BEIRUT: Lebanon’s electricity rationing is compounding the suffering of the public amid the Mediterranean heatwave, with sweltering summer temperatures sweeping the country.
On Tuesday, the judiciary’s work at the Palace of Justice in Beirut was disrupted after power generators ran out of fuel.
Interrogations and the few court sessions still operating during a judicial vacation were halted amid frustration over the unbearable heat and humidity.
The brother of the central bank governor, Riad Salameh, and his assistant, Marianne Hoayek, were scheduled to appear before the first investigating judge in Beirut, Charbel Abu Samra, as part of the investigation and interrogation in corruption cases in which they are suspects, along with Salameh himself.
But the power outage and intense heat inside the Palace of Justice led to the suspension of the investigation session. The difficult working conditions forced judges and employees to leave their offices.
The crisis also affected Beirut’s Rafic Hariri International Airport, where air conditioning units stopped working for hours due to power disruptions.
High temperatures in Lebanon’s mountains and hinterlands have led to a surge in tourism, with more than 1 million foreigners and expatriates spending their summer vacation in the country.
Rumors spread online as meteorological experts warned that temperatures could reach up to 45 degrees Celsius from Sunday into next week, creating an unprecedented heatwave in Lebanon.
Michel Antoine Afram, president of the Agricultural Scientific Research Agency, warned citizens about the danger of wildfires.
“Continued winds contribute to the ignition of fires and their rapid spread,” he said, highlighting “Lebanon’s lack of preparedness to even face the smallest of fires.”
Afram urged authorities to monitor what is happening “in Greece and other countries.”
He also warned of the repercussions of “some citizens’ disregard for guidelines and underestimation of the effect of the heat on their health.”
He demanded the government declare a state of emergency in Lebanon next week, starting Sunday, and the possibility of renewing it should the extreme heat persist.
Afram urged citizens to avoid leaving their homes or workplaces between 11 a.m. and 4 p.m., especially to visit swimming pools and beaches, and to wear sunglasses and hats, and increase fluid intake.
He called on farmers to remain vigilant of their animals’ health and urged drivers to be mindful of engine and brake temperatures.
Afram appealed to factory owners and generator operators to be cautious of fire hazards.
Beirut Gov. Marwan Abboud issued a circular to firefighters, guards and municipal departments, requesting that “all units, personnel, and machinery be fully prepared for emergency cases to combat any fires that may break out.”
Private power generators are popular in Lebanon, with authorities fearing that some of the devices may overheat in the extreme weather.
The hours of electricity supply through the government network do not exceed four hours per day at most, which means that many in the country rely on private generators for about 20 hours each day.
Thousands of solar panels are installed on the rooftops of residential buildings, with the option gaining popularity among the public due to the high cost of private power generators.
However, some solar panels have led to fires in buildings.
Abboud appealed to the relevant institutions to “immediately inspect the locations of hazardous and flammable materials, especially in fuel stations, warehouses, storage facilities, and places where electricity generators and their fuel tanks are placed, and ensure that they comply with public safety conditions, especially regarding fire prevention tools and equipment and immediate intervention measures.”
Electrician Ahmad Halabi told Arab News that an increase in temperatures and load on electricity wires can lead to insulation deterioration, causing fires.
About four years ago, Electricite du Liban used to provide power for about 12 to 16 hours a day, with much of the public then also using private generators to cover the gap.
The cost of subscribing to the generators was low due to the significant support that the government then provided for fuel prices.
However, since 2019, the state’s ability to provide electricity through its network has crumbled amid the worsening financial and economic crisis in the country.
Lebanon’s central bank gradually reduced its support for fuel starting in 2021.
Water departments in the country have urged citizens to “rationalize water usage to essential daily needs.”
A week ago, dozens of fires broke out in several parts of Lebanon, especially in forest areas. Firefighters put out 91 blazes.
Two weeks ago, the heatwave that hit Lebanon caused fires to break out in Jbeil, Akkar, Dennieh, Bekaa and the south, with blazes engulfing olive trees and agricultural lands.
The Meteorological Department said: “Temperatures will start to decrease as of Saturday, returning to their normal levels, and will not exceed 34 degrees Celsius in Beirut.”
It added: “The feeling of heat is due to excessive humidity resulting from the high temperature of Mediterranean Sea water, which is currently at 29 degrees Celsius, and the hot and humid southwestern winds coming from North Africa, pushing the humidity toward the Lebanese coast.”
Electricity crisis compounds suffering of sweltering Lebanese
https://arab.news/p9gju
Electricity crisis compounds suffering of sweltering Lebanese
- Interrogations and the few court sessions still operating during a judicial vacation were halted amid frustration over the unbearable heat and humidity
- The crisis affected Beirut’s Rafic Hariri International Airport, where air conditioning units stopped working for hours due to power disruptions
Lebanon PM to visit new Damascus ruler on Saturday
- Lebanon’s Prime Minister Najib Mikati will on Saturday make his first official trip to neighboring Syria since the fall of president Bashar Assad, his office told AFP
BERUIT: Lebanon’s Prime Minister Najib Mikati will on Saturday make his first official trip to neighboring Syria since the fall of president Bashar Assad, his office told AFP.
Mikati’s office said Friday the trip came at the invitation of the country’s new de facto leader Ahmed Al-Sharaa during a phone call last week.
Syria imposed new restrictions on the entry of Lebanese citizens last week, two security sources have told AFP, following what the Lebanese army said was a border skirmish with unnamed armed Syrians.
Lebanese nationals had previously been allowed into Syria without a visa, using just their passport or ID card.
Lebanon’s eastern border is porous and known for smuggling.
Lebanese Shiite group Hezbollah supported Assad with fighters during Syria’s civil war.
