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☆ Explainer: What you need to know about Hezbollah, the group backing Hamas against Israel
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +8 min

Members of Hezbollah march with party's flags during a rally marking al-Quds Day, (Jerusalem Day) in Beirut, Lebanon May 31, 2019. Backed by Iran, Hezbollah has said it is ready to help when the time comes in the war between Israel and Hamas, which is also backed by Tehran. While other groups disarmed after Lebanon's civil war, Hezbollah kept its weapons to fight Israeli forces that were occupying the predominantly Shi'ite south of the country. Hezbollah demonstrated its military advances in 2006 during a five-week war with Israel, which erupted after it crossed into Israel, kidnapping two soldiers and killing others. Hezbollah's influence is underpinned by its sophisticated arsenal and the support of many Lebanese Shi'ites who say the group defends Lebanon from Israel.

Persons: Aziz Taher, Israel, Bashar al, Assad, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, Tzachi Hanegbi, Benjamin Netanyahu, Hanegbi, Lebanese Shi'ites, Rafik al, Hariri, Michel Aoun, Imad Moughniyah, Nasrallah, Tom Perry, Mark Heinrich Our Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Hamas, Guards, United, Islamic, West, Maronite Christian, Marine, U.S ., European Union, Thomson Locations: Quds, Jerusalem, Beirut, Lebanon, Rights BEIRUT, Israel, Palestinian, Iran, Tehran, Lebanese, United States, Syria, ISRAEL, Gaza, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, LEBANON, Saudi, U.S, Arab, Argentina, Buenos Aires

☆ Explainer: What is Hezbollah? The Lebanese group backing Hamas in its war with Israel
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +8 min

☆ What is Lebanon's Hezbollah?
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

ORIGINSIran's Revolutionary Guards founded Hezbollah in 1982 to export its Islamic Revolution and fight Israeli forces that had invaded Lebanon. Lebanese parties opposed to Hezbollah say the group has undermined the state and accuse it of unilaterally leading Lebanon into conflicts. Hezbollah fighters took over parts of Beirut after the government vowed to take action against the group's military communications network. Referring to those attacks and hostage-taking, Hezbollah leader Nasrallah said in a 2022 interview they were carried out by small groups not linked to Hezbollah. TERRORIST DESIGNATIONSWestern countries including the United States designate Hezbollah a terrorist organisation.

Persons: Aziz Taher REFILE, Israel, Bashar al, Assad, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, Saudi Arabia spiralled, Syria, Rafik al, Hariri, Michel Aoun, Imad Moughniyah, Nasrallah, Tom Perry, Elaine Hardcastle Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Guards, Islamic, POWER Hezbollah, United, West, Marine, U.S ., European Union, Thomson Locations: Halta, Lebanon, Israel, Rights BEIRUT, Gaza, Iran, Lebanese, United States, Syria, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, LEBANON, Beirut, Saudi, U.S, Arab, Argentina, Buenos Aires

☆ Factbox: Lebanon's Hezbollah rises from shadows into regional force
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Governments including the United States deem it a terrorist organisation. ORIGINSIran's Revolutionary Guards founded Hezbollah in 1982 to export its Islamic Revolution and fight Israeli forces that had invaded Lebanon. The United States estimates Iran has allocated it hundreds of millions of dollars annually in recent years. Hezbollah fighters took over parts of Beirut after the government vowed to take action against the group's military communications network. TERRORIST DESIGNATIONSWestern countries including the United States designate Hezbollah a terrorist organisation.

Persons: Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, Aziz Taher, Imad Moughniyah, Bashar al, Assad, Nasrallah, Critics, Saudi Arabia spiralled, Syria, Rafik al, Hariri, Michel Aoun, Tom Perry, Nick Macfie Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Guards, Islamic, United, Marine, U.S ., POWER Hezbollah, West, European Union, Thomson Locations: Lebanon, Houla, Israel, Rights BEIRUT, Lebanese, United States, Syria, Beirut, Iran, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, LEBANON, Saudi, U.S, Arab, Argentina, Buenos Aires

☆ Lebanon PM will not extend central bank governor's mandate
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

