Lebanon’s parliament session halted as dispute over capital control bill widens

The Lebanese parliament’s session was adjourned on Wednesday after protesting depositors threw stones at deputies and insulted them for continuing to discuss the capital control bill. (AFP/File)
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Updated 20 April 2022
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Lebanon’s parliament session halted as dispute over capital control bill widens

  • Country’s health system on verge of collapse, UNICEF official warns
  • Deputy parliament speaker rams protesters with his car

BEIRUT: The Lebanese parliament’s session was adjourned on Wednesday after protesting depositors threw stones at deputies and insulted them for continuing to discuss the capital control bill.

The government amended the draft bill and sent it to parliament for a second time, but no agreement was reached and the session was cut short.

Formal capital controls are an International Monetary Fund policy recommendation, and Lebanon hopes to secure an IMF aid package after its financial system imploded in 2019, paralyzing the banking system and freezing depositors out of their US dollar accounts.

Some politicians from the Lebanese Forces Party and the Free Patriotic Movement refused to discuss the draft law before reviewing the “economic recovery plan,” which they say “is trying to swallow up the rights of depositors.”

George Adwan, the head of the Parliamentary Administration and Justice Committee, said: “The plan will write off $60 billion of debt, and the depositors will bear the losses.”

He called for “a plan that defines responsibilities first, and then searches for capital control,” adding that any research “outside the path of determining responsibilities and distributing losses means taking the country into the unknown.”

Ibrahim Kanaan, head of the Parliamentary Budget Finance Committee, said: “How can we freeze the deposits while we do not know what is left of them? People have rights that must be preserved. The depositor should not be held responsible for the state’s wear and tear, but rather the Bank of Lebanon, private banks and the state.”

Meanwhile, Elie Ferzli, the deputy parliament speaker, defied depositors who were protesting in the street by ramming them with his car as he drove into the parliament courtyard. They responded by throwing stones and shouting at him. Footage of the incident went viral on social media.

As he was leaving the meeting hall, Ferzli mocked the protesters, telling a journalist he was “ready to do it again.”

At a press conference after the session, the deputy speaker said: “Parliament is one of the staunch defenders of the rights of depositors, and there is an article in the draft law that establishes exceptional and temporary controls on bank transfers and cash withdrawals that do not prejudice the rights of depositors or the assets of their deposits.”

Economics expert Dr. Jassim Ajaka told Arab News: “There is a kind of chaos and political confusion in dealing with the issue of depositors’ money, and it seems that the state has abandoned its responsibilities.

“I have read the economic recovery plan many times and did not find in it any guarantee of the rights of depositors of $100,000 or less, in the various proposed formats. The depositors’ money is not protected, and in return, there is an exoneration of the state from all previous crimes.”

Ajaka said that if all the assets of the banks were sold, the returns would not cover the value of the deposits.

Commenting on Ferzli’s actions, he said: “How during the 2017 uprising, no MP dared to challenge the protesters, but today they seem unconcerned as if they are telling people: Nothing will change.”

The requirement to approve a capital control law is a prerequisite for the IMF to proceed with its cooperation program with the Lebanese government.

Meanwhile, Ettie Higgins, UNICEF acting representative in Lebanon, warned in a statement that the country’s health system had reached the point of collapse because of multiple crises, and that many families no longer had access to primary healthcare for their children.

“A massive exodus of health workers, with the stagnation of the recruitment process from health institutions in the country, and restrictions on the import of medicines and medical equipment seriously affected the quality of healthcare for women and children,” she said.

“The routine vaccination of children decreased by 31 percent, which exposes them to diseases and their dangerous effects.”


Turkiye’s Kurdish region finds it difficult to accept peace is at hand

Updated 5 sec ago
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Turkiye’s Kurdish region finds it difficult to accept peace is at hand

  • Conflict has caused 50,000 deaths among civilians and 2,000 among soldiers

HAKKARI, Turkiye: Southeast Turkiye, where the army has battled Kurdish militants for decades, is not yet convinced that lasting peace is at hand.

In a slickly managed ceremony recently held across the border in Iraq, members of the Kurdish rebel group PKK destroyed their weapons as part of a peace process underway with the Turkish state.

But on the streets and in the tea houses of Hakkari, a Kurdish-majority town some 50 kilometers from the Iraqi border, few people express much hope that the deadly conflict is over.

One tea drinker who was willing to speak asked not to be filmed. “We don’t talk about it,” he said.

The conflict has caused 50,000 deaths among civilians and 2,000 among soldiers, according to Turkiye’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Mehmet Duman, a local, said: “The state must take a step” to match the symbolic operation to destroy PKK weapons in Iraq.

