Latest news with #IbrahimMneimneh
L'Orient-Le Jour
08-05-2025
- Politics
- L'Orient-Le Jour
‘Beirut Madinati 2025' presents its list ‘against coalition of parties'
The list Beirut Madinati 2025 officially presented its candidates on Wednesday during a gathering of a few 100 people at Martyr's Square, downtown Beirut, 10 days before the municipal elections in the capital (May 18). The list is supported by the National Bloc, of which four members are included, the Li Watani coalition and the Madinati party. It is endorsed by members of the protest parliament, Ibrahim Mneimneh, Paula Yacoubian and Melhem Khalaf, all present at the gathering. These supporters have participated in developing the reform project supported by the list, partly finance its campaign and have chosen the 24 candidates: Levon Televizian, Anita Vartanian, Pierre Vartanian, Najwa Baroudi, Sarah Mahmoud, Christy Assaily, Marie Daou, Paula Rbeiz, Marc Tueini, Lina Jarrous, Georges Kiriakos, Mazen Houssami, Souha Mneimneh, Lama Wazzan, Ghina Kassem, Fady Darwish, Mounir Mabsout, Bilal Ramadan, Amal Sherif, Riyad Arnaout, Zeina Mouqaddem, Ihab Hammoud, Jihane Rizk and Antoine Raheb. The list aims to succeed the previous Beirut Madinati list from the 2016 municipal elections, which surprised everyone by garnering nearly 35 percent of the votes but failed to secure any seats. "Our main opponent is the list of the coalition of parties," Mneimneh explained to L'Orient-Le Jour. "All attempts to gather the parties to form the municipal council have been unsuccessful" in improving the residents' daily lives, he argued. "As long as there is no unified vision for the city and a common action program, nothing will move forward," the deputy concluded. The 24 members of the list – mostly composed of civil society members (lawyers, engineers, financial experts, entrepreneurs and social actors) – are committed to working on the development of the public transportation network, sidewalks, greenery, fighting against corruption, ensuring security and fighting for justice, at a time when the investigation into the double explosion at the port in 2020 that devastated large parts of the capital is still struggling to progress. 'Residents just want a safe city' This list observes gender parity as well as confessional parity. "The problem is not confessional parity, but the quota system among parties," explained Darwish, head of the list, to L'Orient-Le Jour, at a time when confessional overbidding is coming from all sides amid fears of a break in the Islamic-Christian parity within the capital's municipal council. According to an unwritten custom, it is composed of 12 Christian members and 12 Muslims. "By ensuring confessional parity, we prevent the debate from stalling at this stage, which benefits traditional political parties," said Michel Helou, secretary-general of the National Bloc and former executive director of L'Orient-Le Jour. The same sentiment was echoed by Paula Yacoubian, who said she fears that parties will once again manage to convince voters to vote for them just because they guarantee confessional parity. "Residents just want a safe city, with greenery, sidewalks and sewers," she explained. This is the case of Jawad Makarem, a father who once again came to support a protest list in the elections. "We feel a wind of change, and we believe in it: In 2016, no one thought that a list outside the traditional parties could break through, and today the protest lists are taken seriously everywhere," he said. On Sunday, May 4, during the municipal elections in Mount Lebanon, the protest was nonetheless eclipsed.
LBCI
22-04-2025
- Business
- LBCI
MP Mneimneh to LBCI: Hezbollah appears to be hardening its stance regarding its arms
MP Ibrahim Mneimneh warned that Lebanon remains among the few countries in the world that still uphold strict bank secrecy laws, enabling money laundering and obstructing financial transparency. Speaking to LBCI, Mneimneh stressed the urgent need for financial reforms, including restructuring Lebanon's banking sector, to protect depositors' funds. He noted that not all deposits may be "clean," raising concerns about the origins of some of the funds. Regarding regional support, Mneimneh stated that Saudi Prince Al-Yazid affirmed the Kingdom's continued support for Lebanon but within the framework of state-building. "Saudi Arabia will not interfere in the details but will closely follow the course of reforms," he said. He also emphasized Saudi Arabia's backing for both President Joseph Aoun and Prime Minister Nawaf Salam. On the issue of Hezbollah's arms, Mneimneh expressed concern that the group appears to be hardening its stance rather than showing signs of compromise. He called for a serious internal dialogue among political factions on the future of Hezbollah's arsenal. "The president knows the security challenges better than anyone else. Raising tensions against him does not help," Mneimneh added. He concluded by stressing that Hezbollah must acknowledge the need to hand over its weapons to ensure national security, asserting that "there is no debate about the inevitability of all weapons being under the authority of the state."
