A Bundle Of English Reports, News and Editorials For December 23-24/2019 Addressing the On Going Mass Demonstrations & Sit In-ins In Iranian Occupied Lebanon in its 68th Day
Compiled By: Elias Bejjani
December 24/2019
Tites For The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News published on December 23-24/2019
President Aoun holds political meetings at Baabda Palace
Prime Minister, Hassan Diab designate avows successful civil servants’ issue will top new cabinet’s agenda
Report: U.S. Plans to Withhold Aid if Hizbullah Gets Role in Lebanon Cabinet
Italian Foreign Minister in Beirut, Meets Bassil
Jumblat Says Lebanon and Mt. Lebanon ‘on Brink of Hunger’
Bou Saab Slams Israel Violation of Lebanon Skies after Syria Strike
Kanaan Promises to Reveal Good News on Thursday
Report: Hale, Bassil Discussed ‘Prisoner Swap’ Negotiations to ‘Free’ Fakhoury
Lower turnout as protesters rally against new Lebanon PM
Lebanon protesters shun Diab’s call for talks
Siniora: Future Movement will not participate in new government
Egyptian Ambassador: To accelerate formation of government that meets people’s aspirations
KSA Embassy confirms Fahd Al-Rakf has no official status
Hasbani confirms LF in harmony with its convictions
Minister of Economy promises harsh penalties against price manipulation
Kataeb party leader MP Sami Gemayel welcomes Rampling
Thousands protest against new PM, close roads in Lebanon
The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News published on December 23-24/2019
President Aoun holds political meetings at Baabda Palace
NNA/December 23/2019
President Michel Aoun met former MP, Faisal Al-Daoud, this morning at Baabda Palace, and discussed with him the general situation and recent developments on the Lebanese scene.
Al-Daoud stressed his support for the President’s stances, especially his endeavor to establish a civil state, and expressed hope that demands of the Lebanese people will be fulfilled in light of the economic conditions that the country is going through. Al-Daoud pointed out that “President Aoun is, today, able to achieve many of the issues which he promised the Lebanese to achieve, especially after the circumstances that freed him from the pressure of warlords in the country”. “We also hope that the next Government will be a rescue Government for Lebanon, that will manage the affairs of the state with a new mentality, especially in the field of fighting corruption, returning looted funds and launching the economic plan by activating production sectors” Al-Daoud said.
Former MP Emile Rahme:
The President received former MP, Emile Rahme, who considered that the current stage is a stage of concerted efforts to emerge from the crisis. “The way to achieve this is by forming a Government to function and address the deteriorating economic and financial situation in the country” Rahme added, wishing success in forming the Government quickly.
Former Minister Karim Pakradouni:
President Aoun met former Minister, Karim Pakradouni, and held a discussion with him concerning the current political situation and recent developments. —-Presidency Press Office
Prime Minister, Hassan Diab designate avows successful civil servants’ issue will top new cabinet’s agenda
NNA /December 23/2019
Prime Minister-designate, Hassan Diab, on Monday welcomed a delegation of 853 successful customs candidates, whose results were issued on June 21, 2019, in an exam competition that was administered in 2014. The appointment decree of the aforementioned delegation members has not been issued yet; however, Diab stressed the eligibility of his visitors’ demand. “The endorsement of the appointment decree will be one of the top priorities of the new government,” Diab pledged. Separately, Diab also met with a delegation of successful applicants to the Civil Service Council whose results were issued, yet their appointment remains pending. The delegation conveyed to the PM-designate their sufferings and their right to be appointed in the jobs they had applied for, “especially that the Civil Service Council is the right and proper place to assume state positions, away from political quotas.”
In turn, Diab stressed the eligibility of their demand, highlighting “the need to address these vocational and social files.”Diab had earlier met with a delegation representing 28 thousand young men and women who are candidates to join the Internal Security Forces and whose results have not been released to date.
Report: U.S. Plans to Withhold Aid if Hizbullah Gets Role in Lebanon Cabinet
Naharnet/December 23/2019
U.S. Diplomat David Hale reportedly told officials in Lebanon that his country is to withhold aid to the economic-stricken country if Hizbullah gets ministerial seats or indirectly controls the new government, Nidaa al-Watan daily reported on Monday. Informed political sources said Hale told officials he met in Beirut that the US intends to deny aid to a Lebanese government in which Hizbullah is represented, and that Washington does not intend to give a “password” for the Gulf countries to provide assistance to Lebanon, said the daily. The sources said Hale has relayed a “firm” message to officials regarding the position of Lebanon in the region, warning that “any bias” in this area would be “strictly” unacceptable. Haled reiterated persistence of US sanctions against Hizbullah and Iran and that the Lebanese state must distance itself from the party. During his two-day visit to Beirut last week, the US diplomat said Washington is ready to help Lebanon “but can do so only when Lebanon’s leaders undertake a credible, visible and demonstrable commitment to reform.”Hale had met with the president, parliament speaker and caretaker prime minister Hariri. He did not directly comment on the appointment of the new PM, Hassan Diab saying only that the United States “has no role in saying who should lead” a Cabinet in Lebanon or anywhere else. Early in December, the Trump administration quietly released $105 million in Foreign Military Financing funds for the Lebanese Armed Force after months of unexplained delay.
Italian Foreign Minister in Beirut, Meets Bassil
Naharnet/December 23/2019
The Italian Foreign Minister arrived in Beirut on an official visit, the Italian embassy in Beirut said on Monday. Luigi Di met with his Lebanese counterpart caretaker Foreign Minister Jebran Bassil and discussed the relations between Italy and Lebanon, and the latest developments in the Middle East, the National News Agency said. Maio will also visit the UNIFIL headquarters in al-Naqoura and his country’s battalion in south Lebanon. U.S. Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs David Hale was in Beirut last week. He met with senior officials. The diplomats visit Lebanon as the country grapples with nationwide protests against mismanagement and corruption.