“Turkiye has won,” Erdogan said Saturday, a day after the PKK’s symbolic destruction of weapons signaling the start of the disarmament process. “Eighty-six million citizens have won,” he added.

While he has opened a peace process with the PKK, or Kurdistan Workers’ Party, he has also continued his crackdown on opposition parties.

The government has arrested hundreds of members of the CHP, a social-democratic, secular party. The main opposition force to Erdogan, it is rising in the polls.

Those arrested include the mayor of Istanbul, Ekrem Imamoglu, the party’s likely candidate in the next presidential elections, and the mayors of other major cities who took power when CHP made major gains in March 2024 local elections.

Accused of “corruption,” they deny the charges against them. The crackdown has also hit opposition media outlets, such as the Sozcu channel. 

On Saturday morning, before the plenary session of his AKP party, Erdogan sought to be reassuring.

“We know what we are doing. No one should worry, be afraid, or question anything. Everything we are doing is for Turkiye, for our future and our independence,” he insisted.

The PKK announced in May that it would disband and renounce armed conflict. The move came after PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan, who has been imprisoned on an island near Istanbul since 1999, urged his group in February to convene a congress, and formally disband and disarm.

Ocalan renewed his call in a video message broadcast on Wednesday, saying, “I believe in the power of politics and social peace, not weapons.”

The PKK issued a statement from the fighters who were laying down their weapons, saying that they had disarmed “as a gesture of goodwill and a commitment to the practical success” of the peace process.

“We will henceforth continue our struggle for freedom, democracy, and socialism through democratic politics and legal means,” the statement said.

Turkish parliamentary Speaker Numan Kurtulmus said that the initial disarmament step had proceeded “as planned,” but cautioned that the process was far from complete.

“There’s still a long way to go in collecting many more weapons,” Kurtulmus said. “What matters is ending the armed era in a way that ensures weapons are never taken up again.”

The official noted that the Turkish parliament was close to setting up a commission to oversee the peace process.

Devlet Bahceli, Erdogan’s nationalist ally who initiated the peace process, welcomed the ceremony, saying it marks “historic developments that signal the end of a dark era.”


UAE, Turkish presidents reaffirm support for regional stability

Updated 23 min 6 sec ago
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UAE, Turkish presidents reaffirm support for regional stability

  • Al-Nahyan, Erdogan discuss regional, international issues in phone call
  • Talks reflect strong ties between Ankara, Abu Dhabi

LONDON: UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan discussed recent developments in the Middle East with his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, on Sunday.

During a telephone call the leaders emphasized their countries’ commitment to supporting all efforts that promote peace and stability in the region, the Emirates News Agency reported.

They emphasized the need for improved coordination to tackle regional crises through dialogue and diplomacy, which they said was essential for achieving lasting peace and stability.

The call reflects the close ties and economic partnership between Ankara and Abu Dhabi and strong cooperation in various sectors.


Syrian Kurdish authorities reiterate call for autonomy after Damascus meeting

Updated 17 min 38 sec ago
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Syrian Kurdish authorities reiterate call for autonomy after Damascus meeting

  • The Kurdish administration said Syrians ‘have suffered for decades from a centralized’ regime and called for a decentralized and democratic system
  • The Kurds control vast swathes of territory in Syria’s north, including oil and gas fields

DAMASCUS: Syria’s Kurdish authorities called again on Sunday for a system of government that preserves a measure of their de facto autonomy, days after Damascus rejected “any form” of decentralization.
Mazloum Abdi of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) — the Kurdish administration’s de facto army — and interim President Ahmed Al-Sharaa first struck an accord in March to integrate Kurdish institutions into the state, but its implementation has been held up by differences between the two parties.
The pair met again on Wednesday in the presence of a US envoy to discuss the stalled efforts, but Damascus afterwards reiterated its opposition to “any form of division or federalization,” and called for SDF fighters to be absorbed into the army.
In a statement Sunday, the Kurdish administration called “for a pluralistic democratic system, social justice, gender equality, and a constitution that guarantees the rights of all components” of society.
“Syrians have suffered for decades from a centralized system that monopolized power and wealth, suppressed local will, and dragged the country into successive crises,” it said.
“Today, we aspire to be effective partners in building a new Syria, a decentralized Syria that embraces all its people and guarantees their rights equally.”
The Kurds control vast swathes of territory in Syria’s north, including oil and gas fields.
Kurdish forces, with the support of a Washington-led coalition, played a vital role in the fight against the Daesh group in Syria, which ultimately led to the jihadist group’s territorial defeat.
In an interview with the channel Kurdistan 24 on Wednesday, US ambassador to Turkiye and special envoy to Syria Tom Barrack said that while he recognized the SDF’s role in the fight against the IS group, it had to accept the “reality” that “the only future path for them is Damascus.”