BEIRUT, July 10 (Reuters) - Lebanon's caretaker premier, Najib Mikati, will not extend the term of central bank Governor Riad Salameh when it ends later this month, the prime minister's office said on Monday. One of Lebanon's four vice governors told Reuters that all four were considering quitting together if no successor is named, raising the possibility of a leaderless central bank amid a deep financial crisis. Mikati's deputy, Saade Chami, told Reuters last week that such a threat was "dangerous" and that the vice governors should "assume their responsibility in case this appointment is not possible." Central bank governors are typically appointed by the president, but parliament has been unable to elect a president to follow Michel Aoun, whose term ended in late October. The central bank governor, who was once a regular at banking conferences and high-end restaurants, is now rarely seen in public except for occasional media interviews.

Persons: Najib Mikati, Riad Salameh, Salameh, Saade Chami, Michel Aoun, Nabih Berri, Berri, Mikati, Maya Gebeily, Mark Heinrich, Leslie Adler Organizations: Reuters, Thomson Locations: BEIRUT, Central

☆ Lebanon’s top Christian cleric slams failed attempt to elect a president
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BEIRUT, June 18 (Reuters) - Lebanon’s top Christian cleric said on Sunday the constitution and democratic system had been violated in "cold blood" during a failed attempt to elect a new president last week, and warned that divisions in the nation had widened. Patriarch Bechara Boutros al-Rai spoke in his first sermon since the Iran-backed Shi'ite group Hezbollah and its closest allies thwarted an attempt by factions including the main Christian parties to elect an IMF official as president. Wednesday's events marked the 12th time parliament failed to elect someone to the post - reserved for a Maronite Christian in Lebanon's sectarian system and vacant since the term of the Hezbollah-allied Michel Aoun ended in October. The Hezbollah-allied Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri ended the session when Hezbollah and its allies withdrew, denying a quorum for a second round when 65 votes are needed to win. Without naming him, Lebanon's Shi'ite mufti accused him of being backed by Israel.

Persons: Bechara Boutros, Rai, Michel Aoun, Jihad Azour, Amal, Azour, Suleiman Frangieh, Nabih Berri, Elias Audi, Berri, Maya Gebeily, Tom Perry, Hugh Lawson, Frances Kerry Organizations: Hezbollah, Maronite, Israel, Thomson Locations: BEIRUT, Iran, Israel, Lebanon

Neither Azour nor Hezbollah-backed candidate Suleiman Frangieh came close to winning the 86 votes needed to win in a first round vote. Azour, the IMF's Middle East Director and an ex-finance minister, won the support of 59 of 128 lawmakers. Hezbollah and its allies then withdrew from the session, denying the two-thirds quorum required for a second vote in which 65 votes are enough for victory. Azour thanked lawmakers who backed him, saying he hoped the will expressed by "the majority of deputies" would be respected. George Adwan, a Christian lawmaker with the anti-Hezbollah Lebanese Forces party, said the vote was "a major victory" because it showed Azour close to 65 votes.

Persons: Gebran Bassil, Azour, Suleiman Frangieh, Frangieh, Nabih Berri, Michel Aoun, Hussein al, Haj Hassan, Bashar al, Assad, George Adwan, Mohamed Azakir, Matthew Miller, Miller, Mohanad Hage Ali, Riad Salameh, Sheikh Ahmad Qabalan dialled, Issam Abdallah, Simon Lewis, Tom Perry, John Stonestreet, Mark Heinrich, William Maclean Organizations: BEIRUT, Hezbollah, IMF, Maronite, Hezbollah Lebanese Forces, REUTERS, U.S . State Department, Carnegie Middle East Center, West, Thomson Locations: Lebanon, Iran, Muslim, Saudi Arabia, Lebanese, Yemen, Beirut, Washington, U.S, United States, Israel, Damascus

☆ Lebanese Christian and opposition coalition nominate IMF's Azour for president
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BEIRUT, June 4 (Reuters) - Lebanon's disparate opposition, independent and main Christian parties said on Sunday they had nominated IMF official Jihad Azour for the presidency in a challenge to Hezbollah-backed candidate Suleiman Franjieh. A meeting of the parties endorsed the nomination of Azour, currently director of the Middle East and Central Asia Department at the International Monetary Fund and also a former Lebanese finance minister. Pro-Iranian Hezbollah, the country's main armed political force, and its Shi'ite ally Amal, had backed Franjieh, 56, heir of an old Lebanese Christian political dynasty and an ally of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad with strong ties to the ruling political establishment in Damascus. "This new candidate that was announced is for us a candidate for confrontation," Hezbollah deputy Hassan Fadlallah said on Sunday, without naming Azour. Washington has warned that the administration was considering sanctions on Lebanese officials for their continued obstruction of the election of a new president and warned the paralysis could only worsen the country's crisis.