Jumblat Says Lebanon and Mt. Lebanon ‘on Brink of Hunger’
Naharnet/December 23/2019
Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Jumblat has warned that the Chouf and Aley regions and the entire country are “on the brink of hunger” due to the dire economic crisis. “The economy is on the verge of collapse if it is not already collapsing. Lebanon cannot continue on the same path it has followed for tens of years – a country of services, tourism, hotels, restaurants and banks without production – this is unhealthy,” said Jumblat in a phone call with a number of Lebanese expats in the U.S. and Canada, according to Lebanon’s official news agency. “There is also a need to control legitimate and illegitimate border crossings, because the source of income in Lebanon has various standards,” he added. He warned: “Lebanon and Mount Lebanon are on the brink of hunger, that’s why the party’s preliminary steps are backing needy families with diesel for a period of four months, distributing food parcels as of December 1 and encouraging the cultivation of wheat, lentil and grains.”“We are in the beginning of a long or rather very long crisis. The old Lebanon has ended but what’s more important is endurance in Mount Lebanon,” Jumblat added. As for his bloc’s vote for former Lebanese ambassador to the U.N. Nawaf Salam in the binding parliamentary consultations to name a new premier, Jumblat said he chose Salam because he supports “change.”“He is a reputable man who does not belong to the political class that we know and I wonder why (caretaker PM Saad) Hariri and the Lebanese Forces did not support him. This is a mistake, unless they want to keep the old system,” the PSP leader added.
Bou Saab Slams Israel Violation of Lebanon Skies after Syria Strike
Naharnet/December 23/2019
Caretaker Defense Minister Elias Bou Saab on Monday blasted Israel for violating Lebanon’s airspace to carry out a strike on military posts in Syria. “I’ve looked into the Lebanese Army’s report on the hostile Israeli violations of Lebanon’s skies yesterday, which targeted Syria via the Lebanese airspace,” Bou Saab tweeted. “This blatant aggression is condemned and deplorable,” he added. Bou Saab also called on the international community to “intervene to prevent such recurrent attacks on Lebanese sovereignty and to realize how dangerous they are.” The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Monday that air raids in Syria the previous night, blamed on Israel, killed at least three foreign pro-regime fighters south of the war-torn country’s capital. It said Sunday night’s attack hit Syrian regime and Iranian positions south of Damascus and that three non-Syrian loyalist fighters were killed by a rocket blast between the suburb of Aqraba and the nearby Sayyida Zeinab neighborhood, home to a shrine revered by Shiite Muslims. It did not specify their nationality but said they were likely Iranian. Iran’s semi-official Fars news agency meanwhile denied media reports claiming that General Amir Ali Hajizadeh, the commander of the Aerospace Force of Iran’s revolutionary guard, was among the dead. Since the beginning of the Syrian conflict in 2011, Israel has conducted hundreds of strikes in Syria against Iranian targets and pro-Tehran militias allied with the regime of President Bashar al-Assad, including posts and shipments belonging to Lebanon’s Iran-backed Hizbullah.
Kanaan Promises to Reveal Good News on Thursday
Naharnet/December 23/2019
MP Ibrahim Kanaan, the secretary of the Free Patriotic Movement-led Strong Lebanon bloc, on Monday announced that he would reveal good news to the Lebanese on Thursday. “Can we tell people about something other than nagging, collapse and the blocking of roads and livelihoods?” Kanaan tweeted. Can we talk to them about something other than “linking the price of the bread pack to the recovery of stolen finds or linking tuition fees, housing loans and bank deposits to parliamentary polls?” Kanaan added. “Yes we can, if we work more and talk less, and God willing, I will reveal some news on Thursday,” the MP went on to say.
Report: Hale, Bassil Discussed ‘Prisoner Swap’ Negotiations to ‘Free’ Fakhoury
Naharnet/December 23/2019
U.S. diplomat David Hale reportedly discussed during his visit to Lebanon last week with caretaker foreign Minister Jebran Bassil the possibility of a “prisoner swap” to free Lebanese-American ex-Israeli collaborator Amer Fakhoury in return for a Hizbullah “financier”, reports said. Hale and Bassil held a “lengthy meeting” at the latter’s residence in al-Bayyada on Saturday. Al-Liwaa daily quoted unnamed sources as saying that Hale and Bassil discussed the release of Fakhouri in return for freeing Lebanese businessman Qassem Tajeddine, arrested in the United States of America on charges of financing Hizbullah. Fakhoury was once a member of the former Israeli-backed South Lebanon Army. He also worked at the Khiam prison during Israel’s occupation of south Lebanon described by human rights groups as a center for torture. Former Minister Wiaam Wahhab affirmed in televised remarks on LBCI station the reports as “true.” He said that Hale “did discuss” the release of Fakhoury with Bassil in exchange for Tajeddine. Tajeddine was arrested in 2017 in Morocco. The US says he provided millions of dollars to Hizbullah. Fakhoury is jailed in Lebanon since September over collaboration with Israel accusations.
Lower turnout as protesters rally against new Lebanon PM
Al Jazeera/December 23/2019
Protesters call for economic, political reforms as Prime Minister-designate Hassan Diab readies to pick new cabinet. Protesters have continued to take to the streets in Lebanon’s capital Beirut where police and demonstrators have clashed.
Prime Minister-designate Hassan Diab’s appointment has split the country into two camps: Sunni and Shia, as Diab is backed by Hezbollah. But some seem prepared to give Diab a shot at the job as Lebanon faces its worst economic crisis in decades. Al Jazeera’s Tony Birtley reports from Beirut.
