Latest news with #LBCI
LBCI
2 days ago
- Politics
- LBCI
LBCI sources: Families of Syrian detainees plan protests at Lebanon-Syria border crossings
Families of Syrian detainees held in Lebanon's Roumieh Prison are planning protest movements starting from the Tadamon neighborhood in Damascus toward the Jdeidet Yabous–Masnaa crossing, aiming to block traffic coming from Lebanon, sources told LBCI. In addition to the protest at Jdeidet Yabous, a sit-in is planned at the Jousieh border crossing, with calls circulating for similar action at the Arida crossing as well.
LBCI
4 days ago
- Politics
- LBCI
Hezbollah insists US must pressure Israel before dialogue on weapons: here's what we know
Report by Raneem Bou Khzam, English adaptation by Karine Keuchkerian In diplomatic but firm language, U.S. envoy Tom Barrack told the Lebanese state that finding a solution is their responsibility. While the response to the U.S. proposal came from Lebanon's three top officials, the reality remains that Hezbollah is a key player in the file. According to LBCI information, Hezbollah believes the United States cannot ask the Lebanese to engage in dialogue over the weapons issue before it fulfills its role as guarantor of the ceasefire agreement. Hezbollah maintains that the United States is acting as if it bears no responsibility and is distancing itself from its role as guarantor of the ceasefire. According to this view, Washington has not exerted any pressure on Israel to implement the parts of the agreement that apply to it. Therefore, Hezbollah believes the starting point of any Lebanese dialogue—such as the one Barrack is calling for—must begin with U.S. pressure on Tel Aviv. The group has declared its willingness to engage in dialogue, and by voting for President Joseph Aoun and granting confidence to the government, it acknowledges that a Lebanese consensus has emerged around limiting weapons to the authority of the state. Sources told LBCI that Hezbollah is determined to implement the first part of the ceasefire agreement signed last November before discussing any second proposal. Accordingly, the group believes that any Israeli move in the coming period will be against the Lebanese state, as it is the negotiating party and the one that submitted the response to the U.S. proposal.
Arab News
4 days ago
- Politics
- Arab News
US envoy calls for change in Lebanese political culture in interview with LBCI Lebanon
BEIRUT: Lebanon's politicians have spent 60 years 'denying, detouring and deflecting,' the US special envoy Tom Barrack said in an interview broadcast on Wednesday. Barrack has been in Lebanon to talk with political leaders over Washington's proposals to disarm the powerful militant group Hezbollah. Asked whether the Lebanese politicians he has been dealing with were actually engaging with him or just buying time, the diplomat responded 'both.' 'The Lebanese political culture is deny, detour and deflect,' Barrack said. 'This is the way that it's been for 60 years, and this is the task we have in front of us. It has to change.' After meeting President Joseph Aoun on Monday, he reacted positively to the Lebanese government's response to a US plan to remove Hezbollah's weapons. In an interview with Lebanese broadcaster LBCI, Barrack said he believed the president, prime minister and the speaker of the house were being 'candid, honest, and forthright' with him. But he warned Lebanon's politicians that the region is changing and if the politicians didn't want to change as well 'just tell us, and we'll not interfere.' While he did not disclose the details of the US proposals, or the Lebanese response, Barrack said Lebanon's leadership had to be willing to take a risk. 'We need results from these leaders,' he said. Lebanon's politicians have long been accused of corruption and putting self-interest first ahead of the good of the nation and the Lebanese people. Public anger came to a head in 2019 with mass public protests against corruption and financial hardship. The Lebanese economy spiraled into a financial crisis with the country defaulting on its debt and the currency collapsing. Barrack, who is also Washington's ambassador to Turkiye and special envoy for Syria, said the US was offering Lebanon a helping hand rather than trying to interfere in its politics. 'We've only said one thing, if you want us to help you, we're here to usher, we're here to help. We're here to protect to the extent that we can,' he said. 'But we're not going to intervene in regime change. We're not going to intervene in politics. And if you don't want us, no problem, we'll go home. That's it.' Barrack said Hezbollah, which is viewed as a terrorist organization by the US and is also a political party with 13 MPs in Lebanon 'is a Lebanese problem, not a world problem.' 'We've already, from a political point of view, said it's a terrorist organization. They mess with us anywhere, just as the president (Trump) has established on a military basis, they're going to have a problem with us. How that gets solved within Lebanon is another issue … It's up to the Lebanese people.' Barrack said the disarmament of Hezbollah had always been based on a simple fact for President Donald Trump: 'One nation, one people, one army.' 'If that's the case, if that's what this political body chooses, then we will usher, will help, will influence, and will be that intermediary with all of the potential combatants or adversaries who are on your borders,' Barrack said. The diplomat dismissed media speculation that the US had set timelines for its proposals, but said while Trump had been extremely proactive on Lebanon, he would not wait long for progress. 'Nobody is going to stick around doing this until next May,' he said. 'I don't think there's ever been a president since Dwight Eisenhower who came out with such ferocity for Lebanon. On his own, he (Trump) has the courage, he has the dedication, he has the ability. What he doesn't have is patience. 'If Lebanon wants to just keep kicking this can down the road, they can keep kicking the can down the road, but we're not going to be here in May having this discussion.' During the near hour-long, wide-ranging interview, Barrack, whose grandparents emigrated from Lebanon to the US, everybody across Lebanon's many religions and sects was tired of war and discontent. 'If we have 19 different religions and 19 different communities and 19 different confessionals, there's one thing that's above that, and that's being Lebanese,' he said. The Trump administration is keen to support Lebanon and Aoun, who became president in January, as the country struggles to emerge from years of economic hardship, political turmoil and regional unrest. Hezbollah, which is backed by Iran, had become the most powerful military force in the country and a major political power, but was significantly weakened by an Israeli campaign against the group last year. Its weapons arsenal has remained an ongoing thorn in the side of US-Lebanon relations. Along with disarming Hezbollah, the US proposals presented to Lebanese officials by Barrack last month are thought to include economic reforms to help the country move forward.
LBCI
5 days ago
- Politics
- LBCI
Tune in for exclusive LBCI interview with US envoy Tom Barrack
A special interview with U.S. envoy Tom Barrack will air on LBCI, following Tuesday's evening news, in a one-on-one conversation with host Ricardo Karam.
LBCI
03-07-2025
- General
- LBCI
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