Gaza war to throw Lebanon back into recession: World Bank/node/2429806/middle-east
Gaza war to throw Lebanon back into recession: World Bank
A picture taken from inside a damaged building shows the aftermath of an Israeli bombardment in Lebanon’s southern village of Markaba near the border with Israel on Dec. 20, 2023. (Photo by AFP)
Gaza war to throw Lebanon back into recession: World Bank
Lebanon’s southern border has seen regular exchanges of fire, mainly between the Israeli army and Hamas ally Hezbollah
The impact of the conflict had reversed a slight recovery for Lebanon
Updated 21 December 2023
AFP
BEIRUT: The impacts of the Israel-Hamas war are set to push crisis-hit Lebanon’s economy back into recession, the World Bank said Thursday, blaming mainly a “shock to tourism spending.”
Lebanon’s southern border has seen regular exchanges of fire, mainly between the Israeli army and Hamas ally Hezbollah, since the Gaza conflict erupted on October 7.
The impact of the conflict had reversed a slight recovery for Lebanon, which has battled a deep economic crisis for years, the Washington-based bank said in a report.
“Prior to October 2023, economic growth was projected — for the first time since 2018 — to slightly expand in 2023,” by 0.2 percent, the World Bank said.
It attributed the positive pre-war expectations mainly to summer tourism and remittances from the large Lebanese diaspora.
But, it added, “the current conflict and its spillovers into Lebanon are expected to quickly reverse the tepid growth projected for 2023, as the economy returns to a recession.”
The economy will contract “primarily due to the shock to tourism spending,” the report said.
More than half of travel reservations to Lebanon have been canceled for winter holidays, the World Bank said, warning that “tourism cannot, on its own, serve as the basis for an economic recovery.”
Real gross domestic product is expected to decline “to between minus 0.6 percent to minus 0.9 percent depending on the extent of the tourism shock,” it added.
Lebanon’s economy collapsed in late 2019, plunging most of the population into poverty, according to the United Nations.
Bickering politicians, widely accused of corruption, have been unable to agree on measures to save the economy, or even on selecting a new head of state.
Lebanon has been governed by a caretaker government with limited powers and without a president for more than a year as lawmakers have repeatedly failed to elect a new leader.
Israel carries out raids on ‘dozens’ of Hezbollah targets in Lebanon: IDF
Updated 3 sec ago
JERUSALEM: The Israeli military said on Sunday it conducted strikes against “dozens” of Hezbollah targets in Lebanon, two days after an air strike killed the group’s chief Hassan Nasrallah. The Israel Defense Forces “attacked dozens of terrorist targets in the territory of Lebanon in the last few hours,” the army said in a statement on Telegram. The statement said the strikes targeted “buildings where weapons and military structures of the organization were stored.” Israel has attacked “hundreds” of Hezbollah targets in the last day, it added, as it aims to disable the group. On Friday, an Israeli air strike on a suburb of Beirut killed Hezbollah’s longtime leader Nasrallah, sparking fears of an all-out war in the region. More than 700 people have been killed in Israeli strikes on Lebanon, according to health ministry figures, since the bombardment of Hezbollah strongholds began earlier this month. Hezbollah began low-intensity cross-border strikes on Israeli troops a day after its Palestinian ally Hamas staged its unprecedented attack on Israel on October 7, triggering war in the Gaza Strip.
Killing of Hezbollah chief Nasrallah by Israel sparks condemnation
UN chief Antonio Guterres says “gravely concerned” with escalation of events in Beirut
Iran’s foreign ministry says Hassan Nasrallah’s work will continue long after his death
Updated 29 September 2024
AFP
PARIS: Israel’s foes vowed revenge on Saturday after Iran-backed Lebanese militant group Hezbollah announced its longtime leader Hassan Nasrallah was killed in an Israeli air strike on a suburb of Beirut.
Several world powers also warned of the killing’s potential repercussions, as the spectre of all-out war looms over the Middle East.