Lebanon protesters shun Diab’s call for talks
AFP/December 23/2019
Prominent street leaders yesterday shunned an invitation by Lebanon’s prime minister-designate to sit for talks over the formation of a new government, saying they are not ready to extend support. Debt-burdened Lebanon has been without a fully functioning government since former prime minister Saad Hariri resigned on October 29 in the face of nationwide protests. Demonstrators are demanding an overhaul of the political establishment which they deem corrupt and inept, insisting on a government of independents and experts with no ties to the country’s sectarian parties. Hassan Diab, an engineering professor designated on Thursday to form a desperately-needed government, had asked protesters to give him a “chance” to form a cabinet of independent experts within four to six weeks. But the self-styled technocrat’s call for consultations with representatives of the popular movement yesterday failed to draw prominent street leaders or groups. A small crowd of protesters rallied outside Diab’s house and slammed visitors who claimed to represent the country’s leaderless movement. “You don’t represent us,” the protesters chanted.The few who heeded Diab’s calls for talks included largely unknown individuals not recognised as representatives of the protest movement. “Not a single group actually active on the ground met today with the prime minister-designate because they are not convinced” he can form a government of technocrats, said Wassef Harakeh, a prominent activist.
“They want us to get mired in this game of consultations,” he said.
Siniora: Future Movement will not participate in new government
NNA/December 23/2019
Former Prime Minister, Fouad Siniora, on Monday announced in an interview with Al-Arabiya news channel that the Future Movement had decided not to nominate anyone to form the new government, and therefore, Caretaker Prime Minister, Saad Hariri, had refrained from nominating any candidate for this task. “Now, the man in charge is Dr. Hassan Diab, who was not nominated by the Future Movement,” Siniora explained. Moreover, the former PM added that the Future Movement had expressed its decision that it would not partake in the new government “in line with its basic position that this government should comprise of independent members who are not affiliated with any political party.”
Egyptian Ambassador: To accelerate formation of government that meets people’s aspirations
NNA/December 23/2019
Ambassador of the Arab Republic of Egypt, Dr. Yasser Alawi, on Monday affirmed his country’s support for stability in Lebanon. The words of the Egyptian Ambassador came during his visit to MP Bahia Hariri’s residence in Majdelyoun. “Stability entails a swift formation of a government that meets the aspiration of the Lebanese people; this has become a national necessity so that the international and Arab communities will be able to provide the required support,” the diplomat added. He finally expressed his firm belief that “Lebanon has the ability to surpass and exit the prevailing crisis.”
KSA Embassy confirms Fahd Al-Rakf has no official status
NNA/December 23/2019
The Saudi Embassy in Lebanon on Monday issued a statement in which it stated that Mr. Fahd Al-Rakf, who claimed to be a Saudi expert in the Lebanese dossier during a phone intervention via LBCI TV channel on Sunday, December 22, 2019, was in fact a person without any official status. “His opinions represent him personally and do not reflect the position of the KSA,” the statement added after many of the Lebanese media outlets had given him the title of a Saudi government official.
Consequently, the embassy called on the Lebanese media to investigate the accuracy of the information that is being circulated, rely on official sources, and verify the status of people being hosted on TV programs.
Hasbani confirms LF in harmony with its convictions
NNA/December 23/2019
Caretaker Deputy Prime Minister, Ghassan Hasbani, on Monday said that the Lebanese Forces was in perfect harmony with its beliefs, stressing that the Prime Minister-designate must prove his independence. Interviewed by Free Lebanon radio station, Hasbani said that Lebanon had not yet plunged into total collapse, but was in the process of collapsing. He added that for this reason, political forces must be convinced that cheating investors and the international community will not get Lebanon anywhere.
Minister of Economy promises harsh penalties against price manipulation
NNA/December 23/2019
Caretaker Minister of Economy and Trade, Mansour Btiesh, on Monday warned business owners against the unjustifiable price increase of some market products. “Those who continue to cheat and manipulate prices will be subjected to maximum penalties — to the extent of eventually shutting down their businesses,” the Minister said in a statement issued today. “The Consumer Protection Directorate teams continue their monitoring tours, especially amid these difficult circumstances. The Ministry, which understands the price increment of some commodities, warns against the persistence of some business owners to unjustifiably increase the prices of some other products,” the Minister said. In his statement, Bteish pledged harsh penalties of LBP ten thousand to ten million, as well as imprisonment extending from three days to one month.
Kataeb party leader MP Sami Gemayel welcomes Rampling
NNA/December 23/2019
Kataeb party leader MP Sami Gemayel on Monday received British Ambassador to Lebanon, Chris Rampling. Both men discussed the most recent developments on the local and regional scenes. According to a press release published by Kataeb party, Gemayel warned against “the looming collapse while political leaders are wasting time disputing over the past.”
Titles For The Latest Lebanese LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on December 23-24/2019
German Parliament: Its Resolution to Ban Hezbollah is Just a Legal Charade/Soeren Kern/Gatestone Institute/December 23/2019
Lebanon’s food importers face challenges paying for goods/Nabila Rahhal/Al Arabiya English/December 23/2019
Pressure on Lebanon’s schools as tough times force children into state system/Reuters,/December 23/2019
Israel and Iran’s game of cat and mouse/Ron Ben-Yishai/Ynetnews/December 23/2019
Lebanon’s crisis is bad for my mental health/Christiane Waked/Khalegi Times/December 23/2019
The Latest Lebanese LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on December 23-24/2019
Thousands protest against new PM, close roads in Lebanon
Associated Press/December 22/2019
The protesters, many of whom came from northern Lebanon and the eastern Bekaa Valley, also gathered in Beirut’s central Martyrs Square
BEIRUT: Thousands of protesters demonstrated in central Beirut and elsewhere in Lebanon on Sunday against the country’s new prime minister, saying he should abandon the post because he is a member of the ruling elite.