Persons: Azour, Suleiman Franjieh, Michel Aoun's, Amal, Bashar al, Assad, Michel Mouawad, Lebanon's, Beshara al, Rai, “, Hassan Fadlallah, Suleiman Al, Khalidi, Maya Geibeily, David Holmes Organizations: Central Asia Department, International Monetary Fund, Hezbollah, Lebanese Christian, Maronite, Thomson Locations: BEIRUT, East, Lebanese, Lebanon, Damascus, Azour, Syria, Iran, Arab, Washington

☆ Lebanon postpones local elections by a year to avoid more paralysis
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BEIRUT, April 18 (Reuters) - Lebanon's parliament on Tuesday voted to extend the terms of municipal councils and other local officials, delaying elections to avoid further political paralysis in a country still in the throes of an economic meltdown. Staggered municipal and council elections had been scheduled for May but funding has not yet been secured by the state, according to caretaker Interior Minister Bassam Mawlawi. Some parliamentarians, including from the Lebanese Forces party boycotted the vote, saying elections were a right. Others have disputed parliament's ability to legislate at all, arguing that the constitution stipulates it should elect a president before working on laws. Lawmakers have held repeated sessions to elect a new president in recent months but no candidate was able to secure a majority.

☆ Amid ongoing Lebanese stalemate, France renews sanctions threat
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Foreign states have historically played a part in determining the presidency's fate in a country that has been a theatre for international rivalries. Two diplomats aware of the talks said Paris had brought up the issue of imposing EU sanctions targeting Lebanese leaders, although they cautioned the idea did not seem to be top of the agenda. "We call on the Lebanese authorities, Lebanese leaders, all the political leaders to get out of this constitutional impasse," foreign ministry spokesperson Anne-Claire Legendre told reporters in a daily briefing. The European Union adopted a legal framework for a sanctions regime targeting Lebanese individuals and entities in 2021 in an attempt to put pressure on the Lebanese, but it has not used it and the political and economic crisis has worsened. "We are currently examining the situation to see how we can work on these consequences," she said.

☆ Factbox: The countries in the grip of debt crises
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +8 min

LONDON, Feb 24 (Reuters) - Meetings being held in India will see top officials from the Group of 20 leading economies discuss how to help the growing number of countries now in the grip of debt crises. Below is a list of countries that have either defaulted on their international debt or are seen at risk of doing so. Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said this week Kyiv is hoping to clinch a $15 billion, multi-year International Monetary Fund programme. But progress with Zambia's $13 billion debt rework has been glacial. EGYPTEgypt has experienced a double whammy from COVID-19 and soaring food and energy prices, and has struggled in recent years to contain its rising debt and debt servicing burden.

You feel like he's on a solo mission," Tania Daou-Alam, who lost her husband in the blast, told Reuters. Bitar went on to file his own charges against several top politicians, including former ministers allied to Hezbollah. Bitar, a devout Catholic from Akkar region of the north, has charged officials from across the sectarian spectrum including Shi'ites, Sunnis and Christians. "I said from the start 'the right person is in the right place'," he added, describing Bitar as just with no political affiliations. William Noun, who lost his brother in the blast, said of Bitar's move: "This is very much a judicial uprising".

