BEIRUT: Demonstrators blocked a highway connecting Lebanon and Syria on Monday with burned tires and metal bars, protesting a decision aimed at curbing smuggling into Syria.
Gasoline smugglers blocked the Masnaa crossing after security forces moved to prevent them from driving through the legitimate crossing.
Amid worsening living conditions in Lebanon, some are filling up their cars with goods and fuel and traveling into Syria through the Masnaa crossing to sell them on the other side at double the price.
“The process involves paying bribes to pass into Syrian territory, so when the Lebanese side decided to prevent smuggling, the smugglers protested,” said a security source.
Customs authorities in Lebanon’s eastern Bekaa region announced they will strictly enforce permit requirements for vehicles going into Syria to limit fuel smuggling.
Protesters on the international highway demanded the process be applied to everyone crossing into Syria or be scrapped.
The Lebanese are still queuing for hours at gas stations to get subsidized gasoline, with a 20-liter canister of gasoline being sold for 44,000 Lebanese pounds ($29).
On the black market, the price is between 70,000 to 100,000 Lebanese pounds.
The shocking costs have led to citizens waiting at gas stations getting into fights.
One person was wounded from a fistfight that turned into a shooting in front of a station in Tripoli on Monday.
The minister of energy in the caretaker government, Raymond Ghajar, said a few days ago: “The real price of a canister is about 200,000 Lebanese pounds, while the Lebanese now pay about 40,000 Lebanese pounds.”
His remarks came amid indications that the substance will no longer be subsidized “at a certain point.”
The former head of the Banking Control Commission of Lebanon, Dr. Samir Hammoud, said the Banque du Liban (BDL) was trying to buy time and provide sufficient capacity to face the harshest emergency conditions.
He believes that the Central Bank would continue to provide support and would not leave the country in chaos.
“The easiest thing to do would be to resort to lifting subsidies on gasoline, even if the price of a canister becomes 200,000 Lebanese pounds, but who will secure dollars to cover the cost of import?”
He said: “If the process of securing dollars is carried out from outside the Central Bank, we would be in a hellish cycle of chaos.
“Should the central bank manage the import process, the pressure on the dollar market would be relieved and gasoline will be secured for the Lebanese even if it is at 200,000 Lebanese pounds per canister.”
Hammoud, however, said that if dollars are secured from the market, it would be catastrophic since a canister would be sold at 400,000 Lebanese pounds, and the dollar exchange rate would surge to 30,000 or 40,000 Lebanese pounds for $1, and another dark tunnel would be awaiting the Lebanese.
The state is gradually lifting subsidies without making public statements about the process, for fear of the situation imploding. However, the process could be made public once the subsidy card is approved, but the bill is still stuck in parliament.
The presidency of the caretaker government issued a statement on Monday on the matter: “The resigned government has completed the subsidy card bill, as well as the World Bank loan program to help needy families, and has developed many formulas to rationalize support.”
The presidency added it is “is awaiting parliamentary approval on the subsidy card to determine the appropriate formula, and is working to mitigate the repercussions of BDL’s decision to stop financing the import of gasoline, diesel, medicine and fuel for electricity, which we did not agree to without the subsidy card.”
In a statement, caretaker Prime Minister Hassan Diab’s government hit out at “the political impotence that tries to hide behind smoke bombs and throws the weights of its impotence on the caretaker government, to push it to violate the constitution.”
Diab’s government is already under criticism for doing nothing to confront the deep crisis in light of the failure to form a new government.
The process of forming the new government stumbled upon further obstacles following the stance taken on Sunday by the head of the Free Patriotic Movement, Gebran Bassil.
Visitors to the Lebanese President Michel Aoun quoted him on Monday as saying that he “still has hope that the initiatives would reach a solution in the presence of sane people, provided that the constitution and the powers of the presidency of the republic are not violated.”
They noted that Aoun accused “former Prime Minister Fouad Siniora of attempting to marginalize the presidency since 2005, as he allowed himself to organize the government’s agenda, hold sessions, and issue decisions, ignoring the presence of the president at the time.”
According to the visitors, Aoun also accused parliament of marginalizing the presidency of the republic because “it did not reconsider Siniora’s illegitimate decisions, and the presidency has become under the authority and tutelage of other leaders, with the resulting rampant corruption.”
Hammoud, meanwhile, refused to accuse the BDL and the banks of “gobbling up the money of the Syrian refugees.”
He added: “When dealing with refugee money, the BDL and the banking sector took different measures.
“Refugee money was paid at 6,240 Lebanese pounds for 1$; 60 percent more than the rate set at 3,900 Lebanese pounds for other depositors.
“Today, they receive their money at 12,000 Lebanese pounds for $1, according to the rate on Sayrafa, BDL’s official platform. This way, they stay fair to everyone and preserve the purchasing power of displaced Syrians.”