After sunset, protesters closed several roads and highways in Beirut and other parts of the country to rally against the nomination of Hassan Diab, who was backed by the militant Hezbollah group and its allies and failed to win the backing of the main Sunni Muslim groups. The protesters, many of whom came from northern Lebanon and the eastern Bekaa Valley, also gathered in Beirut’s central Martyrs Square, one of the key places of the protests which have been underway for more than two months. They later marched toward the parliament building guarded by scores of riot police. Unlike last week, when scuffles were reported between protesters and policemen outside the parliament, there was no violence on Sunday. Prime Minister-designate Diab, a university professor and former education minister, will have the task of steering Lebanon out of its worst economic and financial crisis in decades. He’s also taking office against the backdrop of ongoing nationwide protests against the country’s ruling elite that the protesters blame for widespread corruption and mismanagement. Former Prime Minister Saad Hariri, the head of the largest Sunni group in Lebanon, resigned on Oct. 29, meeting a key demand of the protesters. According to Lebanon’s power-sharing system, the prime minister has to be a Sunni. “We are not convinced by their choice,” protester Hanaa Saleh said about Diab’s nomination. “We don’t believe this movie.”Diab has vowed his government will not include politicians and will only consist of independents and experts. In Washington, a State Department spokesperson said that U.S. Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs David Hale had encouraged Lebanese leaders during his two-day visit last week “to put aside partisan interests and support formation of a government committed to and capable of undertaking meaningful, sustained reforms.”Hale “reaffirmed America’s longstanding partnership and enduring commitment to a secure, stable, and prosperous Lebanon,” said Morgan Ortagus.
German Parliament: Its Resolution to Ban Hezbollah is Just a Legal Charade
سورين كاري/معهد كايتستون: قرار البرلمان الألماني حظر حزب الله هو مجرد مهزلة قانونية
Soeren Kern/Gatestone Institute/December 23/2019
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/archives/81711/%d8%b3%d9%88%d8%b1%d9%8a%d9%86-%d9%83%d8%a7%d8%b1%d9%8a-%d9%85%d8%b9%d9%87%d8%af-%d9%83%d8%a7%d9%8a%d8%aa%d8%b3%d8%aa%d9%88%d9%86-%d9%82%d8%b1%d8%a7%d8%b1-%d8%a7%d9%84%d8%a8%d8%b1%d9%84%d9%85%d8%a7/
Germany, however, has refused to ban Hezbollah’s “political wing,” which continues to raise funds in the country. A German foreign ministry official, Niels Annen, has said that such a ban would be counterproductive because “we focus on dialogue.” His comment has been understood to mean that the German government does not want to burn bridges with Hezbollah’s sponsor, the Islamic Republic of Iran.
“We don’t have a military wing and a political one; we don’t have Hezbollah on one hand and the resistance party on the other…. Every element of Hezbollah, from commanders to members as well as our various capabilities, is in the service of the resistance, and we have nothing but the resistance as a priority.” — Hezbollah’s deputy secretary general, Naim Qassem.
Germany’s Social Democratic Foreign Minister Heiko Maas, however, has refused to ban Hezbollah in its entirety. He recently repeated the German government’s distinction between Hezbollah’s legitimate and illegitimate activities in Germany.
“It remains to be seen to what extent the German federal government will…actually ‘exhaust all the resources of the rule of law’ to stop Hezbollah’s money laundering and terrorist financing in Germany.” — Bild, December 19, 2019.
The German government has refused to ban the terrorist group Hezbollah in its entirety. Foreign Minister Heiko Maas recently repeated the German government’s distinction between Hezbollah’s legitimate and illegitimate activities in Germany.
The German parliament has passed a non-binding resolution that calls on the German government to ban the activities of the Iran-backed Lebanese terrorist group Hezbollah — Arabic for “The Party of Allah” — in Germany.
The measure — supported by center-right Christian Democrats and the center-left Social Democrats, the two major parties that make up Germany’s ruling coalition, and also by the classical liberal Free Democrats — has been hailed as “important,” “significant,” and a “crucial step.”
The resolution, however, falls short of a complete ban on Hezbollah and appears aimed at providing the German government with political cover that would allow Germany to claim that it has banned the group even if it has not.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel has faced increasing international pressure to ban Hezbollah, but she has refused to do so. Hezbollah has more than 1,000 operatives in Germany, according to German intelligence assessments.
The three-page resolution — “Effective Action against Hezbollah” (“Wirksames Vorgehen gegen die Hisbollah”) — was passed on December 19. An abridged translation of the text reads:
“Because of our history, Germany has a special responsibility towards the Jewish and democratic State of Israel. Israel’s security and right to exist are part of Germany’s raison d’état [Staatsräson]. The Bundestag calls on the federal government to confront actors in the Middle East that question Israel’s right to exist or openly threaten its security. In addition to Iran’s continually aggressive policies, the most important of these anti-Israeli forces is the terrorist group Hezbollah, which is closely linked to Iran, and due to its widespread presence also poses a particular threat to the stability of the entire Middle East.
“The German Bundestag is committed to Germany’s special responsibility towards Israel and its security. It adheres to the two-state solution, as confirmed by the United Nations Security Council in numerous resolutions: a Jewish and democratic state of Israel within secure borders and an independent, democratic and viable Palestinian state.
“According to the federal government, Hezbollah supporters primarily use Germany as a place of retreat and logistics. Its followers are under the watchful eye of the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution [German domestic intelligence]. There are around 1,000 supporters of Hezbollah in Germany, and this number is increasing. Hezbollah cannot currently be banned because its association structures cannot currently be determined.
“The federal government has already taken measures against the spread and support of Hezbollah in Germany with the 2008 ban on the ‘Al Manar TV’ television station, and the 2014 ban of the ‘Lebanon Orphan Project.’ In 2018 alone, the Federal Prosecutor General [Generalbundesanwalt] at the Federal Court of Justice [Bundesgerichtshof] initiated 36 investigations against individuals linked to Hezbollah….
“According to the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution, it must be expected that Hezbollah will continue to plan and carry out terrorist actions against Israel or Israeli interests outside the Middle East. Our commitment to the protection of the State of Israel also requires that funding flows from Germany, which serve to finance Hezbollah in the Middle East, be prevented by all means.
