Pope Francis plans to visit Lebanon on his next official trip. EPA
Pope Francis plans to visit Lebanon on his next official trip. EPA
Pope Francis plans to visit Lebanon on his next official trip. EPA
Pope Francis plans to visit Lebanon on his next official trip. EPA

Hariri to visit Pope Francis in the Vatican this month


Aya Iskandarani
  • English
  • Arabic

The Lebanese prime minister-designate will meet the Pope at the Vatican this month, his office said on Tuesday.

"The Ambassador of the Holy See in Lebanon, Monsignor Joseph Spiteri, informed Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri that His Holiness Pope Francis will receive him at the Vatican on April 22," Mr Hariri's office tweeted.

Pope Francis had said he wanted his next official trip to be to Lebanon after he became the first pontiff to visit Iraq in March.

Mr Hariri has been touring regional capitals to rally support but has yet to form a government since he was nominated to the premiership in October.

Disputes with President Michel Aoun over Cabinet posts and his bid to secure what Mr Hariri called a "blocking third" of ministerial portfolios, which amounts to a veto, have stopped him forming a government.

Lebanon has been struck by a severe economic crisis since late 2019 and is still reeling from the effects of a deadly blast at Beirut's port last August that destroyed half of the city and killed more than 200 people.

Mr Hariri sent a message two weeks ago asking to meet Pope Francis.

Mr Hariri's visit will include a meeting with the Secretary of State at the Vatican, Cardinal Pietro Parolin.

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Monday March 21, v Nepal at Dubai International Stadium

Notable salonnières of the Middle East through history

Al Khasan (Okaz, Saudi Arabia)

Tamadir bint Amr Al Harith, known simply as Al Khasan, was a poet from Najd famed for elegies, earning great renown for the eulogy of her brothers Mu’awiyah and Sakhr, both killed in tribal wars. Although not a salonnière, this prestigious 7th century poet fostered a culture of literary criticism and could be found standing in the souq of Okaz and reciting her poetry, publicly pronouncing her views and inviting others to join in the debate on scholarship. She later converted to Islam.

 

Maryana Marrash (Aleppo)

A poet and writer, Marrash helped revive the tradition of the salon and was an active part of the Nadha movement, or Arab Renaissance. Born to an established family in Aleppo in Ottoman Syria in 1848, Marrash was educated at missionary schools in Aleppo and Beirut at a time when many women did not receive an education. After touring Europe, she began to host salons where writers played chess and cards, competed in the art of poetry, and discussed literature and politics. An accomplished singer and canon player, music and dancing were a part of these evenings.

 

Princess Nazil Fadil (Cairo)

Princess Nazil Fadil gathered religious, literary and political elite together at her Cairo palace, although she stopped short of inviting women. The princess, a niece of Khedive Ismail, believed that Egypt’s situation could only be solved through education and she donated her own property to help fund the first modern Egyptian University in Cairo.

 

Mayy Ziyadah (Cairo)

Ziyadah was the first to entertain both men and women at her Cairo salon, founded in 1913. The writer, poet, public speaker and critic, her writing explored language, religious identity, language, nationalism and hierarchy. Born in Nazareth, Palestine, to a Lebanese father and Palestinian mother, her salon was open to different social classes and earned comparisons with souq of where Al Khansa herself once recited.

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Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) are tokens that represent ownership of unique items. They allow the tokenisation of things such as art, collectibles and even real estate.

 

An NFT can have only one official owner at one time. And since they're minted and secured on the Ethereum blockchain, no one can modify the record of ownership, not even copy-paste it into a new one.

 

This means NFTs are not interchangeable and cannot be exchanged with other items. In contrast, fungible items, such as fiat currencies, can be exchanged because their value defines them rather than their unique properties.

 

 

 

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