BEIRUT: With Ramadan, the Muslim holy month of daytime fasting, coinciding this year with the latter half of Lent, the Christian season of personal sacrifice leading up to Easter, the Lebanese people face additional challenges during this time but remain hopeful of better days ahead.
For Muslims, obtaining essential food supplies required for iftar, the evening meal with which they break their fast each evening during Ramadan, places additional burdens on many families already facing hardship as a result of the long-running economic crisis in the country, during which the currency has lost about 95 percent of its value.
More recently the fear of an escalation of Hezbollah’s conflict with Israel in southern Lebanon, and the effect it is having on local agriculture, has added another dimension to the crisis.
Fattoush salad, an iftar staple, now costs the equivalent of about $10, as do basic meat dishes, as a result of a lack of official regulation of prices. The cost of a lettuce is more than 130,000 Lebanese pounds ($1.46), packs of other greens are 80,000 pounds and 1 kilogram of onions costs 160,000 pounds.
Vendors say demand is high but supply is low, in part because it is difficult for farmers to work their fields in the south of the country because of cross-border fighting.
“Everything is now priced in US dollars,” said Fatima Al-Masri as she shopped for produce at a vegetable market in Tarik Al-Jadidah, Beirut.
“What about those who are paid in Lebanese pounds? On normal days, our salaries are entirely spent on the first week of the month, let alone during Ramadan.
“Without receiving food boxes containing essential items, such as rice, sugar, oil and cereal, from benevolent people, we wouldn’t have been able to diversify our iftar meals amid the austerity.”
Ibrahim Tarchichi, head of the Bekaa Farmers Association, said cold weather and frost have affected crop yields in Bekaa Valley, pushing up the cost of farm produce. Prices are expected to drop as warmer weather arrives, he added.
“Additionally, there is a high demand for vegetables from both Christians, who depend on them for their fasting, and Muslims, who consider them key ingredients for their iftar meals,” Tarchichi said.
The economic crisis has forced many Lebanese to change their fasting habits during Ramadan in the past few years, especially those who were used to enjoying sweets, juices and pastries at iftar.
Aida, a 50-year-old mother of four young men, said the average cost of a Ramadan meal for her family of six is more than $30, or about 2.7 million Lebanese pounds.
The financial challenges have not only affected meal tables during Ramadan but also the traditional festive decorations that normally brighten up neighborhood streets during the holy month. They have been replaced by posters urging people to fulfill their charitable obligations during Ramadan through donations to help orphans, the sick and other needy people.
The Beirut Bkheir Association, for example, donates money to some mosques in Beirut to help facilitate Taraweeh prayers, a special evening prayer during Ramadan, in cooperation with Dar Al-Fatwa, Lebanon’s highest Sunni religious authority, and its affiliated institutions.
Beirut, like many coastal towns and cities in Beirut, bustles with shoppers during the day and cafes remain open until dawn during Ramadan. This contrasts sharply with the situation in southern border regions affected by the current conflict, however, where population centers have become ghost towns.
In addition to the effects of the political and financial crisis, Beirut is also still coming to terms with the devastating effects of the massive explosion at the city’s port on Aug. 4, 2020. In an attempt to revitalize the city, efforts are being made to attract and entertain people, from the breaking of the fast at iftar until late into the night.
Carts filled with dates, nuts and sweets line illuminated streets bustling with people walking around, chatting in cafes or listening to traditional Ramadan music. Again, an aspect of the festivities involves encouraging people to help others
Zeina Seif from the charitable Ajialouna organization said she sees these efforts during Ramadan as daily opportunities to help people who need medical treatment, provide assistance to the elderly, or empower women.
“Our concern is to help people and revitalize Beirut’s struggling downtown area,” she said. “The situation in the south is difficult and scary but we have relied on God and decided to take the step, and we are working based on Islamic ethics.”
A Ramadan village has been established in Beirut’s city center to bring a spirit of tranquility to the streets. A few hundred yards away, a Ramadan square was set up at the Forum De Beyrouth, which faces the port and was destroyed by the 2020 explosion. Now it has become a gathering point for artists and craftspeople to exhibit their work, a place for Ramadan celebrations, and a food market.
Still, for many people Ramadan is a challenging time as they struggle to make ends meet. When Ramadan began, commentators in traditional and social media urged people who can afford more extravagant iftars and celebrations to refrain from posting pictures of them online, out of respect for those who are hungry, especially Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.
Meanwhile tourism experts said that the Israeli escalation of its military operations at the start of Ramadan, targeting areas deep inside Lebanon, has caused many tourists to cancel planned trips to Lebanon during the holy month and Eid holidays.
Jean Abboud, head of the Association of Travel and Tourist Agents in Lebanon, said the sector is “waiting for a ceasefire on the southern border. If security stabilizes, the tourist movement will be better.”