“The German Bundestag views as an urgent priority a consistent national and common European approach against the activities of the terrorist organization Hezbollah….
“The German Bundestag calls on the federal government to:
“1. Continue closely to monitor the activities of Hezbollah supporters, particularly in Germany, and to pursue them by all means of the rule of law; this also includes combating money laundering and preventing terrorist financing from Germany;
“2. Impose an activity ban [Betätigungsverbot] on Hezbollah in order to prevent any activity by representatives of the organization in Germany that is against the principle of international understanding [respect for all people];
“3. Abandon the conceptual division of Hezbollah into a political and a military wing and to come to a common assessment at the European level to list the group;
“4. Continue actively to advocate for the right of existence of the Jewish and democratic State of Israel and the legitimate security interests of the State of Israel as a central principle of German foreign and security policy;
“5. Take measures, together with international partners, to reduce Hezbollah’s influence in the Middle East, particularly in Syria.”
The German government banned Hezbollah’s “military wing” in 2013, after the group was implicated in the July 2012 bombing of a bus carrying Israeli tourists in Burgas, Bulgaria. Five Israelis were killed in the attack.
Germany, however, has refused to ban Hezbollah’s “political wing,” which continues to raise funds in the country. A German foreign ministry official, Niels Annen, has said that such a ban would be counterproductive because “we focus on dialogue.” His comment has been understood to mean that the German government does not want to burn bridges with Hezbollah’s sponsor, the Islamic Republic of Iran.
Britain, the Netherlands, Israel, the United States, the 22-member Arab League and the six-member Gulf Cooperation Council see no distinction between Hezbollah’s military and civilian wings and all have banned the group in its entirety. Indeed, Hezbollah’s deputy secretary general, Naim Qassem, has clearly stated that the group is structurally unified:
“We don’t have a military wing and a political one; we don’t have Hezbollah on one hand and the resistance party on the other…. Every element of Hezbollah, from commanders to members as well as our various capabilities, is in the service of the resistance, and we have nothing but the resistance as a priority.”
On November 28, the German news magazine Der Spiegel reported that the German government had decided to ban Hezbollah in its entirety, and that a formal announcement would be made during a meeting of the interior ministers [Innenministerkonferenz] of Germany’s 16 federal states in early December. Der Spiegel wrote:
“This would mean that the activities and members of the militia in Germany would be treated as equal to the Kurdish PKK and the Islamic State. All activities of Hezbollah would be prohibited in Germany. For example, the flag of the Lebanese terror militia (green rifle on a yellow background) should no longer be shown.”
An interior ministry spokesman subsequently denied the report and no decision was announced during or after the meeting of German interior ministers.
The idea of banning Hezbollah in its entirety was first proposed by the conservative party Alternative for Germany (AfD). In June 2019, the German parliament discussed, but ultimately rejected, the idea of outlawing Hezbollah. The AfD had called on the government to “examine whether the conditions exist for a ban on Hezbollah as one organization, and, if necessary, to issue such a prohibition and implement it immediately.” Lawmakers from the ruling coalition said that they needed further to investigate the matter.
At the time, the author of the resolution, AfD MP Beatrix von Storch, said:
“Hezbollah is a terrorist organization. The Berlin government claims that you must distinguish between a legitimate political wing of Hezbollah and an illegitimate terrorist wing. This does not make sense to us, or to the voters.
“Hezbollah’s goal is the destruction of Israel and the Jews, and we should not be offering a safe haven for them to hide in Germany and to finance from our territory their armed struggle in Lebanon against Israel.”
The AfD abstained during the vote on the Bundestag resolution passed on December 19. Von Storch emphasized the importance of not only banning the entirety of Hezbollah in Germany, but also of dissolving its mosque associations and deporting all supporters from Germany. She said that the fact that the other parties, after a delay of six months, were now discussing a ban on Hezbollah activities in Germany was proof of the success of the AfD. Nevertheless, she said that the Bundestag’s resolution falls short:
“A ban on activities alone is completely inadequate and inappropriate in the fight against a terrorist organization. We therefore call for a total ban on Hezbollah in Germany and the dissolution of its mosque associations. The members of Hezbollah in Germany, around 1,000 followers, must be expelled expeditiously on the basis of Section 53 of the Residence Act. This also corresponds to the requirement of the Bundestag’s anti-Semitism resolution, which explicitly calls for measures to combat anti-Semitism, including an end to continued residency for offenders. If that does not apply to Hezbollah supporters, who want to ‘gas the Jews’ and destroy Israel, who will? We call on the federal government fully to implement the ban of Hezbollah before the next impending Al-Quds day [Jerusalem day].”
Von Storch was referring to the annual demonstrations, sponsored by Iran and supported by Hezbollah members across Germany, who, waving the Hezbollah flag, call for the destruction of Israel.
Others welcomed the anti-Hezbollah resolution as an important first step. Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz said that the Bundestag’s resolution “is an important step in the international struggle against terrorism, particularly against terrorist organization Hezbollah and its patron Iran.” He added:
“We welcome the important resolution adopted today by the German Bundestag, which calls Hezbollah for what it is: an-Iran sponsored terror organization, with no distinction between its military and political wings.
“Hezbollah threatens not only Israeli civilians, but also undermines Lebanese sovereignty and regional stability. We hope this resolution will encourage others in Europe to take similar action.
“The world must unite against Hezbollah, designate it a terrorist organization, and impose harsh sanctions against it in order to prevent the organization from carrying out terrorist activities on Iran’s behalf.”
Israel’s Ambassador to Germany, Jeremy Issacharoff, in an interview with The Times of Israel, said:
“We welcome the important and significant resolution adopted today by the Bundestag, which relates to Hezbollah for what it is: a terrorist organization, with no distinction between its military and ‘political’ wings.