☆ Seeking compromise candidate, Lebanese politician Bassil leaves door ajar for presidency bid
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-17 | by ( John Irish | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

I did not do this to have the vacancy and a bad person to fill the void," he said. "I will not accept to have a bad president and in that case of course I would run." France has spearheaded international efforts to rescue Lebanon from its deepest crisis since the civil war, but to no avail. "That's why the country can't take this and live with it so we need to succeed in finding a solution." Reporting by John Irish in Paris Editing by Matthew LewisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Gulf states use new oil riches to gain regional influence
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-31 | by ( Nadeen Ebrahim | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +13 min

“Money talks,” Michael Maduell, president of the Sovereign Wealth Fund Institute in Las Vegas, told CNN. Saudi Arabia’s de facto ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, last week announced that the nation’s wealth fund, the Public Investment Fund (PIF), is establishing five regional companies worth $24 billion across the Middle East. One of the key regional investment destinations for both Abu Dhabi and Riyadh has been Egypt. Once a regional rival, Turkey is now an economic ally of Saudi Arabia and the UAE. Despite a political thaw, Gulf investments in Iran and Syria are unlikely for the time being, say analysts.

☆ President Aoun leaves office as Lebanon's crisis worsens
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-30 | by ( Maya Gebeily | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/2] A billboard depicting Lebanon's President Michel Aoun, whose term is expected to end on October 31, is placed in Jdeideh, Lebanon October 27, 2022. In his final week in the palace, he signed onto a U.S.-mediated deal delineating Lebanon's southern maritime border with Israel. "Aoun's was the strongest era in all of Lebanon's history,” said Lama Nohra, a 32-year-old supporter and mother of three young children. "He was by far the worst president in Lebanon’s history" said Michel Meouchi, a lawyer and father. In 2006, his Free Patriotic Movement formed an alliance with Hezbollah, which lent important Christian backing to the armed group.

☆ Israel, Lebanon finalise maritime demarcation deal without mutual recognition
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-27 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Israeli and Lebanese leaders finalised a U.S-brokered maritime demarcation on Thursday, bringing a measure of accommodation between the enemy states as they eye offshore energy exploration. Leaders from Lebanon, Israel and the United States have all hailed the deal as "historic" but the possibility of a wider diplomatic breakthrough remains slim. Prime Minister Yair Lapid signed separately in Jerusalem, saying the deal was a "tremendous achievement" that had produced Lebanon's de facto recognition of Israel. But Aoun later said the deal was purely "technical" and would have "no political dimensions or impacts that contradict Lebanon's foreign policy". Lower-level delegations from each country headed to the United Nations' peacekeeping base at Naqoura along their contested land border, which has yet to be delineated.

☆ Lebanon signs maritime border deal, Israel expected to follow suit
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-27 | by ( Maya Gebeily | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BAABDA/JERUSALEM, Oct 27 (Reuters) - Lebanese President Michel Aoun on Thursday signed a letter approving a landmark U.S-brokered agreement laying out the country’s maritime boundary with Israel, Lebanon's top negotiator told reporters. Israel was set to follow suit in approving the deal, which marks a diplomatic departure from decades of hostility, later in the day. Hailed by all three parties as a historic achievement, the deal will be signed separately in Jerusalem by Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid following his cabinet's approval. "If one side violates the deal, both sides lose," Hochstein told reporters. An offshore energy discovery - while not enough on its own to resolve Lebanon's deep economic problems - would be a major boon, providing badly needed hard currency and possibly one day easing crippling blackouts.

☆ Syrian refugees return home as Lebanese repatriation scheme begins
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/5] Syrian refugees sit with their belongings on a pick-up truck as they prepare to return to Syria from Wadi Hmayyed, on the outskirts of the Lebanese border town of Arsal, Lebanon October 26, 2022. REUTERS/Mohamed AzakirARSAL, Lebanon Oct 26 (Reuters) - Hundreds of Syrian refugees living in Lebanon returned home on Wednesday, the first day of repatriations organised by Beirut, amid concerns from rights groups that the scheme may involve elements of coercion. Lebanese authorities say the repatriations, under a revived programme run coordinated by the country's General Security agency, are voluntary. In 2018, the General Security agency launched a mechanism through which any Syrian refugee could signal a desire to return home, liaise with Syrian authorities to make sure that individual was not wanted there. That pathway saw around 400,000 Syrians return home but was put on hold with the outbreak of COVID-19.

☆ Explainer: What's at stake as Lebanon faces presidential vacuum?
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

What makes electing a president so difficult, what's at stake, and who are the candidates? In the event of a vacuum, presidential powers should pass to cabinet led by Sunni Muslim Prime Minister Najib Mikati. The Maronite community is more politically fractured than others in Lebanon, giving rise to many presidential hopefuls. Anti-Hezbollah lawmaker Michel Mouawad has won the most votes in four unsuccessful presidential election sessions so far, but not enough to win. But analysts and political sources say he would face opposition, notably from the Maronite politician Gebran Bassil, President Aoun's son-in-law and a presidential hopeful himself.

