border crossing with Egypt was reopened, with the Health Ministry in the Hamas-run territory saying 50 Palestinian patients in need of specialist treatment had passed through.
Egyptian state-linked channel Al-Qahera News showed footage of the first evacuees, who included 30 children with cancer.
Gaza hospitals director Muhammad Zaqout said he hoped the numbers would increase.
“We now have 6,000 cases ready to be transferred, and more than 12,000 cases that are in dire need of treatment,” he said.
Rafah was a vital entry point for aid before the Israeli military seized the Palestinian side of the crossing in May.
US President Donald Trump, who has claimed credit for the ceasefire deal, is expected to host Netanyahu at the White House on Tuesday.

 


South Lebanon residents describe ‘terrifying’ border destruction

South Lebanon residents describe ‘terrifying’ border destruction
Updated 46 min 52 sec ago
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South Lebanon residents describe ‘terrifying’ border destruction

South Lebanon residents describe ‘terrifying’ border destruction
  • Lebanese military forbids unauthorized return to villages amid continued Israeli military activity
  • Israeli forces remain in parts of the border region after extension of ceasefire withdrawal period

BEIRUT: Residents of the southern Lebanese border towns of Aitaroun, Houla, and Yaroun returned to inspect their homes on Sunday.

Returnees described “huge and terrifying destruction” in Aitaroun and Houla. Tarif Salami, a member of the Aitaroun Municipal Council, stated: “The destruction in the neighborhoods of Aitaroun is beyond description, and we can say that the situation in the town is catastrophic.”

The Israeli forces that invaded the villages remain in place and continue to threaten to open fire on returning locals.

They also detained a fisherman from the Juhair family in Ras Al-Abiad, near Naqoura, while he was sailing with his brother on their boat.

Roads from Wadi Al-Hojeir and Wadi Al-Salouqi were opened on Sunday morning to convoys of Lebanese wishing to return to their homes.

The Lebanese Armed Forces are already present in some villages, and residents from others were escorted on their journey back.

Checkpoints have been established at village entrances to manage the influx of residents and ensure the safety of returnees.

Pro-Hezbollah caretaker Labor Minister Mustafa Bayram said southern residents would not wait for a statement to return to their villages.

“We uphold the legitimacy of the Lebanese constitution, and people are the source of authority. Today, they are demonstrating authority and capability.”

The residents of Kfarkila waited in the corridor that connects their town to Deir Mimas, waving Lebanese flags.

They called for the withdrawal of Israeli forces, which conducted a large-scale attack in Kfarkila on Saturday night, targeting 10 houses.

A video shared on social media showed Lebanese soldiers dismantling the first fence in the area, allowing residents of Kfarkila to enter.

As the Lebanese Armed Forces redeployed in Aitaroun, residents returned to their town on foot, arriving in several neighborhoods despite the ongoing presence of Israeli forces on the outskirts.
Lebanese bulldozers cleared the roads to Yaron for residents to return, but Israeli forces fired on the crowd to halt their advance.

An Israeli military convoy launched two sound bombs at residents, but they remain determined to enter the town.

Community gatherings in support of Hezbollah have taken place in the town of Maroun Al-Ras. Residents spread out on the ground near the position of the Lebanese Armed Forces and raised the party’s flags on nearby trees. In response, Israeli forces fired shots into the air in an attempt to disperse the crowd.

Several residents of Adaisseh gathered at the town entrance and came under Israeli gunfire.

To apply popular pressure for the withdrawal of Israeli forces, the people of Beit Yahoun attempted to enter the town, accompanied by Lebanese soldiers, but came under gunfire.

Israeli forces have extended their occupation of the border region until Feb. 18, continuing to hinder the return of residents to their villages, much of which have been destroyed.

The Israeli strategy has made much of the border area uninhabitable for residents for the foreseeable future.

On Saturday night, Israeli soldiers burned houses in Adaisseh and Rab El-Thalathine. Israeli Army spokesperson Avichay Adraee warned residents of the area where the Israeli military is stationed, stating that “any individual who travels south is putting themselves at risk.”

The Israeli Army remains active in the area, restricting movement southward.

“For your safety, you are advised not to return to your residences in the affected areas until further notice.”

Adraee stated that the deployment process was progressing gradually.

In some sectors, he said that the process was delayed and needed more time to ensure that Hezbollah could not regain its presence on the ground.

He indicated that Israel would continue its current approach and would soon inform residents about the areas to which they could return.

“Until then, do not allow Hezbollah to return and exploit you in an attempt to cover up the devastating consequences of its irresponsible decisions at the expense of Lebanon’s security,” he said.

