Following Emmanuel Macron’s arrival in Lebanon, France’s chattering classes have backed their leader’s show of support for the stricken nation but some have questioned the French president’s heroic pose.
Mr Macron touched down in Beirut on Thursday, the first Western leader to visit the country since the devastating explosions in the city’s port that killed nearly 150 people, wounded thousands and sent a wave of destruction through the Lebanese capital.
Taking to Beirut’s streets to literally embrace its people, Mr Macron also chided the country’s political leaders. French aid and support for the Lebanese population would be “unconditional”, the French president said. But without the political reforms Paris had been urging for years, he added, “Lebanon will continue to sink.”
The French press has continued to examine the special bond between the two countries. Lebanon and neighbouring Syria became French protectorates in 1920 after the First World War and the dismantling of the Ottoman Empire.
However, the centre-left newspaper Le Monde has said the ties run deeper. Why was Mr Macron the first global leader to show solidarity with the country? "Love stories cannot always be explained," the daily asserted.
The news magazine Paris Match has drawn comparisons between Mr Macron's Beirut visit and his predecessor Jacques Chirac's eye-catching tour of the streets of Jerusalem in 1996. "In Beirut, Emmanuel Macron in Jacques Chirac mode," was the headline in the French glossy.
Mr Chirac also famously rushed to Beirut following the 2005 assassination of his friend Rafik Hariri, the Lebanese prime minister.
In January this year, similar comparisons between the two men were made during Mr Macron’s own visit to Jerusalem where he re-enacted Mr Chirac’s famous bust-up with Israeli security forces outside St Anne’s Church. That piece of political theatre, it now seems, was a dress rehearsal for a bigger stage.
Mr Macron’s political rivals have been less supportive. “Intrigued by the president’s speech in Beirut,” Olivier Faure, the leader of the French National Assembly’s left grouping, wrote on Twitter.
“Whatever one thinks of Lebanese leaders, what legitimacy to pose as a saviour?” Why the condemnation so late, putting on a scene in the middle of a tragedy?” Mr Faure asked.
Former French presidential candidate Jean-Luc Melenchon took aim at the colonialist overtones of Mr Macron’s visit. “Where does this feeling of omnipotence come from? What’s that tone? What is he threatening? What adventure is he leading France on?” he wrote, questioning whether Mr Macron wished to take France on another Libya-style mission like former French president Nicolas Sarkozy.
In an earlier tweet, Mr Melenchon was equally condemning. “I warn against interference in the political life of Lebanon. It will not be accepted. Lebanon is not a French protectorate.”
Mr Macron has rejected the prospect of a return to the French mandate, though an online petition calling for a 10-year return of rule from Paris has garnered modest support and the proposition was put to him directly by local leaders on Thursday.
The French journalist and public intellectual Bernard-Henri Levy recently returned from his own controversial adventure in Libya and has defended Mr Macron, hitting out at Mr Melenchon and calling him “grumpy”.
“It is foolishness, after Macron’s journey to Lebanon, to howl at the violation of sovereignty,” he wrote
“As if sovereignty was the right to let oneself fall victim to thugs! And as if flying to the aid of a brotherly people was not, for 20 years, a duty and a right!”
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The biog
Hometown: Birchgrove, Sydney Australia
Age: 59
Favourite TV series: Outlander Netflix series
Favourite place in the UAE: Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque / desert / Louvre Abu Dhabi
Favourite book: Father of our Nation: Collected Quotes of Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan
Thing you will miss most about the UAE: My friends and family, Formula 1, having Friday's off, desert adventures, and Arabic culture and people
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What is Reform?
Reform is a right-wing, populist party led by Nigel Farage, a former MEP who won a seat in the House of Commons last year at his eighth attempt and a prominent figure in the campaign for the UK to leave the European Union.
It was founded in 2018 and originally called the Brexit Party.
Many of its members previously belonged to UKIP or the mainstream Conservatives.
After Brexit took place, the party focused on the reformation of British democracy.
Former Tory deputy chairman Lee Anderson became its first MP after defecting in March 2024.
The party gained support from Elon Musk, and had hoped the tech billionaire would make a £100m donation. However, Mr Musk changed his mind and called for Mr Farage to step down as leader in a row involving the US tycoon's support for far-right figurehead Tommy Robinson who is in prison for contempt of court.
Cultural fiesta
What: The Al Burda Festival
When: November 14 (from 10am)
Where: Warehouse421, Abu Dhabi
The Al Burda Festival is a celebration of Islamic art and culture, featuring talks, performances and exhibitions. Organised by the Ministry of Culture and Knowledge Development, this one-day event opens with a session on the future of Islamic art. With this in mind, it is followed by a number of workshops and “masterclass” sessions in everything from calligraphy and typography to geometry and the origins of Islamic design. There will also be discussions on subjects including ‘Who is the Audience for Islamic Art?’ and ‘New Markets for Islamic Design.’ A live performance from Kuwaiti guitarist Yousif Yaseen should be one of the highlights of the day.
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Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman
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Rating: 3.5/5
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Normcore explained
Something of a fashion anomaly, normcore is essentially a celebration of the unremarkable. The term was first popularised by an article in New York magazine in 2014 and has been dubbed “ugly”, “bland’ and "anti-style" by fashion writers. It’s hallmarks are comfort, a lack of pretentiousness and neutrality – it is a trend for those who would rather not stand out from the crowd. For the most part, the style is unisex, favouring loose silhouettes, thrift-shop threads, baseball caps and boyish trainers. It is important to note that normcore is not synonymous with cheapness or low quality; there are high-fashion brands, including Parisian label Vetements, that specialise in this style. Embraced by fashion-forward street-style stars around the globe, it’s uptake in the UAE has been relatively slow.
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5pm: Wathba Stallions Cup Maiden (PA) Dh 70,000 (Dirt) 1,600m
Winner: Samau Xmnsor, Abdul Aziz Al Balushi (jockey), Ibrahim Al Hadhrami (trainer)
5.30pm: Maiden (PA) Dh 70,000 (D) 1,600m
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Moral education needed in a 'rapidly changing world'
Moral education lessons for young people is needed in a rapidly changing world, the head of the programme said.
Alanood Al Kaabi, head of programmes at the Education Affairs Office of the Crown Price Court - Abu Dhabi, said: "The Crown Price Court is fully behind this initiative and have already seen the curriculum succeed in empowering young people and providing them with the necessary tools to succeed in building the future of the nation at all levels.
"Moral education touches on every aspect and subject that children engage in.
"It is not just limited to science or maths but it is involved in all subjects and it is helping children to adapt to integral moral practises.
"The moral education programme has been designed to develop children holistically in a world being rapidly transformed by technology and globalisation."
