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Riding the revolutionary wave or wiping out? How the Lebanese Forces is trying to capitalize on the Oct. 17 uprising

Since he ensconced himself in the huge Lebanese Forces headquarters in Maarab, Kesrouan, in 2007, Samir Geagea has hardly moved. Those who wish to meet him, including diplomats, are forced to take...

Jeanine JALKH, 4 January 2021

Lebanon has recorded 2,861 new cases of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, a record for a Monday, when numbers are typically lower. Thirteen more people have died from the virus, bringing the death toll to 1,499

4 January 2021

Caretaker Health Minister Hamad Hassan said that punishment for non-compliance with COVID-19 measures "will not stop at fines." He added that he had asked private hospitals to raise numbers of coronavirus beds, with minimum numbers to be set according to hospital classification

4 January 2021

Caretaker Interior Minister Mohamed Fehmi said following the ministerial committee meeting that the "odd-even" license plate driving rules would be reinstated and that numbers of airport arrivals would be reduced. A full decision will be released tomorrow, he added

4 January 2021

The ministerial committee on COVID-19 has announced a new countrywide lockdown from Jan. 7 to Feb. 1, including an overnight curfew between 6 p.m. and 5 a.m.

4 January 2021

The ISF has responded to accusations that one of its members assaulted lawyer Jimmy Hadchiti and his wife, journalist Carla Geha, claiming that the officer was forced to "defend himself" after Hadchiti allegedly insulted and shoved him in a dispute over a parking violation

4 January 2021

Families of the victims of the Aug. 4 explosion gathered at the port today, the blast's five-month anniversary, to protest delays to the probe into the blast and say it is "unacceptable" that caretaker PM Hassan Diab and former ministers are "using sectarianism to escape justice"

4 January 2021

The Beirut Bar Association has extended its strike call through Tuesday, urging protests in front of justice palaces across the country at 12 p.m. to ask senior judges to step in to improve relations between lawyers, the judiciary and security forces, and to root out corruption

4 January 2021

The Beirut Bar Association has condemned in a statement the assault on lawyer Jimmy Hadchiti and his wife, journalist Clara Geha, by a member of the Internal Security Forces on Sunday, hitting out at what it describes as a "police state" that is cracking down on freedoms

4 January 2021

Lebanese composer and musician Elias Rahbani has died, the NNA reports. Born in 1938, he composed thousands of pieces throughout his career, including as part of the famous "Rahbani Brothers" with older siblings Assi and Mansour, often alongside legendary singer Fairouz

4 January 2021

BDL's latest interim balance sheet shows an increase of LL1.19 trillion in circulation outside BDL in the second half of December, putting the total over LL30 trillion. The bank's foreign assets, which represent its reserves, have fallen by about $800 million over the same period

4 January 2021

Lebanon’s COVID-19 ministerial committee failed this morning to reach agreement on recommendations for the start date and duration of a renewed lockdown, local TV stations report, adding that the committee will reconvene at 4 p.m. to continue discussions

4 January 2021

UNRWA has secured funding to continue its learning support program until the end of January and is in "advanced discussion" with a donor to get funds for the rest of the year, an UNRWA spokesman told L'Orient Today. Some 220 teachers would lose their jobs with the program’s end

4 January 2021

One hundred additional ICU beds will arrive in Lebanon on Jan. 18 to help combat the COVID-19 pandemic, caretaker Health Minister Hamad Hassan told Al Jadeed. The WHO said the country had 514 ICU beds as of Dec. 22; an adviser to the premier recently said ICU occupancy was at 90%

4 January 2021

The Beirut Bar Association has called on lawyers to strike today following an altercation over parking in Hadath yesterday in which a member of the Internal Security Forces appears to have assaulted lawyer Jimmy Hadchiti in front of his children and wife, journalist Clara Geha

4 January 2021

New Year’s celebrations, COVID-19 records, hospitals full: Everything you need to know to start your Monday

For the third time in a row, Lebanon rang in the new year without a government. More than two months have passed since Saad Hariri was nominated to form a cabinet that would be tasked with pulling...

4 January 2021