Lebanon turns the page with new president and new government

A billboard celebrating the election of army chief Joseph Aoun, as the Lebanon's president, is seen in Beirut on January 9, 2025. (AFP)
Short Url
Updated 11 February 2025
Follow

Lebanon turns the page with new president and new government

  • Many are cautiously optimistic, but remain skeptical due to years of corruption, economic hardship, and weak governance
  • For years, Hezbollah dominated Lebanese politics, but has suffered major blows in its war with Israel and since the fall of Assad

BEIRUT: Lebanon’s new government has been met with cautious optimism by its people, who have endured years of political paralysis, economic crisis, and, most recently, a devastating conflict between Israel and the Iran-backed Lebanese militia Hezbollah.

As Beirut’s streets hum with debate, citizens have expressed a mix of hope and skepticism about the leadership of Prime Minister Nawaf Salam and the chances he can drag Lebanon out of its myriad crises and achieve a modicum of stability.

“We are cautiously optimistic,” was the common refrain of Lebanese who spoke to Arab News. While many remain wary after decades of corruption and mismanagement, some see the appointment of Salam — a former International Court of Justice judge — and his new cabinet as a potential turning point.

The beginning of 2025 has ushered in a transformative moment for Lebanon, as the country emerges from months of Israeli bombardment. After nearly three years without a president, Lebanon now has a new head of state, along with a government tasked with steering the nation through one of its most challenging periods.

Yet, the shadow of past crises looms large. Lebanon remains deeply entangled in political and economic turmoil. The Lebanese pound has lost more than 90 percent of its value since 2019, plunging a significant portion of the population into poverty.




From Oct. 8, 2023, until the ceasefire on Nov. 26, 2024, Israeli strikes killed at least 3,960 people across Lebanon and injured more than 16,500. (AN photo by Tarek Ali Ahmad)

Hyperinflation, a banking sector collapse, and widespread unemployment have left millions struggling to afford basic necessities.

Decades of corruption and political deadlock have further exacerbated the crisis. The previous government’s failure to implement crucial economic reforms blocked access to international financial aid, leaving the country reliant on dwindling foreign reserves.

Compounding these issues, the recent war between Hezbollah and Israel inflicted additional devastation. From Oct. 8, 2023, until the ceasefire on Nov. 26, 2024, Israeli strikes killed at least 3,960 people across Lebanon and injured more than 16,500.

Much of the Shiite-majority south lies in ruins, adding to the hardship.




Hyperinflation, a banking sector collapse, and widespread unemployment have left millions in Lebanon struggling to afford basic necessities. (AFP)

Against this backdrop, Salam has outlined a vision of “rescue, reform, and rebuild.”

His priorities include stabilizing the economy, securing international aid, and tackling corruption. His proposed technocratic government aims to regain international trust and unlock much-needed funds from institutions like the International Monetary Fund.

Reconstruction is another urgent priority. Southern Lebanon, where infrastructure suffered extensive damage, requires swift rebuilding. Traditionally, Hezbollah has filled this role through its social programs, but its financial resources have been severely diminished by recent losses.




Infrastructure in southern Lebanon suffered extensive damage due to Israeli attacks. (AN photo by Tarek Ali Ahmad)

Salam has pledged to rebuild trust between citizens and the state, as well as between Lebanon and its Arab neighbors and the broader international community. However, his government’s ability to secure external support is uncertain.

The new US administration has signaled it will not back any Lebanese government that includes Hezbollah. Morgan Ortagus, the US deputy special envoy for Middle East peace, warned that allowing Hezbollah to hold significant power would isolate Lebanon and cut off crucial aid.

Similarly, Gulf states have made their assistance conditional on Lebanon forming a government committed to reform.

The US Embassy in Beirut has welcomed the new government, saying “the Lebanese people deserve a government that will rebuild Lebanese state institutions, fight corruption, and implement needed reforms.”

UN chief Antonio Guterres also welcomed the new government, affirming the international body’s commitment to that country’s “territorial integrity, sovereignty and political independence,” a spokesman said Sunday.

“The UN looks forward to working in close partnership with the new government on its priorities, including the consolidation of the cessation of hostilities,” said a statement from spokesman Stephane Dujarric.




Morgan Ortagus, the US deputy special envoy for Middle East peace, warned that allowing Hezbollah to hold significant power would isolate Lebanon and cut off crucial aid. (AFP)

Hezbollah and Amal both secured ministries in the new government. However, Hezbollah no longer has veto power or what is referred to as a “blocking third” in the government after its Christian allies, the Free Patriotic Movement, were excluded.

