‘Hunger crimes’ on the rise in crisis-hit Lebanon

Lebanon’s strict and early lockdown was imposed in March. (File/AP)
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Updated 15 July 2020
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‘Hunger crimes’ on the rise in crisis-hit Lebanon

  • The small Mediterranean country is mired in an economic crisis marked by a steep currency fall and runaway inflation
  • Tens of thousands of Lebanese have lost their jobs or part of their salaries

BEIRUT: Zakaria Al-Omar was walking through Beirut when a stranger robbed him at knifepoint, a desperate crime of a kind that has become increasingly common in crisis-torn Lebanon.
The small Mediterranean country is mired in an economic crisis marked by a steep currency fall and runaway inflation that have plunged nearly half of the population into poverty.
Omar, a 37-year-old graphic designer, recalled the terrifying and tragic encounter that started when a man in his 40s crept up behind him as he walked alone at night through Beirut’s Hamra commercial district.
“He told me that he didn’t want to hurt me. He asked me to give him money or take him to a grocery store to buy some food,” Omar recounted. “He said his children back home were crying from hunger.”
The robber grabbed the money and darted toward his motorcycle, then stopped dead in his tracks and returned, explaining that he had lost his job and could no longer pay the rent.
“He started crying and apologized to me,” Omar told AFP. “He told me that he was not a thief but that he was hungry and so were his children.”
Omar said he refused to take back the cash.
“I told him that I forgave him, and then he went away,” Omar said. “I was scared but I also felt sad for that man breaking down in front of me.”
Lebanon’s Internal Security Forces say crime rates have shot up this year amid Lebanon’s worst economic turmoil since the 1975-1990 civil war.
The ISF recorded 863 thefts and robberies in the first half of this year, up from 650 for all of 2019, according to a document seen by AFP.
A security official who asked not to be named told AFP that broader crime rates during the first half of 2020 reached a six-year peak, especially murders and robberies.
The rise appeared to be driven by the deepening economic crisis, said the official, who was not authorized to speak on the issue.
Police were noticing a “new kind of theft that involves mainly baby milk, food, and medicine,” the source said.
In another trend that evoked Omar’s encounter, the source added, “more than one victim has said the perpetrators apologized while robbing them.”
Tens of thousands of Lebanese have lost their jobs or part of their salaries, while a crippling dollar shortage has sparked rapid inflation.
The Lebanese pound, though officially pegged to the dollar at 1,507, reached a peak of more than 9,000 to the greenback on the black market in early July.
With Lebanon heavily reliant on imports, the price of medicine, baby milk and food has reached record highs.
The price of a relatively cheap brand of diapers has shot up from 15,000 Lebanese pounds ($10 at the official rate) to 34,000 pounds ($23) per pack.
And the cost of a tin of baby milk has climbed from 23,000 ($15) to 35,000 pounds ($23) on average, with some brands selling for as much as 45,000 pounds ($30).
In a video widely shared on social media this month, three men were filmed walking away from a Beirut restaurant carrying a large and heavy-looking safe.
Walid Ataya, the restaurant owner, said: “They took money from the cash register, even the spare change. Then they scoured the place until they spotted the safe, which they couldn’t open.”
He did not reveal exactly how much was lost but said the robbers stole the proceeds from “two years’ worth of work.”
Ataya, who owns a chain of upscale restaurants in Beirut, said the safe contained cash he did not want to deposit in a bank, now a common concern.
Since the autumn, Lebanese banks have gradually forbidden depositors from withdrawing their dollar savings or transferring them abroad, prompting many to stash cash in their offices or at home.
Apart from money, increasingly more cars are being stolen.
The ISF has recorded 303 vehicle thefts so far this year — more than the 273 in the second half of last year.
The increase, the security source said, was clearly linked to “deteriorating economic conditions and rising youth unemployment.”


UK MP Jeremy Corbyn announces ‘independent Gaza tribunal’

Updated 5 sec ago
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UK MP Jeremy Corbyn announces ‘independent Gaza tribunal’

  • Veteran left-wing politician says inquiry will take place in September and probe British involvement in Israel’s military campaign
  • Corbyn previously failed to get support in parliament for an official public inquiry

LONDON: British MP Jeremy Corbyn has announced an independent “Gaza tribunal” to investigate the UK’s involvement in Israel’s military operation in the territory.

The former Labour Party leader, who now sits in parliament as an independent, has been one of the most prominent voices in the UK against Israel’s war.

He previously called for the government to set up an inquiry into British involvement in the conflict, but his bill was rejected at its second reading earlier this month.