Clashes in predominantly Druze Syrian city kill 18: monitor

Members of Syria’s security forces deploy in an area near the Syrian capital Damascus. (File/AFP)
Updated 56 min 37 sec ago
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Clashes in predominantly Druze Syrian city kill 18: monitor

  • Sweida Governor Mustapha Al-Bakur called on his constituents to ‘exercise self-restraint and respond to national calls for reform’
  • Syria’s Druze population numbers around 700,000, with Sweida home to the sect’s largest community

DAMASCUS: Clashes between Bedouin tribes and local fighters in the predominantly Druze city of Sweida in southern Syria killed 18 people, a war monitor said Sunday, as authorities sent forces to de-escalate the situation.
The clashes are the first outbreak of deadly violence in the area since fighting between members of the Druze community and the security forces killed dozens of people in April and May.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said at least 18 people had been killed, 14 of them Druze including a child and four of them Bedouin.
Local outlet Sweida 24 gave a preliminary toll of 10 people killed and 50 wounded across both sides. The outlet also reported the closure of the Damascus-Sweida highway due to the violence.
A Syrian government source, who asked to remain anonymous as they were not allowed to brief the media, told AFP that authorities were sending forces to de-escalate the situation.
Sweida Governor Mustapha Al-Bakur called on his constituents to “exercise self-restraint and respond to national calls for reform.”
Syria’s Druze population numbers around 700,000, with Sweida home to the sect’s largest community.
Bedouin and Druze factions have a longstanding feud in Sweida, with violence occasionally erupting between the two.
Since the overthrow of longtime Syrian ruler Bashar Assad, concerns have been raised over the rights and safety of minorities under the new authorities, who have also struggled to re-establish security more broadly.
Clashes between the new security forces and Druze fighters in April and May killed dozens of people, with local leaders and religious figures signing agreements to contain the escalation and better integrate Druze fighters into the new government.


Dubai Police extradite three Interpol most-wanted suspects to Belgium

Updated 13 July 2025
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Dubai Police extradite three Interpol most-wanted suspects to Belgium

  • The three Belgian nationals, Mathias Akyazili, Giorgi Faes, and Othman El-Ballouti, were apprehended in Dubai

DUBAI: Dubai Police have arrested and extradited three high-profile suspects wanted by Belgian authorities in connection with serious cases of cross-border organized crime, following a coordinated international effort involving Interpol and Europol, it was announced on Sunday.

The three Belgian nationals, Mathias Akyazili, Giorgi Faes, and Othman El-Ballouti, were apprehended in Dubai after Interpol red notices were issued against them, the Emirates News Agency reported.

All three were listed as most-wanted individuals by Interpol and Europol.

The suspects face multiple serious charges in Belgium, including operating a notorious gang, trafficking narcotic and psychotropic substances, robbery, and human trafficking.

The operation was led by Dubai Police’s General Department of Criminal Investigation in collaboration with the UAE Ministry of Interior, WAM added.

“Such coordinated efforts support the strengthening of a strong global security framework that confronts criminal activity with full force while promoting the exchange of international expertise and best practices in policing,” a Dubai Police spokesperson said.

It followed international arrest warrants submitted by Belgian authorities to the International Cooperation Department at the UAE Ministry of Justice, the designated central authority for handling such requests.

The transfer was authorized by the Dubai Court of Cassation, in accordance with bilateral agreements between the UAE and Belgium.

Upon the suspects’ arrival in Belgium on July 13, Abdullah bin Sultan Al-Nuaimi, UAE minister of justice, and his Belgian counterpart Annelies Verlinden held a phone call to discuss the extradition.

During the call, both ministers emphasized that the successful operation reflected a shared commitment to the rule of law, international judicial cooperation, and combating transnational organized crime and drugs-related violence, WAM reported.

Verlinden thanked UAE authorities for their support, adding that the extraditions were “a testament to the deepening legal partnership between the UAE and Belgium” and “to their shared determination to ensure that individuals accused of serious crimes are brought to justice.”

She commended the role of the UAE’s judicial and law enforcement institutions throughout the extradition process and also praised the emirates’ ongoing cooperation in line with the extradition treaties signed between the two countries in December 2021, which came into force in November 2022.

Al-Nuaimi reaffirmed the UAE’s commitment to enhancing bilateral judicial collaboration and also stressed the importance of international cooperation in tackling global crime and ensuring justice through strong legal frameworks.