This is Beirut - Lebanon

Scathing Message by “Shiite Depositor” Targets Yassine Jaber

This is Beirut, 18/12 14:55 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Lebanon International Monetary Fund USA Yassine Jaber Nabih Berri

The page “Lebanon Pulse” published on its X account a message purportedly from a “Shiite depositor”, addressed to Finance Minister Yassine Jaber. In the message, the author accuses the minister of having, in the past, incited members of the Shiite community in front of the US ambassador and called for their bombardment and removal of ...

BDL: IMF Concerns on Financial Gap Law Are Risky and Inconsistent

This is Beirut, 18/12 14:15 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Central Bank of Lebanon International Monetary Fund Lebanon Banks Banque du Liban

The Central Bank of Lebanon (BDL) issued observations regarding the International Monetary Fund (IMF)’s recent comments on the financial gap bill. BDL described the IMF’s remarks as risky and inconsistent with accounting and financial standards, noting that there is no historical precedent in a systemic crisis where a state first erodes the ...

“Gap Law” for Beginners

Mario Chartouni, 18/12 12:59 - Reading : 5 minute(s)

Banks International Monetary Fund Lebanon Banque du Liban Hezbollah

For several months now, the so-called “Gap Law” (law on financial gap) has been presented as the key to resolving Lebanon’s banking crisis. Its proponents argue that it would help restore order to the financial system and pave the way for an agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). But behind this technical ...

Lebanon Debate: Gap Law Risks Bankrupting Banks, Wiping out Depositors

This is Beirut, 18/12 12:40 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Banks Central Bank of Lebanon Lebanon Banque du Liban Nawaf Salam

The following article, originally written on Thursday by Lebanon Debate, is reproduced here in full to highlight their analysis of the proposed financial gap bill and its potential impact on depositors and the Lebanese banking sector: “Once again, Nawaf Salam’s government is rushing to pass the financial gap law before the end of the year, ...

Urgent Appeal to Stop the Financial Conspiracy Threatening Depositors and Banks

This is Beirut, 18/12 12:10 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Lebanon Banks International Monetary Fund

Lebanon Pulse published a sharply critical message from a depositor addressed to Nawaf Salam, Yassin Jaber, and Amer Bsat, accusing them of playing a central role in what the text describes as a conspiracy that began before 2019 and has culminated today with severe consequences for depositors and the banking sector. In the message, the author ...

Parliament Approves $250 Million World Bank Reconstruction Loan

This is Beirut, 18/12 11:55 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Lebanese Forces Lebanon Banks Hezbollah Israel Reconstruction

Despite a boycott by Lebanese Forces and Kataeb MPs, Lebanon’s parliament met Thursday morning and approved a World Bank loan intended to support reconstruction in the war-torn south. Lebanon has been working with the World Bank on a roughly $250 million loan under the Lebanon Emergency Assistance Project aimed at supporting efforts to ...

Israel Launches Airstrikes on Hezbollah Targets Across Lebanon

This is Beirut, 18/12 10:50 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Lebanon Baalbeck Hezbollah Israel Hermel South Lebanon

Israeli warplanes struck multiple sites across southern and eastern Lebanon on Thursday, targeting Hezbollah military infrastructure including a compound used for training and weapons storage, the IDF said. According to the Israeli army, the strikes dismantled militant infrastructure and launch sites where Hezbollah operatives underwent shooting ...

Israeli FM: Strikes on Hezbollah Don’t Breach Lebanon’s Sovereignty

This is Beirut, 17/12 20:50 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Gideon Saar Israel Lebanon

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said on Wednesday that Israeli strikes against Hezbollah do not constitute a violation of Lebanon’s sovereignty, arguing instead that the Iran-backed group is the primary factor undermining its sovereignty. In an interview with Al Arabiya English, Saar said Israel has only “minor” disputes ...

Yacoubian Defends “Gap Law” as Depositors Decry Losses

This is Beirut, 17/12 20:00 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Paula Yacoubian Banks Lebanon

In a video shared by the page El Haweyah, MP Paula Yacoubian defended the so-called “gap law” bill, presenting it as an indispensable reform and an “achievement” of Nawaf Salam’s government in the context of a prospective agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). According to her, the bill would constitute the third ...

Israeli Drone Strike Hits Kfarkila as Lebanese Army Probes Tunnel Claims

This is Beirut, 17/12 18:50 - Reading : less than a minute

Israel Lebanon Hezbollah Tunnels

An Israeli drone strike hit Sari Hill on Thursday afternoon, targeting the area between the villages of Aaziyé and Chakhroub in the Kfarkila region of southern Lebanon. Separately, the Lebanese army dispatched earth-moving equipment to the southern town of Touline at the request of the coordination mechanism, after Israel alleged the ...

From Rockets to Reels: Iran and Hezbollah’s Fight for Survival through Propaganda

Salam El Zaatari, 17/12 18:40 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Hezbollah Hassan Nasrallah Lebanon Israel Palestine Iran

After the 2024 Israel–Hezbollah war, Iran and its main regional proxy faced a grim reality. Hezbollah survived the war, but its top leadership had been assassinated, much of its arsenal destroyed, thousands of its fighters killed, and it was forced to retreat from south of the Litani. In response, Iran and Hezbollah have shifted from kinetic ...

Decisive Paris Meeting: Can the Lebanese Army Deliver?

Natasha Metni Torbey, 17/12 13:55 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Lebanese Army Lebanon Hezbollah Joseph Aoun France Litani

On Thursday in Paris, one of the most sensitive moments in Lebanon’s current diplomatic timeline will unfold. A closed-door meeting on the Lebanese Armed Forces’ (LAF) needs will bring together the army’s commander-in-chief, General Rodolph Haykal; US Special Envoy Morgan Ortagus; Saudi envoy Prince Yazid bin Farhan; France’s special envoy ...

Lebanon