Corbyn said on Thursday he would hold a Gaza tribunal in September because “the public deserves to know the full scale of their government’s complicity in genocide.

“Just like Iraq, the government is doing everything it can to protect itself from scrutiny,” he said, referring to the UK’s ill-fated decision to join the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003. “Just like Iraq, it will not succeed in its attempts to suffocate the truth.”

The left-wing politician added: “We will bring about justice for the people of Palestine.”

The UK suspended 30 arms export licenses to Israel in September last year in response to its Gaza operations.

But Corbyn and pressure groups say the UK is still supplying other weapons, including parts for F-35 fighter jets.

The Royal Air Force is also accused of flying surveillance flights over Gaza and supplying Israel with intelligence.

UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy told the International Development Committee on Wednesday that he was “very certain” no weapons were being used against civilians and aid workers in Gaza.

Corbyn said the tribunal would hear from expert witnesses including Palestinians in Gaza, journalists, and health and aid workers who have worked in the territory.

Legal experts and UN officials will also be called upon to provide evidence.

The tribunal will begin by outlining the scale of human suffering in Gaza, where more than 58,000 Palestinians have been killed since October 2023.

It will go on to outline Britain’s legal responsibilities under domestic and international law, and then probe Britain’s role in the campaign.

The British government has come under increasing pressure from MPs, including many from its own Labour Party, to take a tougher line against Israel.

Last week, almost 60 Labour MPs sent a letter to Lammy demanding the UK immediately recognize Palestine as a state.


South Sudan’s main opposition party rejects president’s call for dialogue to avoid civil war

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South Sudan’s main opposition party rejects president’s call for dialogue to avoid civil war

  • Kiir said: “The suffering of our people must not be prolonged by the continued rejection of dialogue”
  • Deng said Kiir’s appeal was “paradoxical and insincere” due to the arrests of opposition officials

JUBA: South Sudan ‘s main opposition party on Thursday dismissed a presidential call for dialogue to avoid the country slipping back into a civil war due to stalled peace talks.

Pal Mai Deng, a spokesperson for the opposition SPLM-IO, said President Salva Kiir “must release political and military leaders of the SPLM-IO who are in detention to show his seriousness about the dialogue.”

During the reopening of parliament on Wednesday, Kiir said there was a need for unity and national reconciliation, adding that the “doors of peace remain open.”

“The suffering of our people must not be prolonged by the continued rejection of dialogue,” he said.

The situation in South Sudan remains tense after Vice President Riek Machar — Kiir’s former rival — was placed under house arrest following an attack on army bases in March. Several members of the SPLM-IO opposition party have gone into exile fearing arrests.

South Sudan signed a peace agreement in 2018, ending a five-year civil war in which nearly 400,000 people died as forces loyal to Kiir and Machar clashed.

Deng told The Associated Press that Kiir’s appeal was “paradoxical and insincere” due to the arrests of opposition officials and army attacks on opposition forces.

“Before he (Kiir) urged the parties to resume dialogue, he needed to stop military campaigns against SPLM-IO forces and indiscriminate killing of Nuer civilians he considered anti-government,” said the exiled spokesperson.

The CEPO civil society group has warned that Machar’s detention has made the continuation of talks impractical.

“The absence of Machar in the function of the government in day-to-day business of the government is making the government of national unity unbalanced,” Edmund Yakani, Executive Director of CEPO, said.

The United Nation warned last month that a 2018 peace agreement was on the verge of collapse due to escalating violence, political repression, and foreign military involvement.

Yasmin Sooka, chairperson of the UN’s Commission on Human Rights in South Sudan, described the situation as a “crisis” adding that the peace agreement was at the “brink of irrelevance, threatening a total collapse.”


Kuwait incorporates Bayraktar TB2 combat drone into armed forces

Updated 9 min 22 sec ago
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Kuwait incorporates Bayraktar TB2 combat drone into armed forces

  • Drone was unveiled during a ceremony attended by Minister of Defense Sheikh Abdullah Al-Ali Al-Sabah and top army generals
  • In 2023, Kuwait signed a $367-million contract with Turkish defense firm Baykar to purchase its TB2 war drones

LONDON: Kuwaiti armed forces incorporated the Turkish-made Bayraktar TB2 drone into their air combat fleet during a ceremony at Salem Al-Sabah Air Base on Thursday.

Minister of Defense Sheikh Abdullah Al-Ali Al-Sabah was joined by Major General Sabah Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, deputy chief of staff of the Kuwaiti Army, Brig. Gen. Mohammad Al-Hamdan, the Air Force commander, as well as the commander of the Salem Al-Sabah Air Base and several air force officers.

