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Syria-Lebanon-Iran
Beirut residents vent fury at leaders
2020-08-07
[EN.ANNAHAR] Residents of Beirut vented their fury at Leb
...an Iranian colony situated on the eastern Mediterranean, conveniently adjacent to Israel. Formerly inhabited by hardy Phoenecian traders, its official language is now Arabic, with the usual unpleasant side effects. The Leb civil war, between 1975 and 1990, lasted a little over 145 years and produced 120,000 fatalities. The average length of a ceasefire was measured in seconds. The Lebs maintain a precarious sectarian balance among Shiites, Sunnis, and about a dozeen flavors of Christians. It is the home of Hezbollah, which periodically starts a war with the Zionist Entity, gets Beirut pounded to rubble, and then declares victory and has a parade. The Lebs have the curious habit of periodically murdering their heads of state or prime ministers...
’s leaders Thursday during a visit by French President Emmanuel Macron, blaming them for the deadly explosion that ravaged the capital. Shouting, "Revolution!" they crowded around the visiting leader who promised to press the politicians for reform.

A military judge leading the investigation into Tuesday’s blast said 16 employees of Beirut’s port, where the earth-shattering kaboom took place, were tossed into the calaboose. He said 18 had been questioned, including port and customs officials, according to the state news agency.

But while Sherlocks focus on port officials, many Lebanese put the blame squarely on the political elite and the corruption and mismanagement that even before the disaster had pushed the country to the brink of economic collapse.

The Cabinet was previously warned by a security agency that a stockpile of explosive chemicals stored at the port was dangerous, Lebanon’s customs chief told the News Agency that Dare Not be Named — a report that could raise questions of high-level neglect.

That stockpile of 2,750 tons of ammonium nitrate set off the massive blast, apparently when touched off by a fire at the port. The chemical had been left sitting in a warehouse ever since it was confiscated from an impounded fat merchantman in 2013.

The explosion, powerful enough to be felt in Cyprus across the Eastern Mediterranean, killed more than 130 people, maimed thousands, and blasted buildings for miles around. Two days later, some 300,000 people — more than 12% of Beirut’s population — can’t return to their homes, officials estimate. Damaged hospitals are still struggling to deal with the maimed. Dozens are still missing. Officials have estimated losses at $10 billion to $15 billion.

Furthermore, the disaster struck at a time when people’s savings have melted away, and unemployment and poverty have mounted in the financial crisis. Few have the capacity to rebuild homes and businesses, and the government is scraping for dollars.

After talks with Lebanese leaders, La Belle France’s Macron announced his country will organize a conference in the next few days with European, American, Middle Eastern, and other donors to raise money for food, medicine, housing, and other urgent aid.

But he warned Lebanon’s political elite that he wouldn’t give "blank checks to a system that no longer has the trust of its people." He called on them to create a "new political order."

He promised a "clear and transparent governance" so that the aid goes directly to the population and aid groups.

In startling scenes, Macron — whose country once was Lebanon’s colonial ruler — presented himself as a champion for the Lebanese to push change on their leadership.

After visiting the devastated port, Macron walked through one of the worst-hit neighborhoods, Gemmayzeh, down a street lined with wrecked buildings.

On the narrow street, a crowd gathered around him and shouted their anger, chanting, "Revolution!" and "The people want to bring down the regime!" — slogans used at mass protests last year.

Macron told them he would propose "a new political pact" when he met the government later. Then, he added, "I will be back on the first of September and if they can’t do it, I will keep my responsibility toward you." He also promised that French aid would be given out with transparency and "will not go into the hands of corruption."
Posted by:Fred

#1  After nearly one thousand years of support for the Maronite Christians of Lebanon, which began with the Crusades, the French walked away from that relationship. By the 1970s Lebanon was on its own. And now Macron seeks to square the circle and return French influence to Lebanon? It is a questionable ploy, but Lebanon does need a friend and financial lifeline in Europe.
Posted by: b   2020-08-07 09:23  

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