BEIRUT: Lebanese children are at risk as water supply systems across the country teeter on the brink of failure, UNICEF has warned.
“While a total collapse of public water supply networks has so far been averted, the (water supply) systems remain on the brink, which poses a threat for the health of millions of people, especially children,” UNICEF said in a statement.
The UN body said Lebanon’s limited power supplies make it impossible to pump enough water, and in some cases, “cause pumping operations to shut down entirely.”
It added that it had previously warned “a year ago that the water system has reached a breaking point.”
Edouard Beigbeder, UNICEF’s representative in Lebanon, said that “millions of people in Lebanon are affected by the limited availability of clean and safe water, and addressing the issue is of (the) utmost importance for the health of children and families in Lebanon.
“Since the beginning of the crisis, per-capita water supplies from the water establishments have decreased dramatically amid frequent blackouts, falling short of the 35 liters a day considered to be the minimum acceptable quantity,” he said.
“The average cost of 1,000 liters of trucked water increased to 145,000 Lebanese pounds ($6 at the Sayrafa exchange rate) in April 2022, an increase of almost 50 percent compared with the same month in 2021.
“A family of five, drinking a total of 10 liters a day, would need to spend about 6.5 million pounds a year, in addition to the cost of water they use to meet their cooking and hygiene needs.”
Based on its report, UNICEF — which contributes financially to the operation of water pumps in Lebanon — “needs $75 million a year to keep critical systems operational and the water flowing to over four million people across the country and safeguard access and operation of the public water systems.”
The UNICEF warning came amid political chaos in Lebanon that is causing further crises, leading to caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati calling the country “Al-Asfouriyeh” (the lunatic asylum) in a speech on Wednesday.
Employees of the Banque du Liban continued with their three-day strike on Thursday, in protest against Mount Lebanon’s state prosecutor, Judge Ghada Aoun, raiding the bank’s headquarters on Tuesday, in search of its governor in order to arrest him.
The raid took place after Riad Salameh failed to show up for questioning on charges of illicit enrichment and money laundering Aoun charged him with in March.
For the second consecutive day, exchange operations at the bank’s Sayrafa rate platform were put on hold, prompting traders and citizens alike to turn to the black market for dollars.
Other operations affected include check clearing, transfers abroad, opening credits and other procedures. More importantly, payment orders and transfers issued by the Ministry of Finance will not be disbursed.
Repercussions triggered by the arrest of Bishop Musa Al-Hajj, archbishop of Haifa and the holy land, also continued after he was detained on Monday at the Lebanese border post in Ras Al-Naqoura after returning from Israel. He faced an 11-hour interrogation, with money and medicines he brought from Lebanese who fled to Israel 22 years ago being seized.
The Council of Maronite Bishops, which held an exceptional meeting on Wednesday, expressed its dismay at Al-Hajj’s arrest, the seizure of his passport and phone, and his being summoned to appear before the military judge Fadi Akiki.
In a meeting, the council demanded the removal of Akiki and called what happened “premeditated and determined, at a remarkable and suspicious time, and for known malicious ends.”
The council also called on the minister of justice to take the necessary disciplinary measures against those responsible, and demanded the public prosecutor of cassation to refer Akiki to the judicial inspection and remove him.
The press office of Justice Minister Henry Khoury announced on Thursday that the minister was asking all judicial authorities for an immediate update on the development of the investigation with Al-Hajj and the raid on the central bank.
Walid Jumblatt, president of the Progressive Socialist Party, called for the situation to be addressed calmly and stressed the need to respect institutions “in these difficult circumstances above all consideration.”
Suleiman Franjieh, head of the Marada Movement and a candidate for the presidency, met on Thursday with Maronite Patriarch Bechara Boutros Al-Rai, and claimed the judiciary in Lebanon was politicized and that judges were being subjected to “political and media intimidation.”
In a press conference on Thursday, the Sovereign Front for Lebanon called the arrest of Al-Hajj “a coup to take advantage of the last parliamentary elections.”
It said some prosecutors, security figures and judges were offering their services to people running the state, a veiled reference to the Iran-backed militia.
