Lebanon

BEIRUT, Jul 14 (NNN-NNA) – Lebanese President, Michel Aoun, yesterday said, he hoped the UN Security Council would extend the mandate of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), which is expected to end on Aug 31, 2022.

“Lebanon appreciates the important role of the UNIFIL in maintaining security and stability in the southern county,” Aoun said in a statement, released by Lebanon’s Presidency.

13 July 2022; MEMO: Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri said yesterday that Beirut will defend its marine resources just like it had defended its land from the Israeli occupation.

08 July 2022; MEMO: The United Nations Security Council yesterday called to expedite the formation of a new government in Lebanon, to implement the necessary reforms, Anadolu reported.

The press statement issued by Council President Ronaldo Costa Filho said the members of the Security Council took note of the appointment of Najib Mikati as the new prime minister designate on 23 June, as well as the presentation by the latter of his government line-up to the President of the Republic of Lebanon on 29 June.

06 July 2022; MEMO: The Deputy Secretary-General of Hezbollah demanded on Tuesday that Lebanon should be given its full oil and gas rights in its territorial waters, agencies have reported.

"Today we are facing a rightful demand related to Lebanon's restoration of its oil and gas wealth in its territorial waters," said Sheikh Naim Qassem in a speech at a ceremony marking the 40th anniversary of the foundation of the movement. "The promises made by some about postponing the solution are not useful."

05 July 2022; MEMO: Lebanon plans to return 15,000 Syrian refugees every month to Syria, Minister of the Displaced, Issam Sharafeddine said on Monday.

"It's unacceptable that Syrian refugees don't return to their country after the end of the war there," Sharafeddine told a press conference, following his meeting with President Michel Aoun in the capital, Beirut, Anadolu News Agency reports.

"The Syrian state extends its hand for cooperation on this file," he added.

BEIRUT, July 4 (Xinhua) -- Lebanese Prime Minister-designate Najib Mikati said on Monday he opposes taking unofficial actions to deal with the maritime border demarcation issue with Israel.

"Lebanon considers that any action outside the diplomatic context pursued by the government to settle maritime border demarcation with Israel is unacceptable and exposes the country to unnecessary risks," a statement issued by Lebanon's Council of Ministers quoted Mikati as saying during a meeting with Foreign Minister Abdallah Bou Habib.

28 June 2022; MEMO: A delegation from Arab League countries will travel to Lebanon for a two-day gathering that includes meetings with the crisis-ridden country's top officials, Beirut's caretaker government said on Tuesday, Reuters reports.

Foreign Minister, Abdallah Bou Habib, said leaders including Arab League Secretary-General, Ahmed Aboul Gheit, would arrive in Lebanon on Friday.

BEIRUT, Jun 27 (NNN-NNA) – An infant died and several other people were injured yesterday, after a three-storey building collapsed in the Qibbeh district of Tripoli, northern Lebanon.

The cause of the building’s collapse remains unknown, and rescuers have been sent to the scene to save and evacuate the injured.

Lebanese Prime Minister-designate, Najib Mikati, has asked local hospitals to treat the wounded in a timely manner.

24 June 2022; MEMO: The Lebanese government has revealed a plan to deport Syrian refugees from Lebanon, in cooperation with the Syrian regime of Bashar Al-Assad.

The Lebanese Minister of Displaced Affairs, Issam Sharaf El-Din, said he had met with the representative of the UN Refugees Agency, Ayaki Ito, who requested a deadline to respond to the proposals and questions presented by his ministry regarding the return of Syrian refugees to their country.

BEIRUT, Jun 24 (NNN-NNA) – Najib Mikati, re-appointed as Lebanon’s prime minister-designate by the president, yesterday called on all Lebanese parties, to put aside differences and cooperate to put Lebanon on the right path of recovery.

“I call on all parties to cooperate and continue necessary reform measures, to put Lebanon on the right path for long-awaited solutions,” Mikati said, when addressing the public from the president’s Baabda Palace, local TV channel, MTV, reported.