Protests erupt after Lebanon bids to curb fuel smuggling
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Protests erupt after Lebanon bids to curb fuel smuggling
- On the black market, the price is between 70,000 to 100,000 Lebanese pounds
South Syria fighters reluctant to give up weapons: spokesman
- Daraa became known as the birthplace of the Syrian uprising after protests erupted there in 2011 against Assad’s rule
- Southern Operations Room, a coalition of armed groups from the southern province of Daraa formed on December 6 to help topple Assad
An Islamist-led offensive ripped through Syria from the north and into Damascus on December 8, bringing to a sudden end five decades of rule by the Assad clan.
On December 25, the country’s new Islamist rulers said they had reached an agreement with rebel groups on their dissolution and integration under the defense ministry.
New leader Ahmed Al-Sharaa said the authorities would “absolutely not allow there to be weapons in the country outside state control.”
But a spokesman for the Southern Operations Room, a coalition of armed groups from the southern province of Daraa formed on December 6 to help topple Assad, said the alliance did not agree.
“We’re not convinced by the idea of dissolving armed groups,” said its spokesman Naseem Abu Orra.
“We’re an organized force in the south... headed by officers who defected” from Assad’s army, he told AFP in Daraa’s town of Bosra.
“We can integrate the defense ministry as a pre-organized entity... We have weapons, heavy equipment,” he said.
Abu Orra said the group, led by local leader Ahmed Al-Awdeh, included thousands of men, without any Islamist affiliation.
Awdeh has good relations with former Assad ally Russia, as well as neighboring Jordan and the United Arab Emirates, sources close to his group said.
Daraa became known as the birthplace of the Syrian uprising after protests erupted there in 2011 against Assad’s rule.
As they spread across the country, government forces cracked down on the demonstrators, triggering defections from the army and one of the deadliest wars of the century.
After losing swathes of territory to rebels and jihadists, Assad’s forces clawed back control of much of the country with the backing of Iran and Russia.
Daraa returned to government control in 2018, but under a deal mediated by Russia, rebels were allowed to keep their weapons and continue to ensure security in their region.
Then, after more than 13 years of civil war that had killed more than half a million people and ravaged the country, everything changed.
In the north of Syria, an Islamist-led rebel coalition called Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS) moved rapidly out of its bastion on the Turkish border to seize second city Aleppo from Assad’s forces on December 1.
Its fighters then advanced southwards toward the cities of Hama and Homs on their way to the capital.
“We... decided to begin liberating the south of the country to reach Damascus” from the other direction, Abu Orra said.
He said they elaborated their own military plans in Daraa, but there was “some coordination” with HTS in the north.
Several witnesses have told AFP that they saw Awdeh’s men, recognizable by their headdress typical of southern Syria, posted near the Central Bank and in several neighborhoods in the early hours of December 8.
By then, Assad had already fled the country, former officials have told AFP.
“It was chaos but we were briefly able to take control of vital institutions to ensure their protection,” Abu Orra said.
He said the Southern Operations Room also stood guard outside several embassies, including those of Egypt and Jordan, and led some foreign diplomats to a prominent hotel to ensure their safety.
He said “several foreign countries” had called Awdeh to request his help.
When HTS forces arrived in town at the end of the afternoon, the Southern Operations Room withdrew to Daraa to avoid “chaos or armed clashes,” Abu Orra said.
Two days later, Awdeh met Syria’s new leader Sharaa. But he did not attend the December 25 meeting during which other rebel factions agreed to disband and join a future army.
Israeli strikes kill dozens in Gaza as US pushes for ceasefire
- US, Qatar, Egypt intensify ceasefire efforts amid ongoing conflict
- Israel says it will not end the war until Hamas is dismantled, hostages free
CAIRO: Israeli military strikes across Gaza killed at least 22 people on Wednesday, Palestinian medics said, as the US stepped up efforts to overcome sticking points between Israel and Hamas to reach a ceasefire to end the war.
One of the airstrikes killed at least 10 people in a multi-story house in the Sheikh Radwan neighborhood of Gaza City on Wednesday, while another killed five in the nearby Zeitoun suburb, medics said.
In Deir Al-Balah city in central Gaza, where hundreds of thousands of Palestinians are sheltering, an Israeli airstrike killed three other people.
In Jabalia, where the army has operated for more than three weeks, an Israeli airstrike killed four people, medics said.
On Tuesday, Israeli military strikes killed at least 24 Palestinians across the Gaza Strip, medics said, with two airstrikes hitting tent encampments in Mawasi, to the west of the southern city of Khan Younis, killing 18 people. The dead included several women and children.
There was no comment by the Israeli military on those incidents.
As Israeli continued its bombardments, the US, Qatar and Egypt were making the most intensive effort in months to reach a ceasefire, with one source close to the talks saying this was the most serious attempt to reach a deal so far.
The outgoing US administration has called for a final push for a deal before President Joe Biden leaves office, and many in the region view President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration on Jan. 20 as an unofficial deadline.
“Things are better than ever before, but there is no deal yet,” the source told Reuters.
But with the clock ticking, both sides accuse the other of blocking a deal by adhering to conditions that have torpedoed all previous peace efforts for more than a year.