“Hezbollah is indoctrinated, trained and financed by Iran and poses a threat not only to Israeli civilians, but also undermines Lebanese sovereignty and regional stability. As the resolution indicates, it poses a direct threat to German and Israeli security interests.”
“Foreign policy should reflect reality and the Bundestag’s resolution is clearly a crucial step that we hope will encourage others to take similar action against Hezbollah.”
The domestic spokesman for the CDU/CSU parliamentary group, Mathias Middelberg, said:
“It is unacceptable that Hezbollah is waging a terrorist fight against Israel in the Middle East, and that this is financed, among other things, by worldwide criminal activities. In view of Germany’s special responsibility towards Israel, we therefore call on the federal government to ban all activities for Hezbollah in Germany. Violators must be punished consistently.
“In addition, the separation between a political and a military arm should be abandoned and Hezbollah as a whole should be placed on the EU terror list. This could freeze Hezbollah’s funds and assets in Europe more extensively than before.”
The European Leadership Network (ELNET), a nonprofit dedicated to strengthening Europe-Israel relations, said that the resolution is an “important milestone in safeguarding Jewish life in Germany.”
The American ambassador to Germany, Richard Grenell, said that the American government was ready to assist Germany in its efforts against Hezbollah:
“We stand ready to support the government’s implementation of a ban and will continue to assist in any efforts to deny the world’s most well-armed terror group operating space in Germany. Today’s vote is an acknowledgment of Hezbollah’s destructive international terrorism, and the action needed to stop its activities throughout Europe.”
Germany’s Social Democratic Foreign Minister Heiko Maas, however, has refused to ban Hezbollah in its entirety. He recently repeated the German government’s distinction between Hezbollah’s legitimate and illegitimate activities in Germany:
“Lebanon’s political reality is complicated. However, this must not prevent us from exhausting the means available to us in Germany under the rule of law in order to stand up to Hezbollah’s criminal and terrorist activities.”
In fact, during Maas’ leadership of German foreign policy, the German government has become a leading proponent of anti-Israel resolutions at the United Nations. In 2018, for instance, of 21 anti-Israel UN resolutions, Germany approved 16 and abstained on four others. In May 2016, Germany approved an especially disgraceful UN resolution, co-sponsored by the Arab group of states and the Palestinian delegation, that unjustly singled out Israel at the annual assembly of the World Health Organization (WHO) as the world’s only violator of “mental, physical and environmental health.”
Germany’s Ambassador to the United Nations, Christoph Heusgen, has been ranked by the Los Angeles-based Simon Wiesenthal Center as one of the top ten global anti-Semites of 2019 due to his obsession with Israel at the UN.
Rabbi Abraham Cooper of the Wiesenthal Center wrote:
“We listed Ambassador Heusgen’s name on the top ten list of anti-Semitic and anti-Israel incidents specifically because of his recent actions taken and words spoken at the United Nations. In defining anti-Semitism in the 21st century, the Simon Wiesenthal Center is guided by Natan Sharansky’s 3 D’s, which define when anti-Israel criticism crosses into anti-Semitism: delegitimization, double standard, and demonization.”
Germany’s largest newspaper, Bild, summed it up this way:
“It remains to be seen to what extent the German federal government will comply with the Bundestag’s proposal and will actually ‘exhaust all the resources of the rule of law’ to stop Hezbollah’s money laundering and terrorist financing in Germany.”
*Soeren Kern is a Senior Fellow at the New York-based Gatestone Institute.
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Lebanon’s food importers face challenges paying for goods
Nabila Rahhal/Al Arabiya English/December 23/2019
Food producers and agro-industrialists in Lebanon are facing pressures from restrictive monetary policies and a shortage of dollars, amid an ongoing political and economic crisis.
Historically, Lebanon’s productivity sectors, mainly agriculture and industry, have been severely under-developed at the expense of the services sector, which is traditionally considered a pillar of the economy.
The country currently relies on imports across a wide variety of sectors – from the most basic consumer needs to technical equipment for local businesses.
Banks in Lebanon have already applied a system of unofficial capital controls in order to restrict the flow of foreign currency out of the country. Small businesses and individuals have reported limited access to both foreign and domestic currency.
An example of this came to light earlier this month when JP Morgan Chase, Citibank, BNY Mellon, and Standard Chartered Bank were named in a $1 billion lawsuit against Lebanese bank BankMed by oil trader IMMS. The lawsuit claims BankMed delayed and withheld IMMS’ funds when requested.
“Freezing all outgoing transfers, and financial credit facilities from the banking sector is amputating all production activities, and seriously jeopardizing the existence of our companies,” said Mounir Bissat, secretary of the Syndicate of Lebanese Food Industries.
Local food producers face trouble
Compared to other industries, agro-industrialists may seem to have it easy. But, that’s far from reality.
Food products have relatively constant demand from various customers; one has to eat after all.
Another advantage, according to Bissat, is that a good percentage of needed raw material is locally produced or available and therefore can be paid for in local currency.
Very few agro-industries in Lebanon are 100 percent locally produced as they rely on at least some imported goods, be it in their packaging or for some ingredients and components.
Meanwhile, liquidity in dollars is getting rarer by the day, and agro-industries rely primarily on dollars to settle their dues, according to Nayef Kassatly, owner of Lebanese juice and beverage producer Kassatly Chtaura.
Fady Aziz, founder of The Good Thymes, which produces zaatar mixes, echoed this concern as food producers face ongoing issues paying for goods due to the dollar shortage.
“All suppliers want cash money in dollars and we are not getting paid cash, or in dollars,” said Aziz.
Add to this what Bissat calls the “undeclared capital control” practiced by local banks and it does not look good for payments in agro-industry.
Still, he acknowledges that agro-industrialists are faring better than non-agro industries, which rely on imported goods for all of their production.
Meanwhile, not all food products are created equal, and another blow for local food producers is that consumers are only spending on the bare necessities these days.
