PARIS: French President Emmanuel Macron will next week meet iconic singer Fairuz and members of Lebanon’s political leadership as he returns to the country in search of serious reform in the wake of the devastating Beirut port blast, the Elysee said Friday.
Macron will be in Lebanon on Monday and Tuesday for his second visit in less than a month after the August 4 blast at the Beirut port that killed 181 people and revived calls for radical change in the country.
One of his first meetings after arriving on Monday will be with Fairuz, one of the rare figures in Lebanon who is admired across the multi-confessional country, the Elysee said.
Fairuz, 85, is famously private and rarely seen in public but throughout her career has roused fans with her songs about love and in praise of the beauty of her troubled nation.
Karim Emile Bitar, a political science professor in France and Lebanon, tweeted Friday it was an “excellent decision” by Macron to meet Fairuz, describing her as “arguably the most iconic, dignified and consensual Lebanese figure.”
Macron will meet political leaders at the palace of President Michel Aoun on Tuesday with the aim of encouraging movement in a political process already mired in stalemate.
“He won’t let go,” said an Elysee source, who asked not to be named.
“The purpose of his visit is clear: to push for the conditions to be met for the formation of a government that is capable of carrying out reconstruction and reforms,” added the source.
Premier Hassan Diab’s cabinet has resigned over the blast, which was blamed on a store of ammonium nitrate left for years in a port warehouse despite warnings.
Macron’s arrival Monday will coincide with the start of parliamentary consultations on the choice of a new prime minister.
On August 9, Macron chaired a video conference that saw world leaders pledge more than 250 million euros ($295 million) for Lebanon.
But France has made clear its patience is far from limitless; Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian warned Thursday that Lebanon risked “disappearing” as a country unless serious reforms are undertaken.
Macron to meet iconic singer Fairuz in push for Lebanon reform
https://arab.news/pwmuf
Macron to meet iconic singer Fairuz in push for Lebanon reform
- Fairuz, 85, is famously private and rarely seen in public but throughout her career has roused fans with her songs about love and in praise of the beauty of her troubled nation
- Karim Emile Bitar, a political science professor, tweeted “excellent decision” by Macron to meet Fairuz, describing her as “arguably the most iconic, dignified and consensual Lebanese figure”
More than 100 Palestinians detained in West Bank since start of Ramadan, including women, children
- Arrests by Israelis accompanied by extensive field interrogation
RAMALLAH: Israeli forces have detained more than 100 Palestinians from the West Bank since the beginning of the holy month of Ramadan, including women, children, and former prisoners, the Palestinian Prisoner’s Society reported on Sunday.
The organization said the detentions coincided with Israel’s announcement of the intensification of such actions during Ramadan, with recent settler attacks providing cover for widespread detentions across most West Bank governorates, including Jerusalem. Many detainees from Jerusalem have been barred from entering Al-Aqsa Mosque.
A statement pointed out that arrests by Israelis are accompanied by extensive field interrogation which often targets all sections of Palestinian society.
Documented violations accompanying detentions include severe beatings, organized terror campaigns against detainees and their families, destruction and looting of homes, confiscation of vehicles, money and gold, demolition of family homes, use of family members as hostages, employment of prisoners as human shields, and extrajudicial executions.
The society stressed that Israel exploits detention campaigns to expand settlement activity in the West Bank, with settlers serving as a key tool to impose a new reality.
The Palestinian Detainees Affairs Commission has revealed harrowing details of the abuses faced by Palestinian prisoner Mohammed Wajih Mahamid from Jenin during his incarceration in Israeli prisons.
The commission said that on Nov. 15, 2023, Mahamid was severely beaten on his right knee with a baton used by prison guards, causing a serious injury that left him unable to walk without crutches.
He was beaten again on the same knee on March 29, 2025, resulting in severe swelling which was later confirmed to be a fracture. Despite his condition, the prison authorities only provided painkillers and refused to transfer him to hospital, maintaining a policy of deliberate medical neglect.
The commission stressed that these abuses reflected the harsh reality faced by Palestinian detainees, who are deprived of basic human rights, medical treatment and care.
