News from the Arab World
The Embassy of Pakistan organized a Zoom meeting between Lahore University of Management Sciences and the American University of Beirut to discuss modalities of a Memorandum of Understanding for future collaboration. Pakistani Ambassador to Lebanon, Salman Athar, AUB President, and VC of LUMS also attended the meeting.
Source: National News Agency – Lebanon
Maronite Patriarch, Cardinal Mar Bechara Boutros Al-Rahi, on Tuesday met in Bkerki with Caretaker Minister of Agriculture, Abbas Hajj Hassan, who briefed him on the Ministry of Agriculture’s projects.
Patriarch Al-Rahi later welcomed a delegation representing the Press Editors Syndicate headed by Joseph Al-Qusseifi, who said as quoting Patriarch Al-Rahi, “Our problem today is that the very same people behind wars [in Lebanon] still rules us.”
Patriarch Al-Rahi separately had an audience with Italian Ambassador to Lebanon, Nicoletta Bombardiere, with whom he discussed the current situation, in addition to bilateral relations between the two countries.
Source: National News Agency – Lebanon
Amal-Hezbollah dup embarks on search of Ibrahim’s successor
Ad-Diyar:
Washington’s surprising approach to the presidential juncture: Shea pushes Geagea for dialogue with Berri!
Nidaa al-Watan:
Swiss prosecution demands form all banks Salameh brothers’ financial movement since 2008
Asharq al-Awsat:
Lebanese government holds fourth session amid presidential vacuum
Source: National News Agency – Lebanon
The UN-Habitat issued the following statement:
“Factually inaccurate and false news has recently spread on Lebanese news platforms and social media implicating UN-Habitat in Lebanon about a form allegedly affirming the right of refugees and displaced persons in Lebanon to secure access to housing, land and property. Additional incorrect information insinuates that this is part of resettling refugees and displaced persons in Lebanon. What has been circulated is instigating and spreading panic.
Therefore, UN-Habitat would like to clarify the following:
– The news that is being circulated online regarding the project implemented by UN-Habitat in partnership with the People’s Aid Association for Relief and Development (PARD), and other partners, and funded by Germany, is categorically untrue and misleading.
– This is a project led by UN-Habitat’s Regional Office for Arab States in Cairo, implemented in both Lebanon and Iraq. The project has been developed in the framework of the Arab Land Initiative, which Germany supports. More about the Arab Land Initiative can be read here.
– The project aims to help Syrian refugees and displaced persons currently living in Lebanon to document their rights to housing, land and property in their towns and villages in Syria (not Lebanon) from which they were displaced during the conflict in Syria – thus contributing to ensuring that future return to Syria is possible once the conditions for a voluntary and safe return in dignity are met.
– In Lebanon, the concerned municipalities (where data collection took place), their leadership, and security forces are aware of the objectives and measures of the project; all field activities were completed in 2022.
– Part of the field activities included a questionnaire used to register the claims of Syrian refugees to their housing, land and property in Syria; these activities did not collect any data related to refugees’ current living conditions in Lebanon. The Social Tenure Domain Model form used in the project is a participatory tool used to document Syrian refugees’ claims to housing, land and property in Syria (not Lebanon) and to safeguard their documentary evidence.
For further accurate information about the project, please visit this page. UN-Habitat encourages all media partners to contact its office to validate any information about UN-Habitat and its programming and partners prior to publishing it.
UN-Habitat works in over 90 countries supporting people in cities for a better urban future. Working with governments and local partners, its high-impact projects combine world-class expertise and local knowledge to deliver timely and targeted solutions.”
Source: National News Agency – Lebanon
One has been killed and three have been injured in four road accidents recorded in the last 24 hours, as indicated by the Traffic Management Center on Tuesday.
Source: National News Agency – Lebanon
Wednesday’s weather is expected to be partly cloudy to cloudy with an increase in temperature degrees and dry, dusty wind, according to the Beirut airport-based meteorology department.