On Tuesday, Hamas stood by its demand that it will only free its remaining hostages if Israel agrees to end the war and withdraw all its troops from Gaza. Israel says it will not end the war until Hamas is dismantled and all hostages are free. Hamas also said that Trump was rash to say there would be “hell to pay” unless the hostages go free by his inauguration.
Osama Hamdan, an official with the Islamist group, told a news conference in Algiers on Tuesday: “I think the US president must make more disciplined and diplomatic statements.”
Nearly 46,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israel’s assault on Gaza, according to health officials in the enclave. The assault was launched after Hamas fighters stormed Israeli territory on Oct. 7, 2023, killing 1,200 people and capturing more than 250 hostages, according to Israeli tallies.
EU could lift some Syria sanctions quickly, says French FM
PARIS: European Union sanctions in Syria that obstruct the delivery of humanitarian aid and hinder the country’s recovery could be lifted swiftly, France’s foreign minister said Wednesday.
The United States on Monday issued a sanctions exemption for transactions with governing institutions in Syria for six months after the end of Bashar Assad’s rule to try to ease the flow of humanitarian assistance.
Speaking to France Inter radio, Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said the EU could take a similar decision soon without giving precise timing, while adding that lifting more political sanctions would depend on how Syria’s new leadership handled the transition and ensured exclusivity.
“There are other (sanctions), which today hinder access to humanitarian aid, which hinder the recovery of the country. These could be lifted quickly,” said Barrot, who met Syria’s de facto leader Ahmed Al-Sharaa on Friday with Germany’s foreign minister.
“Finally, there are other sanctions, which we are discussing with our European partners, which could be lifted, but obviously depending on the pace at which our expectations for Syria regarding women and security are taken into account.”
Three European diplomats speaking on condition of anonymity said the EU would seek to agree to lift some sanctions by the time the bloc’s 27 foreign ministers meet in Brussels on Jan. 27.
Two of the diplomats said one aim was to facilitate financial transactions to allow funds to return to the country, ease air transport and lessen sanctions targeting the energy sector to improve power supplies.
Syria suffers from severe power shortages, with state-supplied electricity available two or three hours per day in most areas. The caretaker government says it aims to provide electricity for up to eight hours per day within two months.
The US waivers allow some energy transactions and personal remittances to Syria until July 7, but do not remove any sanctions.
Lebanon to extradite son of late Muslim cleric Al-Qaradawi to UAE, PM’s office says
- The UAE and Egypt have both filed requests for his extradition
CAIRO: Lebanon is set to extradite the son of late senior Muslim cleric Youssef Al-Qaradawi to the United Arab Emirates after the country’s caretaker cabinet approved the move on Tuesday, the Lebanese prime minister’s office said.
Abdul Rahman Al-Qaradawi, an Egyptian-Turkish poet, was detained in Lebanon on Dec. 28 after returning from Syria, according to his lawyer Mohammad Sablouh and human rights group Amnesty International.
Youssef was stopped by Lebanese authorities on the basis of an Egyptian court ruling against him that dates back to 2016.
The arrest was made based on an Interpol notice issued by the Arab Interior Ministers Council based on the 2016 court ruling to imprison Youssef for three years on charges of spreading false news.
The UAE and Egypt have both filed requests for his extradition.
Qaradawi’s lawyer said he would file an urgent appeal to block his extradition on Wednesday morning but feared his client might be flown out of the country before then.
UN calls for $370m in new humanitarian aid for Lebanon
- Following nearly a year of exchanges of cross-border fire initiated by Hezbollah over the war in Gaza, Israel in September stepped up its bombing campaign and later sent troops into Lebanon
UNITED NATIONS, United States: The United Nations joined the Lebanese government on Tuesday to appeal for an additional $371.4 million in humanitarian aid for people displaced by the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah.
The extension builds on an initial aid appeal for $426 million launched in October, as all-out war flared between the two sides and sent hundreds of thousands in Lebanon fleeing their homes.
That appeal raised approximately $250 million, according to the UN.
Following nearly a year of exchanges of cross-border fire initiated by Hezbollah over the war in Gaza, Israel in September stepped up its bombing campaign and later sent troops into Lebanon.
After two months of warring, in which Hezbollah’s influential chief Hassan Nasrallah and multiple other leaders were killed, a ceasefire deal was reached that went into effect in late November.
“While the cessation of hostilities offers hope, over 125,000 people remain displaced, and hundreds of thousands more face immense challenges rebuilding their lives,” Imran Riza, the UN humanitarian coordinator in Lebanon, said in a statement Tuesday.
The additional funding “is urgently required to sustain life-saving efforts and prevent further deterioration of an already dire situation,” he added.
The appeal is primarily aimed to assist an estimated one million Lebanese, Syrian and Palestinian refugees affected by the conflict, funding a three-month period of emergency efforts through March 2025.
Since the ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon began on November 27, more than 800,000 displaced people in Lebanon have been able to return home, according to UN figures.