Despite the challenges Beirut comes alive during Ramadan as Lebanese pray for peace
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Despite the challenges Beirut comes alive during Ramadan as Lebanese pray for peace
- Obtaining food for iftar, the daily fast-breaking meal during the holy month, places additional burdens on families already suffering due to the economic crisis in the country
- The fear of escalation of Hezbollah’s conflict with Israel in southern Lebanon, and the effect it is having on local agriculture, adds another dimension to the crisis
Activist Gaza aid boat slams Israel ‘threat’
ROME: International activists seeking to sail an aid boat to Gaza condemned Wednesday what they called Israel’s threats and “declared intent to attack” their vessel as it crosses the Mediterranean.
Israel’s military said Tuesday it was ready to “protect” the country’s seas, after the vessel — the Madleen, sailed by the Freedom Flotilla Coalition — left Sicily on Sunday carrying around a dozen people, including environmental activist Greta Thunberg.
“The navy operates day and night to protect Israel’s maritime space and borders at sea,” army spokesman Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin said.
Asked about the aid vessel, he said: “For this case as well, we are prepared.”
He added: “We have gained experience in recent years, and we will act accordingly.”
In a statement on Wednesday, the activist coalition said it “strongly condemns Israel’s declared intent to attack Madleen,” calling it a “threat.”
“Madleen carries humanitarian aid and international human rights defenders in direct challenge to Israel’s illegal, decades-long blockade, and ongoing genocide” in Gaza, it said.
Israel has come under increasing international criticism over the dire humanitarian situation in the Palestinian territory, where the United Nations warned in May that the entire population was at risk of famine.
The Freedom Flotilla Coalition, launched in 2010, is an international movement supporting Palestinians, combining humanitarian aid with political protest against the blockade on Gaza.
The Madleen is a small sailboat reportedly carrying fruit juices, milk, rice, tinned food and protein bars.
In early May, the Freedom Flotilla ship Conscience was damaged in international waters off Malta as it headed to Gaza, with the activists saying they suspected an Israeli drone attack.
The coalition said that on Tuesday evening, off the coast of the Greek island of Crete, the Madleen “was approached and circled by a drone, followed, several hours later by two additional drones.”
It said it was later informed these were surveillance drones operated by the Greek coast guard, EU border agency Frontex or both.
Israel recently eased a more than two-month blockade on war-ravaged Gaza, but the aid community has urged it to allow in more food, faster.
IAEA head in Damascus to discuss nuclear power
- The IAEA has urged Syria repeatedly to cooperate fully with the agency in connection to a suspected nuclear reactor at the Deir Ezzor desert site
DAMASCUS: UN nuclear watchdog head Rafael Grossi said Wednesday his agency and Syrian authorities would begin “exploring the possibility of nuclear power,” on his first visit to Damascus since the ouster of Bashar Assad.
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has repeatedly been at loggerheads with Syria in the past over what it says are “unresolved issues” regarding suspected nuclear activities.
On his visit, the IAEA chief met with Syrian President Ahmed Al-Sharaa and Foreign Minister Asaad Al-Shaibani.
“Honoured to meet Syrian President Ahmed Al-Sharaa in Damascus. I recognize his courage in cooperating with full transparency to close a chapter of Syria’s past that diverted resources necessary for development,” Grossi said in a post on X.
He said the two sides “will also begin exploring the possibility of nuclear power in Syria.”
“Our cooperation is key to closing outstanding issues and focusing on the much needed help IAEA can provide Syria in health and agriculture,” he added.
The IAEA has urged Syria repeatedly to cooperate fully with the agency in connection to a suspected nuclear reactor at the Deir Ezzor desert site.
Israel in 2018 admitted carrying out a top-secret air raid in 2007 against what it said was a nuclear reactor under construction at the site in eastern Syria.
Syria had denied it was building a nuclear reactor.
Grossi visited Damascus in March last year, meeting then president Assad who was overthrown in December after nearly 14 years of civil war.
Grossi told an IAEA Board of Governors meeting in March this year that he had requested Syria’s cooperation to “fulfil our obligation to verify nuclear material and facilities” and to “address unresolved issues.”
“Clarifying these issues remains essential to Syria demonstrating its commitment to nuclear non-proliferation and international peace and security,” he said at the time.
Sudan’s former premier Hamdok says recent military gains won’t end the war
MARRAKECH: Sudan’s former prime minister on Wednesday dismissed the military’s moves to form a new government as “fake,” saying its recent victories in recapturing the capital Khartoum and other territory will not end the country’s two-year civil war.
Abdalla Hamdok said no military victory, in Khartoum or elsewhere, could end the war that has killed tens of thousands and driven millions from their homes.
“Whether Khartoum is captured or not captured, it’s irrelevant,” Hamdok said on the sidelines of the Mo Ibrahim Foundation’s governance conference in Morocco.
“There is no military solution to this. No side will be able to have outright victory.”
Hamdok became Sudan’s first civilian prime minister after decades of military rule in 2019, trying to lead a democratic transition. He resigned in January 2022 after a turbulent stretch in which he was ousted in a coup and briefly reinstated amid international pressure.
The following year, warring generals plunged the country into civil war. Sudan today bears the grim distinction of being home to some of the world’s worst humanitarian crises.
Fighting between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces has left at least 24,000 dead, though many believe the true toll is far worse.
Both sides stand accused of war crimes.