Both Kassatly and Aziz said local consumers do not consider their products as necessities when compared to rice, eggs, bread and vegetables, for example.
Survival becomes the name of the game
Bissat places Lebanon’s central bank, Banque Du Liban’s governor responsible for applying measures “to ensure foreign currencies and transfer possibilities to the industrial sector, similar to the measures offered to the three other importing sectors: fuel, wheat, and pharmaceutical.”
Aziz says he will resort to producing some of his mixes in bulk and using minimal packaging to slash cost and price, while also discontinuing some products that require imported ingredients.
There might still be some hope for local food producers, but mainly in the export markets.
Many agro-industrialists have solid export markets in the Gulf Cooperation Council, as well neighboring Arab countries that can be targeted for sales in these difficult times.
“They used to be 35 percent of our turnover, and now we are trying to make it 50 percent to sustain our business. Thank God we have exports to maintain our credibility with suppliers – industries who only sell locally have a big problem,” said Kassatly.
Raed Malaeb, sales manager at Lebanon-based U Foods, which imports cheeses and meats, said that many agro-industrialists are resorting to the black market to buy dollars in order to pay for goods.
Since their clients pay them in Lebanese pounds, they have to exchange client’s cash dollars at the black market rate, which currently reaches 30 percent higher than the official exchange rate of 1,515 LBP, to make their own payments, ultimately driving their prices upwards, explains Malaeb.
Meanwhile, consumer behaviors are also tightening in restaurants, which are taking restrictive measures.
Malaeb says that purchasing orders in both supermarkets and restaurants are down by 40 percent year on year although the festive season is traditionally very busy for their company.
“Some restaurants are finding our prices prohibitive, and prefer to remove items from their menu to buying local varieties which may be of inferior quality,” says Malaeb.
Pressure on Lebanon’s schools as tough times force children into state system
Reuters,/December 23/2019
Lebanon’s economic crisis is forcing families to pull tens of thousands of children out of the private schools that educate most pupils in the country, and into a long-neglected state education system that is already struggling to cope.
Unlike in many countries where private schools are often mainly for the wealthy, Lebanon relies on them to educate two thirds of pupils, with working class families scrimping to afford hundreds of dollars a month in fees.
Those who cannot afford it end up in an under-funded state system that educates 300,000 Lebanese pupils and has put on a second shift in recent years for 200,000 Syrian refugees.
With the worst economic crisis since the 1975-1990 civil war having struck this year, 36,000 extra pupils have moved from private school into the state system, Education Minister Akram Chehayeb told Reuters. He expects still more children to follow, with no additional funds or staff to teach them.
“The pressure will increase on public schools,” he said. “Due to the 2019 budget, we can’t hire new teachers, while 1,400 retire every year.”
Eid Ramadan, a hairstylist, struggled to find more than $6,000 a year in total for private school for his two sons. This year he was forced to pull his younger son out.
“My kids are thankfully smart and understanding,” he said. “They know we were doing the impossible to keep them (in private school). But we’ve reached a point where we couldn’t. We’ve hit a brick wall.”
The country’s long-brewing economic troubles have spiraled into a financial crisis since October, when protests erupted against the ruling elite. Businesses have closed, workers have been laid off and wages cut. Banks are restricting access to cash and the Lebanese pound has slumped.
“The majority of the people can no longer pay thousands of dollars for tuition every year,” said Ramadan.
Salwa Hemadeh moved her 14-year-old daughter into a state school this year, having previously moved her three sons out of private education as the economy worsened and her husband’s job as a plasterer brought in less income. “She didn’t adapt well to the new school because it was so big and there were so many students. But we laid out the truth: either you get your education at this public school or you get no education,” she said.
Israel and Iran’s game of cat and mouse
يداعوت احرانوت/لعبة القط والفأر بين إيران وإسرائيل في سوريا
Ron Ben-Yishai/Ynetnews/December 23/2019
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/archives/81714/%d9%8a%d8%af%d8%a7%d8%b9%d9%88%d8%aa-%d8%a7%d8%ad%d8%b1%d8%a7%d9%86%d9%88%d8%aa-%d9%84%d8%b9%d8%a8%d8%a9-%d8%a7%d9%84%d9%82%d8%b7-%d9%88%d8%a7%d9%84%d9%81%d8%a3%d8%b1-%d8%a8%d9%8a%d9%86-%d8%a5%d9%8a/
يعتقد بأن الغارة الإسرائيلية الأخيرة على قواعد عسكرية إيرانية بالقر من دمشق قد نتجح عنها 3 قتلى من التابعية الإيرانية وجرح عدد غير معلن من بينهم الشخص الثاني في الحرس الثوري الإيراني وقائد القوات الجوية عامر علي حجزادا
Analysis: The latest missile attack on Iranian targets near Damascus indicates the Revolutionary Guards have resumed with full force their attempts to militarily entrench themselves in the region, after a lull which stemmed from Russian pressure
According to Syrian reports, Israel is believed to be behind Sunday night’s attack on Iranian targets in Syria. The missile attack apparently targeted arms shipments arriving at the Damascus military airport from Tehran.
After a period of relative calm, Iran has decided to resume the smuggling of high-precision missiles and anti-aircraft missiles – the kind of high-quality weapons known to the Israeli public as “tie-breakers” – and flood Syria with its proxy militias.
The UK-based human rights watchdog, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, reported shortly after the strikes that an ambulance was dispatched to the scene, meaning there probably were casualties.
According to later reports in Syrian media, at least three people, probably Iranian nationals, were killed in the attack.
Unverified reports in Syria also say the commander of Revolutionary Guard Corps’ Aerospace Force, Amir Ali Hajizadeh, was also hurt in the alleged Israeli attack.
Hajizadeh apparently oversaw the September drone strike on Saudi oil facilities that debilitated half of the Gulf country’s fossil fuel industry, and was in charge of shipping state-of-the-art anti-aircraft weapons from Iran into Syria.
