Tag Archives: Financial Crisis

Lebanon’s largest Christian bloc, the Free Patriotic Movement (FPM), warned prime minister-designate Saad al-Hariri on Saturday against sidelining President Michel Aoun and other parliamentary interests in talks over forming a cabinet. Hariri and Aoun have been at loggerheads over the cabinet for months, dashing hopes of a reversal of Lebanon’s …

Lebanon’s Prime Minister-designate Saad al-Hariri said on Thursday after a meeting with President Michel Aoun that forming a government that could re-engage with the IMF was the only way to halt the country’s financial collapse. The meeting took place after a heated exchange on Wednesday night between the two politicians, …

France and its international partners will seek to increase pressure on Lebanon’s politicians in the coming months, a French diplomat said on Wednesday, although he did not envisage sanctions against individuals in the immediate term. Paris has spearheaded international efforts to rescue the former French protectorate from its deepest crisis …

Thousands marched in central Beirut on Friday demanding a new independent government to lift Lebanon out of its deepening crisis as frustration over the country’s financial meltdown grew. Lebanon’s economic crisis is posing the biggest threat to its stability since the 1975-1990 civil war. Erupting in late 2019, it has …

Lebanon’s president told the army and security forces on Monday to clear roadblocks after a week of protests over a collapsing economy and paralysed government, but the army chief warned that troops should not get sucked into the political deadlock. President Michel Aoun issued the call to open up the …

Lebanese Central Bank Governor Riad Salameh announced on Friday that he will be taking legal action against Bloomberg after it published an article claiming that the US is considering sanctioning him, a move the US State Department denies. “We have seen reports about possible sanctions of Riad Salameh. They are …

he World Bank threatened to suspend financing for Lebanon’s COVID-19 vaccination drive in its second week after it emerged that some lawmakers would get their shots in parliament on Tuesday. The comments from the World Bank came as frustration grew among some residents and doctors that vaccinations were moving slowly …

Abu Dhabi ruler Mohamed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan affirmed the UAE’s support for the Lebanese people during a meeting with Lebanon’s Prime Minister-designate Saad Al-Hariri. The Abu Dhabi ruler said that the UAE supported the ambitions of the Lebanese people for “unity, stability and development,” state news agency WAM reported. During …

As Lebanon’s unprecedented economic downfall continues, catalyzed by a medical crisis and mass anti-corruption protests, the country’s tweeters took to social media to showcase the vast wealth of the politicians that are meant to serve them. # Photos of the country’s political leaders wearing luxury watches worth thousands of dollars …

Lebanon’s caretaker prime minister on Friday condemned overnight violence in the city of Tripoli, where protesters angry over a strict lockdown clashed with security forces and set the municipality building on fire. Thursday was the fourth straight night of unrest in one of Lebanon’s poorest cities, after the government imposed …

Iraq has requested emergency assistance from the International Monetary Fund and talks are ongoing between the parties, the IMF said late on Sunday. Iraqi Finance Minister Ali Allawi told Bloomberg News earlier that Iraq was in talks with the IMF for a $6 billion loan package. “The Iraqi authorities have …

Bahaa Hariri, the eldest son of slain Lebanese statesman Rafik Hariri, is calling for a broad alliance — a “supermajority” — to coalesce around a plan to agree on the way forward for Lebanon as it faces multiple crises. Such an alliance is needed to implement the unfinished business of …

The rift between President Michel Aoun and Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri over the formation of Lebanon’s new government widened on Friday. Hariri was instructed to form a new government on Oct. 22, but no progress has yet been made, leaving the country in a political deadlock to add to its …

The leader of Lebanon’s biggest Christian political party on Sunday ruled out joining a new government led by Prime Minister-designate Saad al-Hariri, a new hurdle for efforts to pull the country out of political paralysis. Politicians have been at loggerheads over the shape of a new administration since the last …