LBCI
19-03-2025
- Politics
- LBCI
MP Ibrahim Mneimneh to LBCI: The situation on the eastern border is concerning, counting on Lebanese Army to take control
MP Ibrahim Mneimneh described the situation on Lebanon's eastern border as troubling, emphasizing the need for the Lebanese Army to take control. Speaking on LBCI's "Nharkom Said" TV show, he said the details remain unclear, with conflicting reports about smuggling and Lebanese-Syrian border entanglements. He urged people to wait for an official statement before drawing conclusions. Mneimneh stressed that Lebanon cannot move forward by clinging to old political approaches. He called on Hezbollah to reconsider its stance and engage with the new presidency and other Lebanese factions in shaping a different path for the country. He also urged Hezbollah to take steps toward implementing Resolution 1701, arguing that armed strategies have failed both as a deterrent and as a means of defending Lebanon.
LBCI
01-03-2025
- Politics
- LBCI
MP Ibrahim Mneimneh to LBCI: Calls for national security strategy to reassure all communities, rejects separate deal with Israel
MP Ibrahim Mneimneh stressed that everyone is called upon to cooperate to restore Lebanon's image and its relations with Arab countries to move forward with reconstruction efforts. In an interview on LBCI's "Nharkom Said" TV show, Mneimneh said, "The state is dealing with a very complex reality, and Hezbollah is required to ease tensions as it faces new challenges in this phase." He called on Arab countries to help Lebanon end the Israeli occupation, saying pressure must be applied on the United States and France in this regard. He affirmed that Lebanon is "not concerned with any side agreements" and wants its entire territory under national sovereignty. Mneimneh stressed the need for a national security strategy that reassures all components of society about how the country will be protected. On normalization with Israel, Mneimneh said Lebanon is committed to the Arab Peace Initiative and will not sign any separate agreement with Israel. Regarding municipal elections, Mneimneh rejected the division of Beirut municipality, calling for a solution to improve the city's administration. "We have an electoral program, and what matters to us is offering a different experience," he added.
LBCI
26-02-2025
- Politics
- LBCI
MP Ibrahim Mneimneh says ministerial statement offers hope; calls for justice and accountability
MP Ibrahim Mneimneh stated that the ministerial statement's general themes provide encouragement and hope. He emphasized that with the state's restoration of its right to control decisions of war and peace, there is now an opportunity for national dialogue, urging the activation of diplomatic efforts to confront Israeli occupation. Mneimneh asserted that the country cannot function without justice and accountability for the crimes committed against the Lebanese people. He underscored the importance of supporting an impartial investigation into the Beirut Port explosion and urged the government to address the cases of hundreds of detainees without trials to ensure justice for victims and acquit the innocent. He expressed support for the Prime Minister in making appointments free from political interference to ensure transparency and called for electoral law reforms, looking forward to conducting municipal elections on schedule. Mneimneh noted that reforms in the financial sector present a challenge for the government and called for a thorough examination of the reasons behind the losses and who benefited from them. He stressed that accountability and transparency are essential for addressing the crisis. He acknowledged that over the past three years, they have been confronting those responsible for the economic crisis and recognized that the battle would not be easy. During this "foundational" phase, Mneimneh expressed support for the Prime Minister, stating that the hopes of the people rest on the government's success and that they will monitor the government's work while granting it confidence based on its ministerial statement.
