Egyptian pop star Amr Diab performed his first concert in Beirut in 12 years on Saturday, which was attended by about 20,000 fans, Lebanese media reported.
But the show at Beirut Waterfront Arena has triggered heated debate online, with some criticising the mess left by concertgoers and others questioning its timing, considering Lebanon's current economic turmoil.
On Sunday, Nasser Yassin, Lebanon's Minister of Environment, posted a video on X, formerly Twitter, showing the road leading to the venue littered with rubbish. He wrote that Beirut Municipality had been informed and asked to “oblige the organising company to remove the waste and clean the place at its own expense".
“The Governor of Beirut must issue general cleanliness records against violators,” he added.
Yassin's video shows the four-laned road littered with items including water bottles, cans and rubbish bags. He ended his tweet with a hashtag in Arabic that translates to “clean your country”.
Yassin later posted an updated video, showing uniformed cleaners sweeping the street.
“Garbage contractor workers in Beirut began to remove waste from the Amr Diab party venue,” he wrote, adding that the “General Hygiene Department in the Beirut Municipality is following up on the work”.
Many have also discussed whether it was appropriate for Diab’s concert to take place in Lebanon, citing the country’s current economic and political instability and the lack of accountability regarding the 2020 Beirut blast.
“The victims of the Beirut port bombing have been begging for three years for people to march with them and demand justice but no one was coming down,” wrote one user on X. "Amr Diab invited [more than] 16,000 citizens and forced them to wear white as well.”
But not everyone was up in arms.
“Is there anyone who hasn’t criticised the Amr Diab concert and those who attended?” wrote another user in defence of the concert.
“Well, we went, so we can be happy and dance and uplift our moods after buying our tickets, using money we worked day and night to make. Those who don’t want to see the videos [of the concert], don’t [watch them].”
Diab is set to perform at Abu Dhabi’s Etihad Arena on Yas Island on September 9.
Indoor Cricket World Cup - Sept 16-20, Insportz, Dubai
The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre turbo
Power: 181hp
Torque: 230Nm
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Starting price: Dh79,000
On sale: Now
The specs: Lamborghini Aventador SVJ
Price, base: Dh1,731,672
Engine: 6.5-litre V12
Gearbox: Seven-speed automatic
Power: 770hp @ 8,500rpm
Torque: 720Nm @ 6,750rpm
Fuel economy: 19.6L / 100km
More on Quran memorisation:
THE%20SPECS
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How Voiss turns words to speech
The device has a screen reader or software that monitors what happens on the screen
The screen reader sends the text to the speech synthesiser
This converts to audio whatever it receives from screen reader, so the person can hear what is happening on the screen
A VOISS computer costs between $200 and $250 depending on memory card capacity that ranges from 32GB to 128GB
The speech synthesisers VOISS develops are free
Subsequent computer versions will include improvements such as wireless keyboards
Arabic voice in affordable talking computer to be added next year to English, Portuguese, and Spanish synthesiser
Partnerships planned during Expo 2020 Dubai to add more languages
At least 2.2 billion people globally have a vision impairment or blindness
More than 90 per cent live in developing countries
The Long-term aim of VOISS to reach the technology to people in poor countries with workshops that teach them to build their own device
Match info
What: Fifa Club World Cup play-off
Who: Al Ain v Team Wellington
Where: Hazza bin Zayed Stadium, Al Ain
When: Wednesday, kick off 7.30pm
The%20specs
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Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
Power: 254hp
Torque: 390Nm
Price: From Dh126,000
Available: Now
Company Profile
Name: Thndr
Started: 2019
Co-founders: Ahmad Hammouda and Seif Amr
Sector: FinTech
Headquarters: Egypt
UAE base: Hub71, Abu Dhabi
Current number of staff: More than 150
Funds raised: $22 million
Kill%20Bill%20Volume%201
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Closing the loophole on sugary drinks
As The National reported last year, non-fizzy sugared drinks were not covered when the original tax was introduced in 2017. Sports drinks sold in supermarkets were found to contain, on average, 20 grams of sugar per 500ml bottle.
The non-fizzy drink AriZona Iced Tea contains 65 grams of sugar – about 16 teaspoons – per 680ml can. The average can costs about Dh6, which would rise to Dh9.
Drinks such as Starbucks Bottled Mocha Frappuccino contain 31g of sugar in 270ml, while Nescafe Mocha in a can contains 15.6g of sugar in a 240ml can.
Flavoured water, long-life fruit juice concentrates, pre-packaged sweetened coffee drinks fall under the ‘sweetened drink’ category
Not taxed:
Freshly squeezed fruit juices, ground coffee beans, tea leaves and pre-prepared flavoured milkshakes do not come under the ‘sweetened drink’ band.
JUDAS AND THE BLACK MESSIAH
Directed by: Shaka King
Starring: Daniel Kaluuya, Lakeith Stanfield, Jesse Plemons
Four stars
The specs
Engine: 6.2-litre supercharged V8
Power: 712hp at 6,100rpm
Torque: 881Nm at 4,800rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 19.6 l/100km
Price: Dh380,000
On sale: now
Bio
Born in Dibba, Sharjah in 1972.
He is the eldest among 11 brothers and sisters.
He was educated in Sharjah schools and is a graduate of UAE University in Al Ain.
He has written poetry for 30 years and has had work published in local newspapers.
He likes all kinds of adventure movies that relate to his work.
His dream is a safe and preserved environment for all humankind.
His favourite book is The Quran, and 'Maze of Innovation and Creativity', written by his brother.
Company%20Profile
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Profile of Tarabut Gateway
Founder: Abdulla Almoayed
Based: UAE
Founded: 2017
Number of employees: 35
Sector: FinTech
Raised: $13 million
Backers: Berlin-based venture capital company Target Global, Kingsway, CE Ventures, Entrée Capital, Zamil Investment Group, Global Ventures, Almoayed Technologies and Mad’a Investment.
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre V8 twin-turbocharged and three electric motors
Power: Combined output 920hp
Torque: 730Nm at 4,000-7,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch automatic
Fuel consumption: 11.2L/100km
On sale: Now, deliveries expected later in 2025
Price: expected to start at Dh1,432,000
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Anna and the Apocalypse
Director: John McPhail
Starring: Ella Hunt, Malcolm Cumming, Mark Benton
Three stars
THE SIXTH SENSE
Starring: Bruce Willis, Toni Collette, Hayley Joel Osment
Director: M. Night Shyamalan
Rating: 5/5
SPEC%20SHEET%3A%20APPLE%20M3%20MACBOOK%20AIR%20(13%22)
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