When Lebanon’s financial crisis pushed Vartkes to leave for Armenia this summer, he never imagined he would volunteer to fight in Nagorno-Karabakh. The young Lebanese-Armenian didn’t think twice, however, when the conflict between Azerbaijani and ethnic Armenian forces erupted soon after his move. “I wanted to go that night,” Vartkes, …

Lebanese veteran politician Saad al-Hariri was named prime minister for a fourth time on Thursday and pledged to form a new government that can tackle the country’s worst crisis since its 1975-1990 civil war. After his nomination, Hariri said he would quickly form a cabinet of specialists “with a mission …

Lebanon’s President Michel Aoun said on Wednesday he would fulfill his duty in designating a prime minister but put the onus on the new premier to launch moves to pull the country from financial crisis. Sunni leader Saad al-Hariri is poised to be named prime minister at formal consultations on …

Lebanon’s President Michel Aoun has postponed by a week consultations aimed at choosing a prime minister to form a new government to tackle the country’s worst economic crisis since its 1975-1990 civil war, the presidency said on Wednesday. Aoun had been due to hold the consultations on Thursday and was …

Israel’s finance minister promised on Sunday the long awaited 2021 state budget would be ready in December amid accusations the government was dragging its heels for political reasons and after a third senior economic official quit in three months. Failure to pass last year’s budget was a big factor in …

Lebanon’s leading Sunni Muslim politician, former Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri, called for the restoration of a French plan to lift the nation out of its worst financial crisis since its 1975-1990 civil war. Former colonial power France, which has led foreign aid efforts, has tried to rally Lebanese leaders to …

Lebanon’s caretaker Prime Minister Hassan Diab said on Friday any step to lift subsidies now on vital goods would be unacceptable and would cause a “social explosion”. In a televised address, Diab, who resigned two months ago after a huge explosion damaged much of Beirut and worsened the country’s economic …

Lebanon’s leading Sunni Muslim politician, former premier Saad al-Hariri, called for the restoration of a French plan to lift the nation out of its worst financial crisis since its 1975-1990 civil war. Former colonial power France, which has led foreign aid efforts, has tried to rally have Lebanese leaders to …

Lebanon’s top Christian cleric said on Sunday the nation faced “multiple dangers” that would be hard to weather without a government, speaking a day after the prime minister-designate quit following his failed bid to form a cabinet. Mustapha Adib stepped down on Saturday after hitting a roadblock over how to …

President Michel Aoun warned on Monday Lebanon was going “to hell” if a new government could not be formed but agreeing one might take a miracle after positions had hardened between rival factions. His comments in a televised address underlined the severe difficulties facing French efforts to lift Lebanon out …

Lebanon’s top Christian cleric took a swipe at leaders of the Shi’ite Muslim community on Sunday for making demands he said were blocking the formation of a new government and causing political paralysis in a nation in deep crisis. Patriarch Bechara Boutros Al-Rai, leader of the Maronite church, did not …

France’s intelligence chief has joined efforts to push Lebanon to deliver a new government and reforms, Lebanese sources said on Thursday, buttressing President Emmanuel Macron’s bid to pull the country out of a devastating economic crisis. Macron is center stage in international efforts to press fractious Lebanese politicians to address …

Lebanese Prime Minister-designate Mustapha Adib called for the formation of a new government in record time and the immediate implementation of reforms as an entry point for an agreement with the International Monetary Fund. “The opportunity for our country is small,” Adib said after he was formally designated by President …

Lawmakers in the Iran-backed Lebanese Shi’ite group Hezbollah nominated Mustapha Adib as the next prime minister on Monday, the head of its parliamentary bloc said after a meeting with President Michel Aoun. The bloc “informed President Aoun of its agreement to the nomination of Mustapha Adib and we expressed our …

Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said on Sunday the powerful Shi’ite movement was open to discussing a new political order in Lebanon if all factions agree to it, as foreign donors press for deep reforms to tackle the country’s multiple crises. The presidency has called for parliamentary consultations on Monday …