The RSF, with roots in Darfur’s notorious Janjaweed militia, has been accused of carrying out genocide. The army is accused of unleashing chemical weapons and targeting civilians where they live.
The war has driven about 13 million people from their homes, including 4 million who have crossed into neighboring countries. Famine is setting in and cholera is sweeping through.
The military recaptured the Khartoum area from the RSF in March, as well as some surrounding territory. Army chief Gen. Abdel-Fattah Al-Burhan has framed the advances as a major turning point in the conflict.
Last month, he appointed a new prime minister, Kamil Al-Taib Idris, for the first time since the war began, tasked with forming a new government. But the fighting has continued.
The RSF has regrouped in its stronghold in Darfur and made advances elsewhere, including in Kordofan.
Hamdok, a 69-year-old former economist who now leads a civilian coalition from exile, called the idea that the conflict was drawing down “total nonsense.” The idea that reconstruction can begin in Khartoum while fighting rages elsewhere is “absolutely ridiculous,” he said.
“Any attempt at creating a government in Sudan today is fake. It is irrelevant,” he said, arguing that lasting peace can’t be secured without addressing the root causes of the war.
Hamdok said a ceasefire and a credible process to restore democratic, civilian rule would need to confront Sudan’s deep inequalities, including uneven development, issues among different identity groups and questions about the role of religion in government.
“Trusting the soldiers to bring democracy is a false pretense,” he added.
Though rooted in longstanding divisions, the war has been supercharged by foreign powers accused of arming both sides.
Pro-democracy groups, including Hamdok’s Somoud coalition, have condemned atrocities committed by both the army and the RSF.
“What we would like to see is anybody who is supplying arms to any side to stop,” he said.
Egypt says the sovereignty of a famous monastery is assured
- Egypt’s foreign minister assured his Greek counterpart that the spiritual and religious value of Saint Catherine Monastery will be preserved
CAIRO: Egypt says the sovereignty of a famous monastery is assured.
Egypt’s foreign minister on Wednesday told his Greek counterpart that the spiritual and religious value of the Saint Catherine Monastery and surrounding archaeological sites will be preserved. That’s according to a statement.
The Greek Orthodox Church had been concerned after an administrative court said the state owns the land but affirmed the monks’ right to use the site.
The Patriarchate of Jerusalem last week expressed concern and said “it is our sacred obligation to ensure that Christian worship continues on this holy ground, as it has done for 17 centuries.” It acknowledged Egypt’s assurances there would be no infringement.
Egypt’s presidency last week said the ruling consolidates the state’s commitment to preserve the monastery’s religious status.
UN calls for probe into Libya mass graves
- UN rights chief ‘shocked’ as dozens of bodies discovered in a section of Libyan capital run by armed militia
GENEVA: The UN human rights office called on Wednesday for an independent investigation into the discovery of mass graves at detention centers in Libya’s capital Tripoli.
It expressed concerns about the discovery of dozens of bodies, some charred and buried and others in hospital refrigerators, in an area of Libya’s capital controlled by an armed militia whose leader was killed last month.
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk said he was shocked by revelations that gross rights violations were uncovered at detention facilities in Tripoli run by the Stabilization Support Authority, or SSA, an armed group whose commander, Abdel-Ghani Al-Kikli, was killed in militia fighting in mid-May.
It was established to uphold the rule of law and falls under the Presidential Council that came to power in 2021 with the Government of National Unity of Abdul Hamid Dbeibah through a UN-backed process.
The rights office said it later received information on the excavation of 10 charred bodies at the SSA headquarters in the Abu Salim neighborhood and another 67 bodies discovered in refrigerators in the Abu Salim and Al-Khadra Hospitals.
It also cited reports of a burial site at the Tripoli Zoo that was run by the SSA.
The office said the identities of the bodies were not immediately clear. “Our worst-held fears are being confirmed: Dozens of bodies have been discovered at these sites, along with the discovery of suspected instruments of torture and abuse, and potential evidence of extrajudicial killings,” Türk said in a statement.
Türk called on authorities to seal the area to preserve evidence and said there needed to be accountability for the killings. He said the UN should be granted access to the sites to document rights violations.
Libya, a major oil producer in the Mediterranean, has known little law and order since a 2011 NATO-backed uprising that toppled dictator Muammar Qaddafi and eventually divided the country between warring eastern and western factions.
The rights body said the discovery of dozens of bodies and suspected instruments of torture and abuse confirmed longstanding findings by the UN that human rights violations were committed at such sites.
“We call on the Libyan authorities to conduct independent, impartial and transparent investigations into these discoveries,” it said in a statement. It urged the authorities to preserve evidence and grant Libya’s forensic teams, as well as the United Nations, full access to the sites.
Outright war fighting in Libya abated with a ceasefire in 2020. However, efforts to end the political crisis have failed, with major factions occasionally joining forces in armed clashes and competing for control over Libya’s substantial energy resources.
Armed clashes erupted on Monday evening and gunfire echoed in the center and other parts of Tripoli following reports that the commander of one of its most powerful armed groups had been killed, three residents said by phone.