☆ Lebanon deputy PM says state cannot "save all depositors" who lost funds in crisis
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-24 | by ( Maya Gebeily | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterSpeaking on local broadcaster LBCI, Chami said the state's plan to plug a $72 billion hole in the financial system would not be able to "save all depositors." Chami said the government's total foreign currency reserves - including its gold deposits - amount to between $25 billion and $30 billion "at best." Parliament still needs to approve a banking resolution framework to address Lebanon's bloated commercial banking sector and a capital controls law. Chami said he expected that most banks would not face problems in paying back depositors or undergoing a restructuring. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Maya Gebeily; Editing by Andrea RicciOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Lebanon fails to elect president for third time amid financial meltdown
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BEIRUT, Oct 20 (Reuters) - Lebanon's parliament failed to elect a president for the third time on Thursday, bringing the country closer to institutional deadlock amid a deep financial crisis. Outgoing President Michel Aoun's term ends on Oct. 31 and divisions remain among political blocs over the makeup of a new cabinet. Thursday's session saw 55 blank votes, 42 for anti-Hezbollah lawmaker Michel Mouawad and the rest of the ballots including scattered votes for political slogans. Speaker of Parliament Nabih Berri has set the next session for Oct. 24. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Maya Gebeily; Editing by Nick MacfieOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Lebanon MPs pass second attempt at new banking secrecy law
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BEIRUT, Oct 17 (Reuters) - Lebanon's parliament on Thursday passed another round of amendments to a banking secrecy law after the International Monetary Fund said a previous draft retained key deficiencies. The IMF has laid out a list of reforms, including amending its banking secrecy law, that Lebanon must implement before it can gain access to $3 billion to relieve its economic crisis, one of the worst in modern history. Parliament passed an amended banking secrecy law in late July but the IMF recommended a slew of changes and Lebanese President Michel Aoun sent it back to parliament to make them. The latest draft still does not lift banking secrecy as a whole. The law still needs to be signed into law by Aoun, whose term ends on Oct. 31.

☆ Lebanese president calls on Totalenergies to start drilling after deal with Israel
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

CAIRO, Oct 18 (Reuters) - Lebanese President Michel Aoun called on Totalenergies (TTEF.PA) to quickly start drilling in block 9 in the Mediterranean sea. The Lebanese Presidency said Aoun met with a delegation from the company and called for a start to drilling to offset the time spent in indirect negotiations with Israel to demarcate the southern maritime borders. Earlier this month, Lebanon and Israel reached an agreement demarcating a disputed maritime border between them after years of U.S.-mediated negotiations. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Nayera Abdallah, Writing by Yasmin Hussein, Editing by Angus MacSwanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

read moreIt will take effect once Lebanon and Israel send letters to Washington, which will issue a notice announcing the deal is in place. Parties to the deal would seek to resolve any further maritime differences through the United States, securing an ongoing guarantor role for Washington. A centrist, Lapid's caretaker government wants the deal done soon but has denied that the country's election is the deadline. TotalEnergies is set to begin exploration at the Qana prospect immediately after the deal takes effect, though Lebanon's energy minister said preparations would take a number of months. Seeking to play down future Lebanese profits, Israeli Energy Minister Karine Elharrar told Tel Aviv's 103 FM radio initial estimates put that prospect's total value at some $3 billion.

☆ Lebanon to resume sending refugees back to war-damaged Syria
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-12 | by ( Timour Azhari | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Lebanon hosts the highest number of refugees per capita in the world. The plan would not involve the United Nations, which maintains that conditions in Syria do not allow for the large-scale return of refugees. The Lebanon office of the U.N. refugee agency, UNHCR, said it was "not facilitating or promoting the large-scale voluntary repatriation of refugees to Syria." New York-based advocacy group Human Rights Watch (HRW) said in July that "Syria is anything but safe for returnees". In its September report, the United Nations' Syria commission said the country was still not safe for returnees.

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