MANBIJ, Syria: Ghazwan Al-Atman thought he had found refuge in Manbij after years of displacement, but he now fears his family will be uprooted once again as a threatened Turkish onslaught looms over the Syrian town. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey has repeatedly vowed to launch a new offensive in northern Syria in what he says is an operation to protect his country from Kurdish militias who have been waging a decades-long insurgency against the Turkish state. Turkey has launched a string of offensives in Syria in the past six years, most recently in 2019 when it conducted a broad air and ground assault against Kurdish militias after former US president Donald Trump withdrew American troops. “Our people are completely exhausted,” Atman said, standing in his empty shoe store in downtown Manbij, which lies just 30 kilometers (less than 20 miles) from Syria’s border with Turkey. “We enjoyed safety and security here. Now, we don’t know where to go.” The market where he set up shop is usually bustling with customers, but they have now been reduced to a trickle. Atman said his family settled in Manbij in 2018 having already been displaced “four or five times.” The 43-year-old built a house and established his business “from scratch,” but is now ready to flee again as he fears for the lives of his children. “War has destroyed me... All we want is stability in this country,” he said. The threat of a new assault has intensified, with Turkey saying Thursday it never seeks “permission for our military operations” despite failing to get the green light from Russia and Iran this week. Turkish media said any potential operation is unlikely to take place before the end of August or early September. Analysts have warned an attack on densely populated Manbij would cause mass displacement and suffering.
The people of Manbij have been busy stocking up on food in preparation. Hussein Hamdoush said customers have been flocking to his grocery store to stockpile essentials like milk, rice and bulgur. Hamdoush said he does not want to leave. “Displacement means ruin,” he said. “Where will we go? I would rather die in my home.” Food prices have shot up in the Kurdish-run town, residents say. Umm Nidal, 48, said she feared displacement as much as she feared for her four children. “We are facing an economic war rather than air strikes,” she said as she scanned supermarket shelves. This is not the first time Ankara has threatened to attack Manbij, an Arab-majority town run by Kurdish fighters who expelled Daesh group militants in 2016. Between 2016 and 2019, Ankara launched three military offensives it said were to root out the Kurdish People’s Protection Units, the main component of the autonomous Kurds’ de facto army, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). Analysts have told AFP that even without Moscow and Tehran’s stamp of approval, Erdogan could still launch a limited attack. “Turkish threats are nothing new in Manbij, but the level of these threats ebbs and flows, and it has highly intensified lately,” said Sherfan Darwish, a spokesman for the SDF-affiliated Manbij Military Council.
The SDF has dug trenches on the outskirts of Manbij in readiness for a potential attack, AFP correspondents said. “We have trained our forces... based on our experience fighting against IS, though the war against Turkish forces calls for new tactics,” Darwish said. The SDF has reached out to Damascus for help in fending off a potential Turkish onslaught — as they have done in past campaigns. Government and Kurdish forces have struggled to find common ground, because Damascus rejects Kurdish self-rule. In the past few days, the regime has deployed reinforcements near Manbij, as part of a Russia-mediated agreement, to act as a buffer between Kurdish and Ankara-backed forces. They have come bearing “heavy and high-quality weapons,” Darwish said. Regime flags were visible on the front lines, while Manbij Military Council fighters were scattered farther back in small numbers, hiding from possible Turkish drone strikes in the shade of olive trees, an AFP correspondent said. Syrian soldiers have trickled in over the past two days, setting up camp in nearby villages. Hamdoush said he hopes the army will be able to protect Manbij, but others are skeptical. “I wish we could have peace,” said Ali Abu Hassan, a 50-year-old Manbij resident. “But this (war) is an international game and we are the victims.”
RAMALLAH: Political analysts were on Friday split over the next diplomatic moves for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas following his recent talks with the leaders of France and America.
Abbas held discussions with US President Joe Biden in Bethlehem on July 15 and then spoke to President Emmanuel Macron in Paris on July 20.
General disappointment with the outcome of the Biden talks saw the Palestinian leadership turn its attention toward the EU.
During his meeting with Abbas, Biden reportedly said that the conditions were not currently suitable to relaunch the Palestine-Israel peace process. As a result, he failed to propose any plan to end the Israeli occupation and took no position on the matter of the expansion of Israeli settlements in the West Bank.
Macron, meanwhile, promised Abbas that he would help revive the stalled peace track between the Palestinians and Israelis, and pressure Israel to stop its settlement activities in the West Bank, while providing political and financial support for the Palestinians to overcome a UN Relief and Works Agency financial crisis, and the impact of international food shortages.
Speaking at a joint press conference with Macron in the French capital on Wednesday, Abbas said: “We count on President Macron’s role in launching the necessary initiatives and moves to push peace efforts in our region forward, in cooperation with the concerned European and Arab parties.”
And Macron urged the need for, “the resumption of direct political dialogue between the Israelis and the Palestinians. It is a difficult road, full of bumps, but we have no alternative to reviving our efforts for peace.”
However, with 87-year-old Abbas still considered by some experts to believe that the cards for a solution to the Palestinian issue remain in the hands of the US only, his next diplomatic move is proving difficult to predict.
Mustafa Barghouthi, a Palestinian politician, told Arab News that any Palestinian attempt to search for a solution through Europe and wait for the help of others may not work.
He said: “We must end the internal Palestinian division, hold free elections, unite on the strategy of activating popular resistance, review the functions of the Palestinian Authority, strengthen the role of the Palestine Liberation Organization, and rebuild the movement of international solidarity with the Palestinian people.”
