The Daily Star BEIRUT: Final preparations were made Monday for the launch of National Dialogue sessions in Parliament this week, but the prospects of a breakthrough appear small as rival groups set conditions on the all-inclusive talks. A roundtable was placed in the Parliament hall where Speaker Nabih Berri will host the talks Wednesday. It… اقرأ المزيد
BEIRUT: A much-anticipated national dialogue to break the 15-month presidential stalemate and get Parliament and the government functioning appeared to be in trouble Sunday with Hezbollah upholding its support for MP Michel Aoun’s presidential bid, and Lebanese Forces chief Samir Geagea dismissing the talks as “a waste of time.” Speaker Nabih Berri’s initiative for all-inclusive… اقرأ المزيد
Now that President Barack Obama has secured more than enough votes in the U.S. Senate to assure the implementation of the agreement with Iran on nuclear issues and sanctions, we can focus on the lessons learned from the process’ intense political dynamics. These dynamics have affected three relationships: that between the United States and Israel;… اقرأ المزيد
Hussein DakroubPia Francis| The Daily Star BEIRUT: Thousands of Free Patriotic Movement supporters flooded into Martyrs’ Square in Downtown Beirut Friday to exert pressure on the government to meet the party’s demands for a bigger Christian say in running the country’s affairs. The massive demonstration was the latest in the FPM’s stepped-up campaign against the… اقرأ المزيد
BEIRUT: Riot police, using batons, cleared “You Stink” campaign protesters from the Environment Ministry in Downtown Beirut Tuesday night, ending some nine hours of blockade by activists who staged a sit-in calling for the minister’s resignation over the protracted trash crisis. At least seven people were injured in the scuffles that erupted between riot police… اقرأ المزيد
The month of August marked a dramatic moment in modern Lebanese history, when tens of thousands of ordinary citizens broke free from their sectarian political anchorage and challenged the state to perform more efficiently and equitably. This might be seen in retrospect as the moment when we first saw the birth pangs of the Lebanese… اقرأ المزيد