In 2023, Kuwait signed a $367-million contract with Turkish defense firm Baykar to purchase its TB2 drones, which have been used in conflicts in Ukraine, Syria, Libya and Azerbaijan.

Sheikh Abdullah said that integrating drones aligned with Kuwait’s leadership vision to enhance military readiness and adopt cutting-edge defense technologies, according to the Kuwait News Agency. The ceremony featured a comprehensive technical presentation showcasing TB2 drone’s surveillance, reconnaissance and air-support capabilities.

In February, pilots and shooters from the Kuwaiti air force trained and tested the Bayraktar TB2 at the Baykar company training center in the Kisah region of Turkiye.

The defense minister emphasized the need to invest in local expertise and train personnel to operate advanced systems for protecting Kuwait’s airspace, borders and resources. The incorporation of TB2 marked a significant step in Kuwait’s defense modernization efforts, he added.


Turkish court postpones hearing over hotel fire

Updated 17 July 2025
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Turkish court postpones hearing over hotel fire

  • The court is considering allegations that poor safety measures at the hotel contributed to the disaster
  • The different organizations under scrutiny denied responsibility

ISTANBUL: A Turkish court on Thursday adjourned the trial of 32 people over a fire January at a luxury ski resort hotel that killed 78 people, after 10 days of harrowing testimony.

Since the trial opened on July 7, survivors, many of them in tears, have told the court how they escaped the deadly blaze, whose victims included 36 children.

The fire swept through the Grand Kartal Hotel in the northern mountain resort of Kartalkaya on January 21.

As well as the 78 people killed in the fire, another 130 people were injured.

The court is considering allegations that poor safety measures at the hotel contributed to the disaster.

Among the defendants facing manslaughter charges are the hotel’s owner, managers, the deputy mayor of Bolu city and two fire department officials.

“Everyone including the employees and bosses lied in their initial statements,” said Yusuf Yaman, the private DHA news agency reported. Yaman lost his daughter and grand-daughter in the fire.

“We lost 78 lives. They’re all my children. If they (the suspects) had shown courage, if they had confessed everything, they would have had a clearer conscience,” he added.

After the fire, the different organizations under scrutiny denied responsibility, the tourism ministry and the local municipality run by the main opposition CHP party blaming each other.

At the end of the 10-day hearing, the hotel’s director and owner Emir Aras expressed regret. He told the judge he did not want to be released from detention, DHA reported.

The court postponed the hearing to September 22.


Jordan treats dozens of injured Palestinians from Gaza, sends more aid to territory

Updated 17 July 2025
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Jordan treats dozens of injured Palestinians from Gaza, sends more aid to territory

  • Jordanian Medical Corridor initiative aims to assist Palestinians in Gaza and is carried out in cooperation with the Jordanian armed forces, Ministry of Health, and the World Health Organization
  • Since the initiative began in March, 112 injured and sick children, accompanied by 241 carers, have entered Jordan to receive treatment in private hospitals

LONDON: Jordanian associations dispatched 50 aid trucks to the Gaza Strip on Thursday and transferred dozens of Palestinian children to receive medical treatment in Jordan this week.

Dr. Fawzi Al-Hammouri, chairman of the Private Hospitals Association, confirmed that 35 sick and injured children from Gaza, accompanied by 72 carers, were admitted to several private hospitals in Jordan.

The initiative, part of the Jordanian Medical Corridor, aims to assist Palestinians in Gaza and is carried out in cooperation with the Jordanian armed forces, the Ministry of Health, and the World Health Organization.

Since the initiative began in March, 112 injured and sick children, accompanied by 241 guardians, have entered Jordan to receive treatment in private hospitals, according to Dr. Al-Hammouri.

On Thursday, the Jordan Hashemite Charity Organization sent another humanitarian convoy of 50 trucks loaded with essential food supplies to the northern part of the Gaza coastal enclave. Northern Gaza is experiencing severe shortages of food and essential supplies due to disruptions in aid delivery and Israeli attacks.

Since late 2023, Jordan has delivered more than 7,815 aid trucks and 53 cargo planes through the Egyptian port of Arish, along with 102 helicopter sorties to deliver aid, to support Palestinians in Gaza.

Jordan was among the first countries to conduct airlift missions in the early days of the war, delivering relief to Gaza. More than 58,000 Palestinians have reportedly been killed in Israeli strikes on Gaza, which have been described as genocide by human rights groups and several heads of state.