Nevertheless, its ally, the Amal Movement, retains influence. Yassine Jaber, a close associate of Amal leader and parliamentary speaker Nabih Berri, has been appointed finance minister — one of the most powerful positions in the cabinet.

Despite Hezbollah’s weakened state, its presence remains visible. In Shiite-majority areas, yellow Hezbollah flags flutter alongside Amal banners, marking political territory.

“In Lebanon, territorial marking through flags is a well-established political reality,” Ralph Baydoun, director of InflueAnswers, a strategic communications firm in Beirut, told Arab News.

“The country is demographically divided along sectarian lines, and this division is visibly reinforced by political parties using flags and symbols to mark their areas of influence.”




While Hezbollah no longer has veto power, its ally, the Amal Movement, retains influence with Yassine Jaber, a close associate of Amal leader and parliamentary speaker Nabih Berri, being appointed finance minister. (Supplied)

Rebuilding will be particularly challenging in southern Lebanon, which bore the brunt of Israeli strikes. In Nabatiyeh, one of the region’s largest cities, much of the center lies in ruins.

In one area visited by Arab News, a sign hanging over piles of rubble reads: “Because of the destruction, Wehbe Clothes has moved to the main street.” The state of the original store suggests it was obliterated beyond recognition.

Despite the devastation, some businesses have reopened.

“What can we do? We need to get back to work in order to live,” said Ali, a shopkeeper in Nabatiyeh who only gave his first name, fearing reprisals from Hezbollah.

“Those who could fix their stores and clean the damage have done so, but as you can see, there’s no one helping us. Not the government, not Hezbollah, no one.”




A sign hanging over piles of rubble in Nabatiyeh reads: “Because of the destruction, Wehbe Clothes has moved to the main street.” The state of the original store suggests it was obliterated beyond recognition. (AN photo by Tarek Ali Ahmad) 

Lebanon’s political stalemate had left the country without a president for over two years until the election of Joseph Aoun on Jan. 9.

That Salam was able to form a government in under a month is a notable achievement in a nation where such processes often drag on for months.

He named his 24 ministers on Feb. 8 after consulting with leaders in a country where power has long been shared according to sectarian quotas. The new government will now prepare for parliamentary elections scheduled for next year.

“I hope this will be a government of reform and salvation,” Salam said in a televised statement moments after his cabinet was announced.

His government will strive to “restore trust between citizens and the state, between Lebanon and its Arab surrounding, and between Lebanon and the international community,” he said.




Salam named his 24 ministers on Feb. 8 after consulting with leaders in a country where power has long been shared according to sectarian quotas. The new government will now prepare for parliamentary elections scheduled for next year. (AFP)

Salam’s cabinet includes five women, among them Tamara Elzein, secretary-general of Lebanon’s National Council for Scientific Research, and Haneen Sayed, a World Bank specialist. Other key appointments include Ghassan Salame, a former UN envoy to Libya.

Before the new government can exercise its powers, however, it needs to draft a ministerial statement that must be submitted to a confidence vote in parliament within 30 days.

For years, Hezbollah dominated Lebanese politics, but suffered major blows in the war with Israel, including the loss of its leader, Hassan Nasrallah, in a September airstrike on Beirut.

The conflict erupted on Oct. 8, 2023, when Hezbollah launched cross-border attacks in support of Hamas, which was battling Israel in Gaza. Israel responded with heavy air and artillery strikes, escalating into a full-scale conflict along the Lebanon-Israel border.  

The war also drew in regional actors, with Iran supplying Hezbollah and the US supporting Israel. Diplomatic efforts by the UN, France, and Arab states sought de-escalation, while Hezbollah’s military losses, including key commanders, weakened its strategic position.  

A ceasefire was finally brokered on Nov. 26, as Hezbollah, under pressure from Lebanon’s economic crisis and international mediators, agreed to halt attacks in exchange for Israeli de-escalation.

The conflict left Hezbollah militarily weakened, Israel more secure on its northern front, and Lebanon struggling with reconstruction. It also reshaped regional power dynamics, with Hezbollah’s influence reduced.

Another shock came with the Dec. 8 ousting of Bashar Assad in the Syrian Arab Republic, which had long served as Hezbollah’s weapons conduit from Iran.