Coastal temperatures: 16 to 27 degrees Celsius
Mountainous temperatures: 9 to 22 degrees Celsius
Inland temperatures: 8 to 25 degrees Celsius
Surface wind: Northeasterly to easterly during the day, southeasterly at night; with speeds gusting between 10 and 30 km/hr
Visibility: Average
Coastline humidity: 25 to 45%
Sea: Low waves, with surface water temperature at 18 degrees Celsius
Sunrise: 6:08
Sunset: 17:34
Source: National News Agency – Lebanon
A 31-year-old Syrian woman and her 5-year-old child have passed away in a fire that broke out earlier this morning inside their tent in the Shafaq refugee camp in the north Bekaa town of Arsal, our correspondent reported on Tuesday.
The cause of fire is yet to be identified.
Source: National News Agency – Lebanon
Time
Topic
10:30
Interactive meeting with Caretaker Economy and Trade Minister, Amin Salam, on pricing in US dollar, at the headquarters of the Economic, Social, and Environmental Council, central Beirut.
11:00
Panel discussion on the role of research and development to enhance innovation in the private sector, organized by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), at Gefinor Rotana Hotel.
13:00
The Ministry of Agriculture and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) launch the farmers’ registry, under the auspices of Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati, at UNESCO Palace.
Source: National News Agency – Lebanon
Caretaker Minister of Interior and Municipalities, Bassam Mawlawi, has arrived in Tunisia to partake in the 40th meeting of the Arab Interior Ministers.
He is accompanied by Director General of the Internal Security Forces, Major General Imad Othman.
The conference will take place tomorrow (Wednesday). Mawlawi is set to hold a series of meetings with his Arab counterparts.
Source: National News Agency – Lebanon
France on Monday condemned an attack by Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank, saying “violence against Palestinian civilians is unacceptable”. The remarks came after settlers burned down houses and cars in reaction to the killing of two Israelis in the town of Huwara.
France “strongly condemns” the attack targeting a town where two Israeli brothers were killed, the foreign ministry said in a statement, adding that there was a risk that the situation in the West Bank could “deteriorate out of control”.
In the night of Sunday and Monday, dozens of Israeli settlers set homes and cars ablaze in the northern town of Huwara, after a day of Israeli-Palestinian talks in neighbouring Jordan aimed at quelling a surge in violence in the Palestinian territory.
More than 350 Palestinians were injured, most suffering from tear gas inhalation, the Palestinian Red Crescent Society said.
The Palestinian health ministry said Sameh Aqtash, 37, was shot dead during an attack by Israeli forces and settlers on the nearby village of Zaatara.
Two settlers killed
The violence came hours after two Israeli settlers, brothers Yagel Yaniv, 20, and Hallel Yaniv, 22, were shot dead Sunday as they drove through Huwara.
On Monday, a photographer of French news agency AFP saw damaged homes blackened by fire, long lines of charred cars, burned trees and smashed windows in the town.
“They burned the cars and the houses and destroyed everything,” Huwara resident Diaa Odeh said.
“Whenever we started to push the settlers back, the army was firing tear gas at us,” added the 25-year-old.
Wajeh Odeh, a member of the town’s municipality, said 30 houses were burned and damaged while more than 100 cars were torched.
Abdel Moneim Aqtash said he and his brother were standing outside a blacksmith’s workshop when they were attacked by Israeli settlers.
“They left the area and then came back with the occupation (Israeli) army… The army shot my brother, not the settlers,” he told AFP.
The military told AFP that Aqtash “was not shot by an Israeli soldier”.
‘We want security’
Yoav Gallant, defence minister in Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s new right-wing coalition government, said he expected “difficult days ahead” and had ordered troops to be reinforced.
“With this being said, I call on everyone to restore calm… We cannot allow a situation in which citizens take the law into their (own) hands,” he said.
The Israeli military told AFP no-one had been arrested over the arson or killing of Aqtash.
The search for the gunmen who fired on the two brothers was ongoing.
The violence came days after Israeli forces launched their deadliest West Bank raid in nearly 20 years, which claimed the lives of 11 Palestinians in the nearby city of Nablus.
Itamar Ben-Gvir, Israel’s national security minister and an extreme-right settler, said the killing of the Yaniv brothers “must teach us that we are at war”.
“I understand the pain but we must not take the law into our own hands,” he said.
The West Bank is home to about 2.9 million Palestinians as well as an estimated 475,000 Jewish settlers, who live in state-approved settlements considered illegal under international law.