He pointed out that while strengthening relations with the EU, China, and Russia could be helpful, the most crucial factor was, “the change in the balance of power on the ground and the escalation of popular resistance against the Israeli occupation.”
Ghassan Al-Khatib, a Palestinian political analyst, felt that Abbas’ approach to France and other EU countries was an important step because Palestinian diplomacy should not allow the US to continue monopolizing the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.
On Biden, he told Arab News: “He did not fulfil his promises to the Palestinian Authority during his election campaign, and this must reflect itself in the Palestinian foreign relations with the European Union, Russia, and China.”
George Noll, head of the Palestinian Affairs Unit at the US Embassy in Jerusalem, on Thursday told Palestinian journalists in Ramallah that Abbas had presented a long list of demands to Biden during their meeting. In response, according to a senior US official, the American president said: “These are things that need Christ, the miracle-maker, to accomplish.”
Al-Khatib said: “The statement of the US official is rude because what President Abbas requested is related to the application of the rules of international legitimacy, such as ending the occupation, stopping settlements, and helping Palestinian refugees through the UNRWA.”
He noted that, if true, such a stance by the Biden administration belittled the internationally legitimate demands regarding the Palestinian cause.
“This means that the US has put itself in Israel’s pocket about the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, and this is enough reason for the Palestinian Authority to consider the US as an unfair sponsor and is looking for supporters with global influence such as the European Union, Russia, and China,” he added.
The EU has expressed its concerns over the announcement of settlers’ plans to establish several new outposts in the occupied West Bank.
In a statement on Thursday, it said that 150 illegal settlement outposts in the West Bank often contributed to the establishment or expansion of Israeli settlements and were a potential direct source of increased violence by settlers toward Palestinians.
It added that the settlements and outposts were illegal under international law and constituted a significant obstacle to achieving a two-state solution.
On Thursday, the Palestinian Applied Research Institute said that the Israeli occupation authorities had published three new plans for more settlements in different locations in the West Bank, under which an area of 733.6 dunums (181.2 acres) of Palestinian land would be seized.
The Israeli settlements occupy 201 square kilometers (3.6 percent of the occupied West Bank) and are inhabited by around 700,000 Israeli settlers.
TUNIS: Tunisians will vote on Monday on a constitution that would give President Kais Saied more powers, a key moment in his plan to overhaul the political system.
The referendum takes place a year to the day after Saied sacked the government and suspended parliament.
His opponents have called for a boycott, but while observers have predicted most Tunisians will snub the poll, few doubt the charter will pass.
“The biggest unknown in this referendum is the turnout and whether it will be low or very low,” said analyst Youssef Cherif.
Those who vote yes “will do so either because they like the president or because they hate those who have governed Tunisia” since the 2011 uprising that toppled Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, he added.
The text aims to replace the mixed presidential-parliamentary system enshrined in a 2014 constitution, which saw Tunisia praised as the sole democracy to emerge from the 2011 Arab uprisings.
The leader of Saied’s “new republic” would have ultimate executive power and would appoint a government without the need for a confidence vote in parliament.
The president would also head the armed forces and appoint judges, who would be banned from striking.
Saied’s rivals, including the Ennahdha party that has dominated Tunisian politics since 2011, accuse him of dragging the country back to autocracy.
The process leading up to the referendum has also been widely criticized.
“People don’t know what they’re voting on, or why,” Cherif said.
Political analyst Hamadi Redissi said that, unlike in 2014, there was little debate involving all stakeholders over the text that was “hastily written in just a few weeks.”
Saied, who since last year has ruled by decree and seized control of the judiciary and the electoral board, held an online public consultation ostensibly meant to guide a committee in drafting a new constitution.
But Sadeq Belaid, the legal expert who led that process has disavowed Saied’s draft, saying it was “completely different” from what his committee had submitted and warning it could install “a dictatorial regime.”
Saied released a slightly amended document little more than two weeks before the vote, but even under the new draft, the president would be virtually impossible to force out of office.
Redissi said the country would not become like China or Egypt but could end up resembling Turkey or Russia.
Isabelle Werenfels, researcher at German think tank SWP, warned Tunisia was “moving toward a closed system.”
“If you look at the ongoing dismantling of institutions for monitoring freedom, democracy, and new rules, it looks like the net is tightening,” she said.
Campaigning by those registered to publicly express a position on the constitution has been lukewarm.
Just seven organizations or people are registered for the “no” campaign, compared with 144 for “yes.”
Billboards bearing the Tunisian flag have appeared in Tunis carrying a sentence from an open letter published by Saied, urging a “yes” vote “so the state does not falter and so the goals of the revolution are achieved.”