The weakening of Hezbollah allowed former army chief Aoun, seen as Washington’s preferred candidate, to be elected president, paving the way for Salam’s appointment as prime minister.




For many Lebanese, the future remains uncertain. Their cautious optimism reflects a deep yearning for stability but also an awareness of the obstacles ahead. (AFP)

As Lebanon watches anxiously, its new government faces an uphill battle — implementing long-overdue reforms, overseeing the fragile ceasefire with Israel, and rebuilding a shattered nation.

For many Lebanese, the future remains uncertain. Their cautious optimism reflects a deep yearning for stability but also an awareness of the obstacles ahead.

Whether this government can deliver on its promises remains to be seen, but the stakes for Lebanon’s future could not be higher.

 


Gaza rescuers say 15 killed in Israeli strikes

Updated 18 April 2025
Follow

Gaza rescuers say 15 killed in Israeli strikes

  • On Thursday the civil defense agency reported the deaths of at least 40 residents in Israeli strikes

Gaza City: Gaza’s civil defense agency said Friday that 15 people, including 10 from the same family, had been killed in two overnight Israeli strikes.
Civil defense spokesman Mahmud Bassal said on Telegram that “our crews recovered the bodies of 10 martyrs and a large number of wounded from the house of the Baraka family and the neighboring houses targeted by the Israeli occupation forces in the Bani Suhaila area east of Khan Yunis,” in the southern Gaza Strip.
Bassal later announced that a separate strike hit two houses in northern Gaza’s Tal Al-Zaatar, where crews had “recovered the bodies of five people.”
The Israeli military, which did not immediately comment, has intensified its aerial bombardments and expanded its ground operations in the Gaza Strip since it resumed its offensive in the besieged Palestinian territory on March 18.
On Thursday, the civil defense agency reported the deaths of at least 40 residents in Israeli strikes, most of them in camps for displaced civilians, as Israel pressed its offensive.


Israeli military intercepts missile launched from Yemen

Updated 18 April 2025
Follow

Israeli military intercepts missile launched from Yemen

  • Iran-backed Houthi militia have regularly fired missiles and drones targeting Israel

JERUSALEM: The Israeli military said Friday it had intercepted a missile launched from Yemen, from where the Iran-backed Houthi militia have regularly fired missiles and drones targeting Israel.
“Following the sirens that sounded a short while ago in several areas in Israel, a missile launched from Yemen was intercepted,” Israel’s army said on Telegram, adding that aerial defense systems had been deployed “to intercept the threat.”


US strike on Yemen fuel port kills at least 38, Houthi media say

Updated 18 April 2025
Follow

US strike on Yemen fuel port kills at least 38, Houthi media say

WASHINGTON: US strikes on a fuel port in Yemen killed at least 38 people on Thursday, Houthi-run media said, one of the deadliest days since the United States began its attacks on the Iran-backed militants.

The United States has vowed not to halt the large-scale strikes begun last month in its biggest military operation in the Middle East since President Donald Trump took office in January, unless the Houthis cease attacks on Red Sea shipping.

Al Masirah TV said 102 people were also wounded in Thursday’s strikes on the western fuel port of Ras Isa, which the US military said aimed to cut off a source of fuel for the Houthi militant group.

Responding to a Reuters query for comment on the Houthis’ casualty figure and its own estimate, the US Central Command said it had none beyond the initial announcement of the attacks.

“The objective of these strikes was to degrade the economic source of power of the Houthis, who continue to exploit and bring great pain upon their fellow countrymen,” it had said in a post on X.

Since November 2023, the Houthis have launched dozens of drone and missile attacks on vessels transiting the waterway, saying they were targeting ships linked to Israel in protest over the war in Gaza.

They halted attacks on shipping lanes during a two-month ceasefire in Gaza. Although they vowed to resume strikes after Israel renewed its assault on Gaza last month, they have not claimed any since.

In March, two days of US attacks killed more than 50 people, Houthi officials said.