United Nations chief Antonio Guterres said he was “gravely concerned by the dramatic escalation of events in Beirut in the last 24 hours.”
Palestinian militant group Hamas, whose unprecedented October 7 attack on Israel sparked the devastating war in Gaza that drew in fellow Iran-backed groups including Hezbollah, called Nasrallah’s killing “a cowardly terrorist act.”\
“We condemn in the strongest terms this barbaric Zionist aggression and targeting of residential buildings,” Hamas said in a statement.
Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas offered his “deep condolences” to Lebanon for the deaths of Nasrallah and civilians, who “fell as a result of the brutal Israeli aggression,” according to a statement from his office.
First Vice President Mohammad Reza Aref warned Israel that Nasrallah’s death would “bring about their destruction,” Iran’s ISNA news agency quoted him as saying.
The foreign ministry of Iran, which finances and arms Hezbollah, said Nasrallah’s work will continue after his death. “His sacred goal will be realized in the liberation of Quds (Jerusalem), God willing,” spokesman Nasser Kanani posted on X.
Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei announced five days of public mourning.
Iranians protest in Tehran's Palestine Square on September 28, 2024, after the Iran-backed Lebanese Hezbollah group confirmed reports of the killing of its leader Hassan Nasrallah in an Israeli air strike in Beirut the previous day. (AFP)
Russia’s foreign ministry said “we decisively condemn the latest political murder carried out by Israel” and urged it to “immediately cease military action” in Lebanon.
Israel would “bear full responsibility” for the “tragic” consequences the killing could bring to the region, the ministry added in a statement.
The Iran-backed Yemeni rebels, who have been firing on ships in the Red Sea in solidarity with Hamas, said in a statement that Nasrallah’s killing “will increase the flame of sacrifice, the heat of enthusiasm, the strength of resolve” against Israel, with their leader vowing Nasrallah’s death “will not be in vain.”
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, whose country maintains diplomatic relations with Israel but who has been a sharp critic of its offensive in Gaza, said on X that Lebanon was being subjected to a “genocide,” without referring directly to Nasrallah.
In a post on X, Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel called the killing a “cowardly targeted assassination” that “seriously threatens regional and global peace and security, for which Israel bears full responsibility with the complicity of the United States.”
Greek Catholic Archmandrite Abdullah Yulio (C-R) join marchers in the city of Ramallah in the occupied West Bank on September 28, 2024, to protest the killing of Hassan Nasrallah in an Israeli air strike in Beirut the previous day. (AFP)
Mixed reactions from allies
As expected, US leaders welcomed Nasrallah's demise, with President Joe Biden calling it “a measure of justice for his many victims, including thousands of Americans, Israelis and Lebanese civilians.”
Washington supports Israel’s right to defend itself against “Iranian-supported terrorist groups” and the “defense posture” of US forces in the region would be “further enhanced,” Biden added in a statement.
Vice President Kamala Harris said Nasrallah was “a terrorist with American blood on his hands” and said she would “always support Israel’s right to defend itself against Iran and Iran-backed terrorist groups such as Hezbollah, Hamas, and the Houthis.”
Leading Republicans in the House of Representatives also welcomed the end of a “reign of bloodshed, oppression, and terror” by “one of the most brutal terrorists on the planet.”
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau described Nasrallah as “the leader of a terrorist organization that attacked and killed innocent civilians, causing immense suffering across the region.” But he called for more to be done to protect civilians in the conflict, adding: “We urge calm and restraint during this critical time.”
Argentine President Javier Milei reposted on X a message from a member of his council of economic advisers, David Epstein, who hailed the killing.
“Israel eliminated one of the greatest contemporary murderers. Responsible, among others, for the cowardly attacks in #ARG,” it said. “Today the world is a little freer.”
Other allies of Israel sang a different tune.
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock told ARD television that the killing “threatens destabilization for the whole of Lebanon,” which “is in no way in Israel’s security interest.”
UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy said in a post on X that he had spoken with the Lebanese premier.
“We agreed on the need for an immediate ceasefire to bring an end to the bloodshed. A diplomatic solution is the only way to restore security and stability for the Lebanese and Israeli people,” he said.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot demanded Israel “immediately stop its strikes in Lebanon” and said it was opposed to any ground operation in the country.
France also “calls on other actors, notably Hezbollah and Iran, to abstain from any action that could lead to additional destabilization and regional conflagration,” the foreign ministry said in a statement.
Killing of Hezbollah chief Nasrallah by Israel sparks condemnation
Iran promises to ensure that Nasrallah’s work will continue after his death
The elimination of Nasrallah “is in no way in Israel’s security interest,” says German minister
Updated 29 September 2024
AFP
PARIS: Israel’s foes vowed revenge on Saturday after Iran-backed Lebanese militant group Hezbollah announced its longtime leader Hassan Nasrallah was killed in an Israeli air strike on a suburb of Beirut.
Several world powers also warned of the killing’s potential repercussions, as the spectre of all-out war looms over the Middle East.
United Nations chief Antonio Guterres said he was “gravely concerned by the dramatic escalation of events in Beirut in the last 24 hours.”
Palestinian militant group Hamas, whose unprecedented October 7 attack on Israel sparked the devastating war in Gaza that drew in fellow Iran-backed groups including Hezbollah, called Nasrallah’s killing “a cowardly terrorist act.”\
“We condemn in the strongest terms this barbaric Zionist aggression and targeting of residential buildings,” Hamas said in a statement.
Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas offered his “deep condolences” to Lebanon for the deaths of Nasrallah and civilians, who “fell as a result of the brutal Israeli aggression,” according to a statement from his office.
First Vice President Mohammad Reza Aref warned Israel that Nasrallah’s death would “bring about their destruction,” Iran’s ISNA news agency quoted him as saying.
The foreign ministry of Iran, which finances and arms Hezbollah, said Nasrallah’s work will continue after his death. “His sacred goal will be realized in the liberation of Quds (Jerusalem), God willing,” spokesman Nasser Kanani posted on X.
Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei announced five days of public mourning.
Iranians protest in Tehran's Palestine Square on September 28, 2024, after the Iran-backed Lebanese Hezbollah group confirmed reports of the killing of its leader Hassan Nasrallah in an Israeli air strike in Beirut the previous day. (AFP)
Russia’s foreign ministry said “we decisively condemn the latest political murder carried out by Israel” and urged it to “immediately cease military action” in Lebanon.
Israel would “bear full responsibility” for the “tragic” consequences the killing could bring to the region, the ministry added in a statement.
The Iran-backed Yemeni rebels, who have been firing on ships in the Red Sea in solidarity with Hamas, said in a statement that Nasrallah’s killing “will increase the flame of sacrifice, the heat of enthusiasm, the strength of resolve” against Israel, with their leader vowing Nasrallah’s death “will not be in vain.”
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, whose country maintains diplomatic relations with Israel but who has been a sharp critic of its offensive in Gaza, said on X that Lebanon was being subjected to a “genocide,” without referring directly to Nasrallah.
In a post on X, Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel called the killing a “cowardly targeted assassination” that “seriously threatens regional and global peace and security, for which Israel bears full responsibility with the complicity of the United States.”
Greek Catholic Archmandrite Abdullah Yulio (C-R) join marchers in the city of Ramallah in the occupied West Bank on September 28, 2024, to protest the killing of Hassan Nasrallah in an Israeli air strike in Beirut the previous day. (AFP)
Mixed reactions from allies
As expected, US leaders welcomed Nasrallah's demise, with President Joe Biden calling it “a measure of justice for his many victims, including thousands of Americans, Israelis and Lebanese civilians.”
Washington supports Israel’s right to defend itself against “Iranian-supported terrorist groups” and the “defense posture” of US forces in the region would be “further enhanced,” Biden added in a statement.