While recent elections have seen low participation, Saied himself, a former legal scholar seen as incorruptible and removed from the widely mistrusted political elite, was elected in a 2019 landslide on 58 percent turnout.
Today, Tunisians are dealing with grinding economic woes aggravated by the coronavirus pandemic and the war in Ukraine, and “very few people are interested in politics,” Cherif said.
Saied will urgently need to find solutions for an economy dogged by high inflation, youth unemployment as high as 40 percent and a third of the population facing poverty.
The country is in negotiations with the International Monetary Fund for a bailout package, but experts have warned that the liberalizing reforms the lender is likely to demand in exchange could spark social unrest.
Meanwhile, fears are growing for Tunisia’s widely praised, if faulty, democracy.
Freedom House and The Economist had already reclassified Tunisia from “free” to “partially free,” Cherif noted.
“The fact that people can express themselves freely or go and vote ‘no’ without going to prison shows that we’re not in a traditional dictatorship,” he said.
But, he added, “this constitution could create an authoritarian regime resembling the regimes Tunisia experienced before 2011.”
BEIRUT: A massive silo holding thousands of tons of grain at Beirut port is at risk of collapse because of a fire that has been smoldering for weeks amid Lebanon’s summer heat.
Flames and thick black smoke could be seen rising from the silo after the blaze flared up on Friday.
The fire prompted a warning by Lebanon’s Prime Minister Najib Mikati to “workers and members of the civil defense and the fire brigade not to approach the location for their safety and to avoid endangering their lives.”
Recent high temperatures are believed to have caused wheat in the silo — one of two massive structures that withstood the deadly blast at Beirut’s port two years ago — to ferment, igniting thousands of tons of grain.
Reports by the ministries of interior, economy, public works and environment have warned that “parts of the left side of the silo might be at risk of collapse.”
The threat to the silo is causing growing alarm among port workers and management of the facility.
Smoke and flames at the site also revive the painful memory of the deadly explosion that shook the port on Aug. 4, 2020.
Caretaker Interior Minister Bassam Mawlawi has asked the fire brigade and civil defense to immediately start “cooling down” the wheat silos.
While the Lebanese look on helplessly as the last of the wheat stored in the silo burns, mills and bakeries around the country are struggling with an acute shortage of subsidized flour used to make Lebanese pita bread.
Caretaker Economy Minister Amin Salam said that 50,000 tons of wheat will arrive in Lebanon in the coming 10 days, ensuring a six-week supply.
Seven mills out of 11 have closed because they ran out of subsidized wheat, according to a bakery owners’ syndicate.
The presence of more than 500,000 tourists in Lebanon is adding to the strain on bread supplies, it added.
Meanwhile, the silo fire has revived simmering tensions between families of the port blast victims and government bodies.
Last April, government agencies recommended the silos be demolished due to the risks the structures pose to the surrounding area.
However, families and activists reject the demolition, saying that it will destroy “one of the main landmarks of the biggest explosion witnessed by Lebanon,” according to the Order of Engineers.
The silos “stand as a witness to a crime that affected everyone,” it said.
The Order of Engineers has called for work to “consolidate the affected silos.”
Experts say that the fire will die down eventually, but have warned against using water to fight the blaze, saying this might accelerate the fermentation process.
Political, security, judicial and military officials continue to blame each other for the port explosion.
Judicial investigations into the crime were suspended last November, due to political interventions and lawsuits filed against judge Tarek Bitar, who is heading the inquiry.
Defendants, including former MPs and ministers, are calling for Bitar to be removed from the case.
In a briefing submitted to the Security Council on Thursday, the UN special coordinator for Lebanon, Joanna Wronecka, highlighted “the absence of progress in the judicial measures related to the Beirut port explosion case, which further saddens the families of the dead and wounded.”
Wronecka demanded that “hindrances obstructing the judicial course be removed, and a comprehensive and transparent investigation into the case be carried out.”
JERUSALEM: Israeli police said Friday they placed a couple under house arrest, a day after a man attending a party at their villa died after being sucked into a sinkhole that formed at the bottom of their swimming pool. The man and woman, both in their sixties, are suspected of causing death by negligence, police said. They were arrested on Thursday night and a court decided to release them Friday under “restrictive conditions of house arrest” for five days. The incident happened during a private party the couple hosted at their house in the town of Karmi Yosef, 40 kilometers (25 miles) southeast of the city of Tel Aviv. Mobile phone video from the scene shows floaties and water being sucked to the bottom, at the center of the pool, as people sitting by the poolside shout in Hebrew. A man is seen approaching the sinkhole, slips and is almost pulled in before he backs away. The police said the deceased 30-year-old was found following a search mission in which Israeli police, emergency crews and the army took part. Israeli media cited witnesses as saying the party was attended by nearly 50 people, of whom six were in the pool, and also reported that the homeowner had built the pool without proper licensing.