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Free Patriotic Movement head Jebran Bassil said Tuesday that his bloc insists on holding the elections on time.
Bassil said after the Strong Lebanon bloc’s weekly meeting that the bloc will file an appeal “against the amendments” and not against the entire electoral law.
Full StoryU.S. Ambassador to Lebanon Dorothy Shea has attended the inauguration of American Corner Tripoli in partnership with Safadi Foundation.
"This American Space at the Safadi Foundation Center will empower youth, women, and professionals through capacity building, cultural, and educational programs," the U.S. Embassy said in a statement.
Full StoryBritain’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office on Tuesday advised against all but essential travel to Lebanon over “ongoing instability.”
“Lebanon is experiencing a prolonged and severe economic crisis. The situation is unpredictable and could deteriorate without warning,” the FCDO cautioned in a notice to British citizens.
Full StoryThe U.S. ambassy in Lebanon on Tuesday delivered six MD-530F+ Light Attack Helicopters to the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) Air Force.
"Since 2017, the U.S. military teams have worked closely with the LAF to ensure the capabilities of these aircrafts would fill mission requirements and enhance the operational capacity of the LAF in providing for Lebanon’s security. Today, we are not only formally inaugurating these helicopters, valued at over $40 million dollars, but we are welcoming them as the newest additions of the LAF’s air fleet," U.S. ambassador to Lebanon Dorothy Shea said at a ceremony at Hamat Airbase.
Full StoryKuwait’s State Security agency has placed 100 expats of various nationalities on the lists of those barred from renewing their residency permits, Kuwait’s al-Qabas newspaper reported.
“The vast majority of them are Lebanese and the rest are Iranians, Yemenis, Syrians, Iraqis, Pakistanis, Afghans, Bangladeshis and Egyptians,” the daily quoted informed security sources as saying.
Full StoryU.S. Ambassador to Lebanon Dorothy Shea held a meeting Tuesday afternoon with Energy Minister Walid Fayyad and Electricité du Liban Director General Kamal Hayek.
“Jointly, we really feel that we're making very good progress on the regional energy deals that the United States has been keen to see move forward. We're trying to get humanitarian relief and real day-to-day relief for the Lebanese people, who have been suffering for far too long from energy shortages and electricity outages,” Shea said after the meeting.
Full StoryTurkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu on Tuesday urged all parties to overcome the problems in Lebanon so that the Lebanese people do not have to “pay the price of regional bargains.”
Çavuşoğlu stated in a joint press conference with his Lebanese counterpart Abdallah Bou Habib that “we feel sad over the Lebanon-Gulf crisis,” and hoped for solving the row through negotiations. “Turkey is ready to do its part,” he affirmed.
Full StoryCentral Bank Governor Riad Salameh will make a shellshock monetary-judicial revelation in the next few days that will change the course of the legal disputes, LBCI television reported.
A judicial spokesman in Luxembourg meanwhile said that judicial authorities these have launched a “criminal lawsuit” related to Salameh and his companies and assets. A spokesman for Salameh for his part said that the governor has not been notified of any lawsuit against him in Luxembourg, declining to give further comments.
Full StoryIntensive efforts are being made to reach a solution for the suspension of Cabinet sessions and the results might appear in the next few days, informed sources said.
“There are four proposals that are being discussed to agree on a solution that would lead to resuming Cabinet’s sessions,” the sources told MTV.
Full StoryThe press office of Prime Minister Najib Miqati denied Tuesday news about solving the political crisis by dismissing port blast investigator Judge Tarek Bitar in order to resume the Cabinet sessions in return.
“The prime minister refutes these news,” the statement said, adding that Miqati’s solution map stresses that “there shouldn’t be any political interference with the judiciary’s work.”
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