Israeli media reported that Lebanese residents returning to their villages were being observed by Israeli intelligence to detect any Hezbollah attempts to reposition in the area.

Israeli Channel 12 reported that military leaders in Israel recommended maintaining control over strategic positions in southern Lebanon until the full readiness of the Lebanese Army was verified.

Media reports indicate that the Israeli military was planning outposts in each of the border towns for what they describe as “defensive purposes.”


UN condemns deadly attacks on civilians in Sudan

UN condemns deadly attacks on civilians in Sudan
Updated 02 February 2025
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UN condemns deadly attacks on civilians in Sudan

UN condemns deadly attacks on civilians in Sudan
  • Sudan’s army and the RSF have been locked in a fierce power struggle since April 2023
  • Deadly shelling of a market in Omdurman city killed at least 60 people

PORT SUDAN: The UN condemned on Sunday a series of attacks on civilians across Sudan, including the shelling of a market in Khartoum’s twin city of Omdurman that killed at least 60 people.
In a statement, United Nations resident and humanitarian coordinator in Sudan Clementine Nkweta-Salami described Saturday’s attack on Sabreen market and other residential areas in Omdurman as “horrific” and “indiscriminate.”
According to pro-democracy lawyers, artillery fire from the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) hit the market in army-controlled Omdurman.
Across the Nile in the capital itself, an air strike on an RSF-held area killed two civilians and wounded dozens, rescuers said.
Sudan’s army and the RSF have been locked in a fierce power struggle since April 2023, with the fighting intensifying this month as the army seeks to reclaim the capital.
Nkweta-Salami also deplored reports of civilian killings between Thursday and Saturday in North Kordofan province in southern Sudan as well as in the vast western region of Darfur.
On Thursday, the army said it had recaptured the strategic North Kordofan city of Umm Rawaba from paramilitaries who had held it since May 2023.
Eyewitnesses reported RSF artillery and rocket attacks on Saturday on El-Obeid, North Kordofan’s capital, with several homes set ablaze.
The Darfur General Coordination of Camps for the Displaced and Refugees, a civil society group, also accused the army on Thursday of carrying out air strikes on the town of Manawashi, 78 kilometers (48 miles) north of South Darfur’s capital Nyala.
In North Darfur, the RSF attacked areas west of the state’s besieged capital El-Fasher on Thursday, looting homes, killing civilians and forcing mass displacement, activists said.
Both the RSF and Sudan’s military have been repeatedly accused of targeting civilians and indiscriminately shelling residential areas.
“The suffering of Sudanese civilians has gone on for too long,” Nkweta-Salami said.
“It’s long past time to end this war.”


Hezbollah's slain former chief Hassan Nasrallah to be buried in February

Hezbollah's slain former chief Hassan Nasrallah to be buried in February
People place a picture of slain Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah over the rubble of the shrine of Shamoun al-Safa in southern L
Updated 02 February 2025
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Hezbollah's slain former chief Hassan Nasrallah to be buried in February

Hezbollah's slain former chief Hassan Nasrallah to be buried in February
  • Hassan Nasrallah would be laid to rest nearly five months after he was killed in an Israeli air attack
  • He will be buried on the outskirts of Beirut

BEIRUT: The funeral for Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, killed last year in an Israeli strike, will be held on Feb. 23, said the Iran-backed group’s current chief Naim Qassem on Sunday.
“After security conditions prevented holding a funeral” during two months of all-out war between the group and Israel that ended on Nov. 27, Hezbollah has decided to hold “on February 23 a grand... public funeral” for Nasrallah, Qassem said in a televised speech.

Nasrallah, who was born in 1960, would be laid to rest nearly five months after he was killed in an Israeli air attack on Beirut’s southern suburbs.
Nasrallah was killed on Sept. 27 and had been buried discretely and temporarily according to religious decree, as Hezbollah officials had deemed the security situation too unsafe for officials and religious leaders to appear publicly to honor him.

He will be buried on the outskirts of Beirut “in a plot of land we chose between the old and new airport roads,” Qassem said.

Hezbollah's chief also confirmed for the first time that leading official Hashem Safieddine had been chosen to succeed Nasrallah before he, too, was killed in an Israeli raid in October.

The group will hold Safieddine’s funeral on the same day, Feb. 23, and he will be buried in his hometown of Deir Qanun in southern Lebanon.

Safieddine will be buried “as Secretary-General” or leader of Hezbollah, because “we had... elected His Eminence Sayyed Hashem as Secretary-General... but he was martyred on October 3, a day or two before the announcement,” Qassem said.