Lebanon’s Hezbollah and its ally Amal have agreed to take part in Cabinet sessions after a three-month boycott over the Beirut port blast, Reuters reported on Saturday.
The two powerful Shiite Muslim parties, which back several ministers in the government, made up of members from across the political spectrum, said they would seek to approve the 2022 budget and to discuss economic recovery.
Hezbollah and Amal started boycotting Cabinet sessions on October 12, as part of actions aimed at putting an end to the local investigation into the devastating Beirut port blast of August 4, 2020, which killed at least 215 people and destroyed large parts of the capital.
The political allies have called for the removal of investigative judge Tarek Bitar, whom they accuse of bias.
Several top politicians, including two Amal former finance and public works ministers, have filed lawsuits against Mr Bitar, forcing him on December 23 to pause his probe for the fourth time.
Activists and victims of the explosion regularly accuse Lebanon’s political class, which shares power on a sectarian basis, of trying to avoid accountability. The blast is believed to have been caused by the improper storage for over seven years of hundreds of tonnes of ammonium nitrate.
Many politicians say the probe should be handled by a parliamentary committee and a special court for trying ministers and presidents. Yet this court has not been activated since the end of the 1975-1990 civil war and few believe it will challenge the interests of the country’s ruling class, which is widely accused of corruption and nepotism.
Tension over the probe boiled over on October 14 when seven people died in deadly clashes in Beirut. The violence pitted supporters of a Christian political party, the Lebanese Forces, against members of Hezbollah and Amal along a former civil war frontline.
The failure to hold Cabinet meetings has delayed talks on a recovery plan with the International Monetary Fund, seen as vital to unlocking international support to lift the country out of a crisis that has driven much of the nation into poverty. The local currency hit the record low of 33,000 Lebanese pounds to the dollar last week, triggering anti-government protests.
Prime Minister Najib Mikati, whose post is held by a Sunni Muslim under Lebanon's sectarian political system, said he welcomed the decision to end the boycott and would call for a Cabinet meeting as soon as he received a draft 2022 budget from the Finance Ministry.
The Cabinet is not expected to meet in the coming week as budget preparations are still under way and figures for a financial recovery plan are being drawn up, a government source told Reuters.
An IMF spokesperson said that virtual talks would be held with Lebanese authorities in the last week of January, according to Reuters.
The World Bank has described the country’s financial collapse as one of the worst in the world since the mid-19th century.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
If you go
The flights
There are direct flights from Dubai to Sofia with FlyDubai (www.flydubai.com) and Wizz Air (www.wizzair.com), from Dh1,164 and Dh822 return including taxes, respectively.
The trip
Plovdiv is 150km from Sofia, with an hourly bus service taking around 2 hours and costing $16 (Dh58). The Rhodopes can be reached from Sofia in between 2-4hours.
The trip was organised by Bulguides (www.bulguides.com), which organises guided trips throughout Bulgaria. Guiding, accommodation, food and transfers from Plovdiv to the mountains and back costs around 170 USD for a four-day, three-night trip.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
How to watch Ireland v Pakistan in UAE
When: The one-off Test starts on Friday, May 11
What time: Each day’s play is scheduled to start at 2pm UAE time.
TV: The match will be broadcast on OSN Sports Cricket HD. Subscribers to the channel can also stream the action live on OSN Play.
The specs
Engine: Two permanent-magnet synchronous AC motors
Transmission: two-speed
Power: 671hp
Torque: 849Nm
Range: 456km
Price: from Dh437,900
On sale: now
Zayed Sustainability Prize
The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 420hp
Torque: 623Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)
On sale: Now
Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
Game Of Thrones Season Seven: A Bluffers Guide
Want to sound on message about the biggest show on television without actually watching it? Best not to get locked into the labyrinthine tales of revenge and royalty: as Isaac Hempstead Wright put it, all you really need to know from now on is that there’s going to be a huge fight between humans and the armies of undead White Walkers.
The season ended with a dragon captured by the Night King blowing apart the huge wall of ice that separates the human world from its less appealing counterpart. Not that some of the humans in Westeros have been particularly appealing, either.
Anyway, the White Walkers are now free to cause any kind of havoc they wish, and as Liam Cunningham told us: “Westeros may be zombie land after the Night King has finished.” If the various human factions don’t put aside their differences in season 8, we could be looking at The Walking Dead: The Medieval Years.
Results:
Men's 100m T34: 1. Walid Ktila (TUN) 15 sec; 2. Rheed McCracken (AUS) 15.40; 3. Mohammed Al Hammadi (UAE) 15.75. Men's 400m T34: 1. Walid Ktila (TUN) 50.56; 2. Mohammed Al Hammadi (UAE) 50.94; 3. Henry Manni (FIN) 52.24.
ACL Elite (West) - fixtures
Monday, Sept 30
Al Sadd v Esteghlal (8pm)
Persepolis v Pakhtakor (8pm)
Al Wasl v Al Ahli (8pm)
Al Nassr v Al Rayyan (10pm)
Tuesday, Oct 1
Al Hilal v Al Shorta (10pm)
Al Gharafa v Al Ain (10pm)
THE SPECS
Engine: Four-cylinder 2.5-litre
Transmission: Seven-speed auto
Power: 165hp
Torque: 241Nm
Price: Dh99,900 to Dh134,000
On sale: now