Lebanese banks that cannot increase their capital by 20% by the end of February 2021 will have to get out of the market, Central Bank Governor Riad Salameh told Reuters on Thursday. Those leaving would do so by giving their shares to the central bank, Salameh added. He said he …

France’s foreign minister said on Thursday that Lebanon risked disappearing due to the inaction of its political elite who needed to quickly implement a new government to implement crucial reforms for the country. “The international community will not sign a blank cheque if the they (Lebanese authorities) don’t put in …

Lebanon must shut down for two weeks after a surge in coronavirus infections, the caretaker health minister said on Monday, as the country reels from the massive Beirut port blast. “We declare today a state of general alert and we need a brave decision to close (the country) for two …

The U.S. government supports Lebanese demonstrators’ right to peaceful protest and urges all involved to refrain from violence, the U.S. Embassy in Beirut said on Saturday. The embassy also said in a tweet that the Lebanese people “deserved leaders who listen to them and change course to respond to popular …

French President Emmanuel Macron has told President Donald Trump that U.S. sanctions that have targeted Iran-backed Shi’ite group Hezbollah are playing into the hands of those they are meant to weaken, an Elysee official said on Saturday. The official, speaking ahead of a donors conference on aid to Lebanon co-hosted …

As Beirut mourns its dead and grapples with the scale of rebuilding after this week’s massive blast, some Lebanese activists planned to demonstrate in the city on Saturday, angered by the government’s response to the disaster. Tuesday’s port explosion, the biggest in Beirut’s history, killed 154 people, injured 5,000 and …

The United Nations has not received any requests to investigate the deadly explosion in Beirut’s port, a U.N. spokesman said on Friday after French President Emmanuel Macron called for an international inquiry. Dozens are still missing after Tuesday’s blast in the Lebanese capital that killed at least 154 people, injured …

Lebanon’s Foreign Minister Nassif Hitti resigned on Monday over what he described as lack of political will to reform as his nation wrestles with a financial crisis posing the biggest threat to stability since a 1975-1990 civil war. Foreign donors have made it clear there will be no aid until …

Lebanon needs a new prime minister to help it exit a deep economic and financial crisis, one of the country’s leading politicians said in an interview published on Wednesday. Veteran Druze power broker Walid Jumblatt said replacing Hassan Diab “should seriously be considered because he has amnesia,” according to comments …

France told Lebanon on Thursday that it had no option but to accept an IMF deal to help it out of a dire financial crisis and that Beirut must enact reforms urgently if it is to win foreign aid. Lebanon desperately needs such aid as it wrestles with a financial …

Zawqan Abdelkhalek, a nurse at the American University of Beirut’s (AUB) medical centre since 2012, was laid off on Friday along with hundreds of colleagues as even hospitals buckle under the weight of Lebanon’s economic collapse. “I have a baby daughter, I need to get her food and water and …

Ethiopian mother Alemtsehay Nasir went to Lebanon dreaming that her maid’s job would let her earn money to make a better life for her young son. But she was fired when the COVID-19 pandemic hit and her employers dumped her on the streets. The 32-year-old was left on the curb …

The Lebanese central bank will provide foreign currency at a fixed exchange rate of 3,900 Lebanese pounds per dollar for importers and manufacturers of essential food items, it said on Monday. The central bank “will secure the necessary amounts in foreign currency to meet the needs of importers and manufacturers …

Lebanon’s Christian authorities slammed politicians on Sunday for failing to remedy an economic meltdown that has left many poor, piling pressure on the country’s leaders as it spirals deeper into crisis. In a sermon, Maronite Patriarch Bechara Boutros Al-Rai, the top Christian cleric, accused politicians of thinking only of their …

Dozens of people lay flowers on a main Beirut street where a man killed himself on Friday, with some blaming his death on the country’s economic collapse that has left more and more Lebanese hungry. Reuters could not establish the motive for the apparent suicide. The 61-year-old man shot himself …