In 2018, Hajizadeh oversaw a shipment of anti-aircraft missile batteries to Syria, which was targeted in alleged Israeli raid. Foreign sources reported that seven Iranian officers were killed in the attack.
The Iranians denied the reports the commander was injured.
This is probably true because had Hajizadeh been hurt, the Iranians would have retaliated with exceptional force since in his rank, the commander is second only to Revolutionary Guard chief Qasem Soleimani.
If it was indeed Israel that attacked near Damascus on Sunday, it signals that the Jewish State will not hesitate to act against any Iranian aggression in the region. The Iranians, meanwhile, also seem to have changed their policy on attacks attributed to the IDF and decided to respond to Israeli strikes even if Israel did not take accountability for them.
The latest developments in the region indicate the Iranians are making preparations to attack Israel, as evidenced by renewed arms shipments not only to Syria but to Lebanon as well.
In Lebanon the Iranians suffered a setback after their weapons production facilities became a target of a mysterious drone attack on a “fuel mixer” in Beirut, which foreign media also attributed to Israel.
In addition, the Iranians are building a military base in the Al Bukamal region near the Syria-Iraq border to establish a land corridor through Syria and Lebanon to the Mediterranean Sea, an effort that top Israeli diplomats and senior security officials have vowed to prevent.
Israeli actions in Syria are part of the defense establishment calls the “in-between wars” campaign, meant to prevent Iran from establishing its military presence in Syria and to allow the Israeli Air Force freedom of action in case an all-out war breaks out.
Therefore, as Iran resumes its efforts to entrench itself in Syria, the activity attributed to Israel is also expected to increase in the near future.
Over the recent weeks, the Russians have put enormous pressure on the Iranians to stop operating in Damascus International Airport and redirect its cargo flights to other airports in Syria, mainly the T-4 Airbase near the city of Homs. These flights also served as a way to transfer fighters of Iranian-backed militias to the Idlib region southeast of Aleppo.
Since these flights did not impose any danger to Israel, the army avoided attacking on Syrian soil.
However, given the increased Iranian activity near Israeli border, the military has appealed to the Russians regarding the Iranian violations and pointed out precise geographical locations where arms and personnel are transferred.
It is likely that as part of the de-confliction agreements, Israel had notified Russia about the attack a few minutes in advance.
We will probably see further Iranian attempts to establish a front in Syria and revive its precision-missile project. Israel, however, won’t stand and watch from the side.
Lebanon’s crisis is bad for my mental health
Christiane Waked/Khalegi Times/December 23/2019
Now this is not just about a particular day or a person, it is a pervasive feeling among many young people in Beirut.
Picture this, a 40 year-old-woman struggling to get out of her bed fearing that some woeful news will leave her with a heavy heart. It is mental illness perhaps that keeps the alarm bells on. Anxiety attacks keep her awake all night, and depression keeps the mood sombre all day long.
Now this is not just about a particular day or a person, it is a pervasive feeling among many young people in Beirut.
Writing about myself in third person is a defense mechanism. It helps me dissociate, cope better with pain. But depression often takes over my feelings, my core, and as a spider it spreads its net. Yes, depression is a constant state of my mind some days.
I am at war with myself, and this feeling made me a fighter long time ago.
I was born in Lebanon during war, like many others. And we were all raised in an environment infused with trauma, uncertainty, and constant panic. It intimidated the psyche of a whole generation that is now affected with mental illness.
Yes, the Lebanese are known for their resilience and wit. But today more than ever their survival skills are being tested again. Thirty years after the end of the civil war, the same old guard – corrupt, greedy, sectarian – is still in power and is using the same propaganda based on fear and ignorance to influence the minds of the young who did not live the war but who might be swayed to make the same mistakes of the past.
These warlords are responsible for the killing of scores of Lebanese during the civil war. They should also be held accountable for killing people’s ambitions and dreams, including mine. In Lebanon, unless you are backed by a corrupt politician and have ‘wasta’ which means nepotism, it is hard to find a job. And nowadays it has worsened, considering the socio-economic crisis the country is gripped in.
Corruption has been a way of life in the country for the last three decades, and is still rampant. It has impoverished the population and pushed Lebanon to become the third most indebted country in the world.
So since October 17 a revolution, that is uniting the Lebanese of all denominations, religious origins, and social classes, has been taking place on the streets. People are denouncing the corrupt and venting out the rage and frustration.
It’s a sort of collective cathartic movement that in some way is healing the Lebanese. I have been trying not to miss hearing the news since the protests started, and also hoping that I don’t get any flashbacks from the past. I was diagnosed many years ago with CPTSD, a complex form of post-traumatic stress disorder, that I had developed because of the traumas I had to face such as war, cancer, loss, etc.
Sometimes, I blame myself for coming back to Lebanon after living abroad for 17 years, other days, I feel a bit more heroic for now I am able to take care of my parents, especially my mother who is on dialysis.
Uncertainty looms around our daily lives. I wake up every day not knowing if the hospital would continue offering dialysis sessions for my mother. We are not sure until when we would be able to give my mother the medicines she critically needs. Pharmacies are running out of their stocks, and inventories in hospitals are not being replenished at the required pace.
Many organisations including Human Rights Watch warned that hospitals may soon not be able to provide patients with life-saving surgery and urgent medical care because of the financial crisis.
Most of the Lebanese like me feel trapped in a situation that is bigger than them, a regional cold war between Iran and the United States is holding the Lebanese as hostages.
Every day we hear about suicides because people can no longer pay hospital bills or provide food to their kids. Even though Lebanon is not in a war, prevailing conditions because of the economic crisis have made living conditions brutal and deeply traumatising.
I am not sure if being a Lebanese is the main cause of my mental problems. However, I am often consoled by a friend who says the fire that burns inside me is much brighter than the one that burns around me.
*Christiane Waked is a political analyst based in Beirut