Esty Yaniv, the mother of the two brothers killed, said “instead of accompanying them to their wedding, we must bury them.”
“We love this country, we love the army, we want security, but the responsibility to guarantee security rests solely with the army,” she said Monday, in a statement from the Shomron Regional Council which administers settlements in the area.
The Israeli military said it had evacuated dozens of Palestinians from their homes threatened by fires in Huwara.
‘A pogrom’
Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas’ office accused Israel of “protecting terrorist acts perpetrated by settlers” in the West Bank.
Hamas, the militant group which rules Gaza, called on Palestinians “to defend the city of Nablus and repel the settlers’ terrorism”.
Israeli rights groups B’Tselem and Peace Now said the Huwara attack amounted to “a pogrom”.
The violence on Sunday came amid talks in Jordan, Israeli and Palestinian officials reaffirmed “the need to commit to de-escalation on the ground and to prevent further violence”.
Source: Big News Network
Bengaluru (Karnataka) [India], The Indian men’s basketball side put up a valiant effort in their final Group E match, but lost to Saudi Arabia by 60-71 in their FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023 Asian Qualifiers at the Sree Kanteerava Indoor Stadium in Bengaluru on Monday.
As per Olympics.com, India has ended their campaign in the qualifiers without a win in their 14 games. India was placed in Group A with New Zealand, the Philippines and South Korea. India lost matches against NZ and the Philippines. They were awarded four points and moved to the next round after South Korea pulled out of the event due to COVID-19.
In the second round, India, part of Group E, lost two matches each to New Zealand, the Philippines, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon and Jordan.
New Zealand, Lebanon, Philippines and Jordan qualified for the World Cup as they were the top-four teams in Group E. Saudi Arabia and India missed out on a berth at World Cup.
On Monday, India, currently placed at 83 in FIBA Basketball Rankings, made a great start, leading Saudi by 19-16 in the first quarter. Arvind Kumar and Muin Bek Hafeez made the most scoring opportunities for India.
But India fumbled their lead in the second quarter, giving a 37-33 lead to Saudi, a side placed 12 places above India in the rankings.
The third quarter was well-contested among both sides and India took the lead once again with six minutes left for the final buzzer. Arvind Kumar gave Saudi Arabia two free throws after a foul, which swung the momentum in favour of the visitors, who eventually won by a comfortable 11-point margin.
Saudi Arabia’s Mohammed Alsuwailem, with 27 points, emerged as the top-scorer in the match, Arvind Kumar top-scored for India with 24 points.
The rest of the qualification spots in the World Cup were clinched by Japan, Iran, Australia and China. The 32-team World Cup will be co-hosted by the Philippines, Japan and Indonesia and will go on from August 25-September 10.
India is yet to qualify for the main draw of the World Cup.
Source: Big News Network
The Abu Dhabi Police arrested a person who tried to smuggle 4.5 million Captagon pills inside canned food tins to a GCC country.
Brigadier General Taher Al Dhaheri, Director of the Anti-Narcotics Directorate in the Criminal Security Sector, revealed that the operation was successful thanks to a tight security plan to track the suspect’s movements.
Earlier, the directorate received a tip-off from private sources about the suspect’s intention to bring a large amount of Captagon pills into the UAE to be smuggled to the GCC nation.
The anti-narcotics team kept close watch over the suspect upon his arrival at a UAE port, Al Dhaheri said, noting that the suspect had imported a large amount of preserved green bean cans, which he managed to clear as foodstuff.
After adopting all legal procedures, the team raided the place and arrested the suspect upon his arrival at a warehouse in one of the emirates to empty the cans of beans and hide the Captagon pills inside, he said.
The professionalism of the anti-narcotics agents helped thwart the suspect’s plan and seize approximately 4.5 million Captagon pills plus the tools used in packaging them for promotion, he added.
Al Dhaheri emphasised the importance of partnering and co-operating with the concerned departments and all segments of society to prevent the dangers of narcotics, calling on the public not to hesitate to report any information on drug issues.
He also hailed the co-operation of the anti-narcotics agents at Umm Al Quwain Police to strengthen the efforts aimed at curbing crimes and enhancing the security and stability of the society.
Source: National News Agency – Lebanon