
World Bank Presents $1 Billion Program for Lebanon Reconstruction
The World Bank has presented a $1 billion program for the reconstruction of Lebanon, the Lebanese prime minister's office said in a statement on Wednesday.
The program would include $250 million as a loan, with the rest of the financing to come from international aid, it added.
The cost of reconstruction and recovery for Lebanon following the 14-month Israel-Hezbollah war is estimated at $11 billion, the World Bank said in a new report Friday.
The war killed over 4,000 people in Lebanon, displaced hundreds of thousands and caused widespread destruction in the nation.
The report by the World Bank's Lebanon Rapid Damage and Needs Assessment covered damage and losses in ten sectors across the country from Oct. 8, 2023 until Dec. 20, 2024.
A US-brokered ceasefire went into effect in late November.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Leaders
an hour ago
- Leaders
Protesters Gather in Rome for Immediate End to Gaza War
Italy's main opposition parties urged tens of thousands of people to demonstrate through the streets of Rome on Saturday against Israel's war in Gaza, according to the Associated Press. Wide Participation The protests came in a crucial time when opposition parties accuse the right-wing government of being too silent regarding what is happening in Gaza. The rally moved peacefully through the center of Rome with demonstrators holding a banner reading 'Stop the massacre, stop complicity!' Protesters Gather in Rome for Immediate End to Gaza War Organized by the leftist opposition, the march witnessed the participation of 300,000 people who asked the government to clarify its stance on the conflict in Gaza. 'This is an enormous popular response to say enough to the massacre of Palestinians and the crimes of (Israeli leader Benjamin) Netanyahu's government,' the leader of Italy's center-left Democratic Party, Elly Schlein, told reporters at the march. Breaking Silent The Italian premier has recently urged Israel to put an immediate end to its military campaign in Gaza, warning that its attacks had increased disproportionately and should be halted to protect civilians. '(The Italian government) is not reacting despite an abnormal massacre, despite an absolutely cruel and inappropriate reaction. The (Italian) government remains silent,' said Nadin Unali, a Tunisian demonstrator at the march. A Call for Cutting Relations Protesters Gather in Rome for Immediate End to Gaza War Last week, the government of Italy's southern Puglia region cut relations with Israel over its genocide in Gaza, according to Al-Jazeera. Puglia Governor Michele Emiliano stated that the Israel is committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza. Therefore, Emiliano called for an immediate suspension of all relations with all representatives of Israeli government. Emiliano also urged 'all managers and employees of the region, its agencies and participating companies to sever all relations of any kind with the institutional representatives of the Israeli government and with all those subjects attributable to it who are not openly and declaredly motivated by the desire to organize initiatives to stop the massacre of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip,' according to state-run ANSA news agency. Since the beginning of Hamas-Israel War in Gaza in 2023, the Israeli strikes have killed more than 54,500 Palestinians and wounded more than 118,000, according to Gaza's Health Ministry. Related Topics: Madleen Aid Ship Nears Gaza after Reaching Egyptian Waters Gaza Marks Eid Al-Adha with Looming Famine, Rising Violence Israel to Block Entry of Madleen Aid Ship Heading to Gaza Short link : Post Views: 3


Saudi Gazette
2 hours ago
- Saudi Gazette
Tens of thousands gather in Rome for demonstration against the war in Gaza
ROME — The march, organised in Rome by the opposition forces Partito Democratico (Democratic Party), Movimento 5 Stelle (M5s) and Alleanza Verdi Sinistra Italiana (Avs), started from Piazza Vittorio Emanuele II and finished before the basilica of San Giovanni in Laterano. Tens of thousands of people, according to the organizers, marched waving Palestine, peace and party flags and anti-war placards. But a number of Israel and peace flags with the Star of David in the center could also be seen. The banner reading "Gaza stop the massacre. Enough complicity" opened the procession, behind a stream of people arriving from all over Italy. According to the local authorities, at least ten thousand people lined the streets of Rome, and thousands more were in the square where the procession ended. Leading the demonstration were the leaders of the three parties, Giuseppe Conte for the M5s, Elly Schlein for the PD and for Avs, Angelo Bonelli and Nicola Fratoianni. Speaking to reporters, PD secretary Schlein said: "It is a huge response of participation to say enough to the massacre of Palestinians and the crimes of the Netanyahu government. It is another Italy that does not remain silent, as the Meloni government does. It is an Italy that wants the recognition of the Palestinian state and this is the Italy we want". "This is the square of humanity against the systematic extermination that has been going on for twenty months, starting with the Italian government that is pretending not to see and is still babbling,' said Conte of the M5s. This was not the only demonstration to end the war in Gaza. Matteo Renzi's Italia Viva and Carlo Calenda's Azione parties organized the meeting "Two peoples, two states, one destiny" at the Parenti theatre in Milan on Friday. The second demonstration arose after a disagreement between the two centrist parties and the organisers of the procession in Rome, because Italia Viva and Azione had requested a reference to anti-Semitism in the manifesto. This request was refused by Avs, M5s and Pd, because they considered the condemnation of the 7 October 2023 massacre carried out by Hamas in Israel to be already clear. In recent days, deputy minister Matteo Salvini criticized the opposition for organizing the event in Rome on the eve of the referendum on work and citizenship. "I hope that no one will use the deaths in Gaza to push people to go and vote", Salvini said. — Euronews


Arab News
4 hours ago
- Arab News
Israeli military hits Hamas member in southern Syria
CAIRO: The Israeli military said on Sunday that it struck a member of the Palestinian militant group Hamas in southern Syria's Mazraat Beit Jin, days after Israel carried out its first airstrikes in the country in nearly a month. Hamas did not immediately comment on the strike. Israel said on Tuesday it hit weapons belonging to the government in retaliation for the firing of two projectiles toward Israel for the first time under the country's new leadership. Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz held Syria's President Ahmed Al-Sharaa accountable. Damascus in response said reports of the shelling were unverified, reiterating that Syria does not pose a threat to any regional party. A little known group named 'Martyr Muhammad Deif Brigades,' an apparent reference to Hamas' military leader who was killed in an Israeli strike in 2024, reportedly claimed responsibility for the shelling. Reuters, however, could not independently verify the claim. Israel and Syria have recently engaged in direct talks to calm tensions, marking a significant development in ties between states that have been on opposite sides of conflict in the Middle East for decade.