But the Iran-backed movement has been weakened after a war with Israel killed its long-time leader and Islamist-led rebels seized Damascus last month.
Lebanese lawmakers elected the country’s army chief Joseph Aoun as president on Thursday, ending a vacancy of more than two years that critics blamed on Hezbollah.
For three decades under the Assad clan, Syria was the dominant power in Lebanon after intervening in its 1975-1990 civil war.
Syria eventually withdrew its troops in 2005 under international pressure after the assassination of Lebanese ex-prime minister Rafic Hariri.
UN says 3 million Sudan children facing acute malnutrition
- Famine has already gripped five areas across Sudan, according to a report last month
- Sudan has endured 20 months of war between the army and the paramilitary forces
PORT SUDAN, Sudan: An estimated 3.2 million children under the age of five are expected to face acute malnutrition this year in war-torn Sudan, according to the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF).
“Of this number, around 772,000 children are expected to suffer from severe acute malnutrition,” Eva Hinds, UNICEF Sudan’s Head of Advocacy and Communication, told AFP late on Thursday.
Famine has already gripped five areas across Sudan, according to a report last month by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), a UN-backed assessment.
Sudan has endured 20 months of war between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), killing tens of thousands and, according to the United Nations, uprooting 12 million in the world’s largest displacement crisis.
Confirming to AFP that 3.2 million children are currently expected to face acute malnutrition, Hinds said “the number of severely malnourished children increased from an estimated 730,000 in 2024 to over 770,000 in 2025.”
The IPC expects famine to expand to five more parts of Sudan’s western Darfur region by May — a vast area that has seen some of the conflict’s worst violence. A further 17 areas in western and central Sudan are also at risk of famine, it said.
“Without immediate, unhindered humanitarian access facilitating a significant scale-up of a multisectoral response, malnutrition is likely to increase in these areas,” Hinds warned.
Sudan’s army-aligned government strongly rejected the IPC findings, while aid agencies complain that access is blocked by bureaucratic hurdles and ongoing violence.
In October, experts appointed by the United Nations Human Rights Council accused both sides of using “starvation tactics.”
On Tuesday the United States determined that the RSF had “committed genocide” and imposed sanctions on the paramilitary group’s leader.
Across the country, more than 24.6 million people — around half the population — face “high levels of acute food insecurity,” according to IPC, which said: “Only a ceasefire can reduce the risk of famine spreading further.”
Turkiye says France must take back its militants from Syria
- Ankara is threatening military action against Kurdish fighters in the northeast
- Turkiye considers the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces as linked to its domestic nemesis
ISTANBUL: France must take back its militant nationals from Syria, Turkiye’s top diplomat said Friday, insisting Washington was its only interlocutor for developments in the northeast where Ankara is threatening military action against Kurdish fighters.
Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan insisted Turkiye’s only aim was to ensure “stability” in Syria after the toppling of strongman Bashar Assad.
In its sights are the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) which have been working with the United States for the past decade to fight Daesh group militants.
Turkiye considers the group as linked to its domestic nemesis, the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK).
The PKK has waged a decades-long insurgency in Turkiye and is considered a terror organization by both Turkiye and the US.
The US is currently leading talks to head off a Turkish offensive in the area.
“The US is our only counterpart... Frankly we don’t take into account countries that try to advance their own interests in Syria by hiding behind US power,” he said.
His remarks were widely understood to be a reference to France, which is part of an international coalition to prevent a militant resurgence in the area.
Asked about the possibility of a French-US troop deployment in northeast Syria, he said France’s main concern should be to take back its nationals who have been jailed there in connection with militant activity.
“If France had anything to do, it should take its own citizens, bring them to its own prisons and judge them,” he said.
Lebanese caretaker PM says country to begin disarming south Litani to ensure state presence
- Najib Mikati: ‘We are in a new phase – in this new phase, we will start with south Lebanon and south Litani’
DUBAI: Lebanese caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati said on Friday that the state will begin disarming southern Lebanon, particularly the south Litani region, to establish its presence across the country.
“We are in a new phase – in this new phase, we will start with south Lebanon and south Litani specifically in order to pull weapons so that the state can be present across Lebanese territory,” Mikati said.
Tanker hit by Yemen militia that threatened Red Sea spill has been salvaged
- The Sounion had been a disaster in waiting in the waterway, with 1 million barrels of crude oil aboard
- The Houthis have targeted some 100 merchant vessels with missiles and drones since the war in Gaza started
DUBAI: An oil tanker that burned for weeks in the Red Sea and threatened a massive oil spill has been “successfully” salvaged, a security firm said Friday.
The Sounion had been a disaster in waiting in the waterway, with 1 million barrels of crude oil aboard that had been struck and later sabotaged with explosives by Yemen’s Iranian-backed Houthi militia. It took months for salvagers to tow the vessel away, extinguish the fires and offload the remaining crude oil.
The Houthis initially attacked the Greek-flagged Sounion tanker on Aug. 21 with small arms fire, projectiles and a drone boat. A French destroyer operating as part of Operation Aspides rescued its crew of 25 Filipinos and Russians, as well as four private security personnel, after they abandoned the vessel and took them to nearby Djibouti.
The Houthis later released footage showing they planted explosives on board the Sounion and ignited them in a propaganda video, something the militia have done before in their campaign.
The Houthis have targeted some 100 merchant vessels with missiles and drones since the war in Gaza started in October 2023. They seized one vessel and sank two in the campaign that has also killed four sailors. Other missiles and drones have either been intercepted by a US-led coalition in the Red Sea or failed to reach their targets, which have included Western military vessels as well.
The Houthis maintain that they target ships linked to Israel, the US or the UK to force an end to Israel’s campaign against Hamas in Gaza. However, many of the ships attacked have little or no connection to the conflict, including some bound for Iran.