Cash crunch leaves Syrians queueing for hours to collect salaries

Updated 18 April 2025
Follow

Cash crunch leaves Syrians queueing for hours to collect salaries

  • Syria has been struggling to emerge from the wake of nearly 14 years of civil war, and its banking sector is no exception
  • The liquidity crisis has forced authorities to drastically limit cash withdrawals, leaving much of the population struggling to make ends meet

DAMASCUS: Seated on the pavement outside a bank in central Damascus, Abu Fares’s face is worn with exhaustion as he waits to collect a small portion of his pension.
“I’ve been here for four hours and I haven’t so much as touched my pension,” said the 77-year-old, who did not wish to give his full name.
“The cash dispensers are under-stocked and the queues are long,” he continued.
Since the overthrow of president Bashar Assad last December, Syria has been struggling to emerge from the wake of nearly 14 years of civil war, and its banking sector is no exception.
Decades of punishing sanctions imposed on the Assad dynasty – which the new authorities are seeking to have lifted – have left about 90 percent of Syrians under the poverty line, according to the United Nations.
The liquidity crisis has forced authorities to drastically limit cash withdrawals, leaving much of the population struggling to make ends meet.
Prior to his ousting, Assad’s key ally Russia held a monopoly on printing banknotes. The new authorities have only announced once that they have received a shipment of banknotes from Moscow since Assad’s overthrow.
In a country with about 1.25 million public sector employees, civil servants must queue at one of two state banks or affiliated ATMs to make withdrawals, capped at about 200,000 Syrian pounds, the equivalent on the black market of $20 per day.
In some cases, they have to take a day off just to wait for the cash.
“There are sick people, elderly... we can’t continue like this,” said Abu Fares.
“There is a clear lack of cash, and for that reason we deactivate the ATMs at the end of the workday,” an employee at a private bank said, preferring not to give her name.
A haphazard queue of about 300 people stretches outside the Commercial Bank of Syria. Some are sitting on the ground.
Afraa Jumaa, a civil servant, said she spends most of the money she withdraws on the travel fare to get to and from the bank.
“The conditions are difficult and we need to withdraw our salaries as quickly as possible,” said the 43-year-old.
“It’s not acceptable that we have to spend days to withdraw meagre sums.”
The local currency has plunged in value since the civil war erupted in 2011, prior to which the dollar was valued at 50 pounds.
Economist Georges Khouzam explained that foreign exchange vendors – whose work was outlawed under Assad – “deliberately reduced cash flows in Syrian pounds to provoke rapid fluctuations in the market and turn a profit.”
Muntaha Abbas, a 37-year-old civil servant, had to return three times to withdraw her entire salary of 500,000 pounds.
“There are a lot of ATMs in Damascus, but very few of them work,” she said.
After a five-hour wait, she was finally able to withdraw 200,000 pounds.
“Queues and more queues... our lives have become a series of queues,” she lamented.


Trump administration orders Gaza-linked social media vetting for visa applicants

Updated 18 April 2025
Follow

Trump administration orders Gaza-linked social media vetting for visa applicants

  • New order sent to all US diplomatic missions
  • Social media vetting includes NGO workers

WASHINGTON: The Trump administration on Thursday ordered a social media vetting for all US visa applicants who have been to the Gaza Strip on or after January 1, 2007, an internal State Department cable seen by Reuters showed, in the latest push to tighten screening of foreign travelers.
The order to conduct a social media vetting for all immigrant and non-immigrant visas should include non-governmental organization workers as well as individuals who have been in the Palestinian enclave for any length of time in an official or diplomatic capacity, the cable said.
“If the review of social media results uncovers potential derogatory information relating to security issues, then a SAO must be submitted,” the cable said, referring to a security advisory opinion, which is an interagency investigation to determine if a visa applicant poses a national security risk to the United States.
The cable was sent to all US diplomatic and consular posts.
The move comes as President Donald Trump’s administration has revoked hundreds of visas across the country, including the status of some lawful permanent residents under a 1952 law allowing the deportation of any immigrant whose presence in the country the secretary of state deems harmful to US foreign policy.
The cable dated April 17 was signed by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who said in late March that he may have revoked more than 300 visas already.
The State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Trump officials have said student visa holders are subject to deportation over their support for Palestinians and criticism of Israel’s conduct in the war in Gaza, calling their actions a threat to US foreign policy interests.
Trump’s critics have called the effort an attack on free speech rights under the First Amendment of the US Constitution.
The US Constitution guarantees freedom of speech for everyone in the US, regardless of immigration status. But there have been high-profile instances of the administration revoking visas of students who advocated against Israel’s war in Gaza.
Among the most widely publicized of such arrests was one captured on video last month of masked agents taking a Tufts University student from Turkiye, Rumeysa Ozturk, into custody.
When asked about Ozturk at a news conference last month, Rubio said: “Every time I find one of these lunatics, I take away their visas” and he warned there would be more individuals whose visas could be revoked.