Vice President Kamala Harris said Nasrallah was “a terrorist with American blood on his hands” and said she would “always support Israel’s right to defend itself against Iran and Iran-backed terrorist groups such as Hezbollah, Hamas, and the Houthis.”
Leading Republicans in the House of Representatives also welcomed the end of a “reign of bloodshed, oppression, and terror” by “one of the most brutal terrorists on the planet.”
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau described Nasrallah as “the leader of a terrorist organization that attacked and killed innocent civilians, causing immense suffering across the region.” But he called for more to be done to protect civilians in the conflict, adding: “We urge calm and restraint during this critical time.”
Argentine President Javier Milei reposted on X a message from a member of his council of economic advisers, David Epstein, who hailed the killing.
“Israel eliminated one of the greatest contemporary murderers. Responsible, among others, for the cowardly attacks in #ARG,” it said. “Today the world is a little freer.”
Other allies of Israel sang a different tune.
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock told ARD television that the killing “threatens destabilization for the whole of Lebanon,” which “is in no way in Israel’s security interest.”
UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy said in a post on X that he had spoken with the Lebanese premier.
“We agreed on the need for an immediate ceasefire to bring an end to the bloodshed. A diplomatic solution is the only way to restore security and stability for the Lebanese and Israeli people,” he said.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot demanded Israel “immediately stop its strikes in Lebanon” and said it was opposed to any ground operation in the country.
France also “calls on other actors, notably Hezbollah and Iran, to abstain from any action that could lead to additional destabilization and regional conflagration,” the foreign ministry said in a statement.
War monitor says 12 dead in strikes targeting pro-Iranian fighters in Syria
Israeli authorities rarely comment on individual strikes in Syria, but have repeatedly said they will not allow arch-enemy Iran to expand its presence there
Updated 29 September 2024
AFP
BEIRUT, Lebanon: Twelve pro-Iranian fighters have been killed in air strikes of unknown origin in eastern Syria, a war monitor said Sunday, adding that a large number of people were wounded.
“Twelve pro-Iranian fighters were killed in air strikes of unknown origin targeting their positions in the city of Deir Ezzor and to the east of the city, as well as the Boukamal region, near the border with Iraq,” said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
The strikes were not immediately claimed by any entity, according to the monitor.
Five of the strikes had targeted military positions near Deir Ezzor airport, it added.
Iran has been providing military aid to Syria since the civil war there began in 2011, while Israel has carried out hundreds of strikes targeting pro-Iranian groups in eastern Syria. The United States has also targeted such groups in the country’s east.
Israeli authorities rarely comment on individual strikes in Syria, but have repeatedly said they will not allow arch-enemy Iran to expand its presence there.
Israel has launched an intense bombing campaign against Hezbollah strongholds in Lebanon in recent days, intensifying fears of a regional war.
The Israeli army has also repeatedly targeted the movement’s arms supply routes on the Syrian-Lebanese border, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
US orders some Beirut embassy staff members to leave Lebanon
The advisory covered eligible family members as well as non-essential employees
“The US embassy strongly encourages US citizens in Southern Lebanon, near the borders with Syria, and or in refugee settlements to depart those areas immediately,” it said
Updated 29 September 2024
Reuters
WASHINGTON: The US Department of State on Saturday ordered some employees at its embassy in Beirut and their eligible family members to the leave Lebanon amid escalating tensions in the Middle East following the killing of Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah by Israel.
“US Embassy Beirut personnel are restricted from personal travel without advance permission,” the State Department said in a statement. “Additional travel restrictions may be imposed on US personnel under Chief of Mission security responsibility, with little to no notice due to increased security issues or threats.”
The advisory covered eligible family members as well as non-essential employees.
The State Department also urged Americans in the country to leave, warning the currently limited options to depart might become unavailable if the security situation worsened.
“The US embassy strongly encourages US citizens in Southern Lebanon, near the borders with Syria, and or in refugee settlements to depart those areas immediately,” it said.
