Archives

‘A lost decade’: 10 years into the Syrian crisis, UNHCR’s new head in Lebanon reflects on the situation for refugees

BEIRUT — The United Nations refugee agency’s new representative in Lebanon, Ayaki Ito, arrived in the country just ahead of a grim landmark: March 15 marks the 10-year anniversary of the...

Abby Sewell, 15 March 2021

Lebanon has registered 1,505 new COVID-19 cases in the last 24 hours. Forty-two more people have died, raising the death toll to 5,422

15 March 2021

The head of Hezbollah’s parliamentary bloc, MP Mohammad Raad, discussed government formation and other issues in a meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in Moscow earlier today. Lavrov met with Premier-designate Saad Hariri last Tuesday in Abu Dhabi

15 March 2021

Protesters block roads across Lebanon as the lira drops to another all-time low

BEIRUT — Protesters blocked roads across Lebanon Monday as the lira hit an all-time record low again on Monday, exceeding LL13,500 to the US dollar on the parallel market despite efforts to control...

Omar Tamo, 15 March 2021

Protesters have blocked multiple roads across Lebanon over the lira’s steep drop, rising prices and poor living conditions, according to official sources and social media. Affected areas include downtown Beirut, Hamra, Tripoli’s Nour Square, Naameh and the Riyaq-Baalbeck highway

15 March 2021

The body of a major in the Lebanese Army has been found inside his house in Kesrouan, an army spokesperson confirmed to L’Orient Today. The 37-year-old had been shot twice, leading to his death

15 March 2021

Protesters are blocking roads in Martyrs Square across from Al-Amin Mosque and in Corniche al-Mazraa with burning tires, according to the Traffic Management Center

15 March 2021

Gas stations in areas including Beirut and Marjayoun are reporting supply shortages, according to social media and NNA reports. Some gas stations in Marjayoun closed altogether, while others, faced with long lines of cars, would not give LL20,000 worth of fuel, the NNA reported

15 March 2021

Mount Lebanon Appellate Court Public Prosecutor Ghada Aoun met with Lawyers United Against Corruption regarding a lawsuit the group is in process of filing against BDL head Riad Salameh and a number of banks, accusing them of transferring money out of Lebanon the NNA reports

15 March 2021

The Judge of Urgent Matters in Beirut has issued a decision requiring LAU to accept tuition payments made in lira on the official exchange rate. A LL10 million fine will be charged for each violation until the Court of First Instance further decides on the matter, the NNA reports

15 March 2021

The dollar’s selling price on the parallel market has exceeded LL13,000, another record. The Lebanese lira has lost about 88.5 percent of its value since it began to deviate from the official peg during the second half of 2019

15 March 2021

The head of the national COVID-19 vaccine committee Abdul Rahman Bizri has told VDL (93.3) that AstraZeneca shots will not be used before their “safety is fully and definitively confirmed.” Several European countries have halted the use of the vaccine over potential side effects

15 March 2021

Has Gen. Joseph Aoun’s ‘democratic mini-putsch’ unleashed a showdown with the presidency?

For half an hour on March 8 and in a skillful strategy game, army chief Gen. Joseph Aoun swapped his military cap for that of an average Lebanese citizen who has been shouting in despair since Oct....

Mounir RABIH, 15 March 2021

Several shops in Saida have shut their doors in protest of the lira’s collapse, according to the NNA. Signs attached to storefronts say the shops will not operate before the currency stabilizes. The lira has rapidly depreciated over the past week

15 March 2021

Lira crash, protests, funding for electricity: Everything you need to know to start your Monday

Want to get the Morning Brief by email? Click here to sign up . Hundreds of protesters took to the streets across Lebanon over the weekend as the national currency continued to hit new lows....

15 March 2021