Lebanon’s government postponed its meeting on Wednesday after a heated session the day before, raising concerns of yet another crisis to compound the country's economic and financial woes.
Ministers affiliated with the Iran-backed Hezbollah and its Shiite ally, Speaker Nabih Berri, have since asked the Lebanese Cabinet to intervene to block the judge leading the investigation into the Beirut blast from prosecuting senior officials.
Judge Tarek Bitar has been the target of staunch criticism by Hezbollah and its allies who accuse him of politicising the probe after he issued arrest warrants for two of five senior politicians charged with criminal negligence in the case.
“After consultations between President Michel Aoun, and Prime Minister Najib Mikati, the cabinet session that was scheduled for this afternoon was postponed,” a statement released by the president’s office said.
The meeting’s postponement will allow time for Justice Minister Henry Khoury to suggest a legal resolution to disagreements among members of the Cabinet, a source close to the president told The National.
Until then, another meeting is unlikely to be scheduled, the source said.
Mr Bitar on Tuesday issued his second arrest warrant for a senior politician in connection with the blast leading to a heated debate during the Cabinet session later in the day.
Hours earlier, Mr Bitar had ordered the arrest of ex-finance minister Ali Hassan Khalil, a member of Mr Berri’s parliamentary bloc. A similar warrant had been issued for ex-public works minister Youssef Fenianos, a member of the Hezbollah-allied Marada Movement.
Both officials, along with ex-agriculture minister Ghazi Zeaiter, also a member of Mr Berri’s bloc, and former interior minister Nouhad Mashnouq, snubbed Mr Bitar’s summons, arguing that he had no authority to prosecute them in line with the constitution. The indicted politicians instead insist on being tried before a special body comprising senior judges and parliamentarians.
All four officials have appealed to the supreme court to oust Mr Bitar. On Tuesday, he suspended the probe pending the court’s ruling. The court had dismissed Mr Bitar’s predecessor Judge Fadi Sawan after Mr Hassan Khalil and Mr Zeiater questioned his impartiality.
In their latest appeal to the court, both officials have accused the judge of breaking the law while Mr Mashnouq and Mr Fenianos have cast doubts of his impartiality.
The stalled investigation has prompted the families of more than 220 victims to accuse politicians of seeking to derail the probe and block Mr Bitar’s attempt to uncover the truth behind the blast that destroyed large parts of the capital.
The explosion has compounded Lebanon’s financial woes after forcing the resignation of Hassan Diab’s government. The former prime minister was indicted in the case but has refused to appear for questioning.
The explosion left Lebanon without a functioning government for a year, plunging the country into a political crisis that accelerated its financial meltdown. The World Bank said the crisis was one of three most severe since the 1850s.
Rosana Bou Monsef, a political analyst, says the latest political row is likely to fuel another “mini-crisis” but one that will be eventually contained.
“No major party including Hezbollah can bear responsibility for the collapse of the government under the current circumstances,” she said.
But the new political controversy might serve Hezbollah and both its allies and rivals in polarising and rallying their bases before the coming parliamentary polls in the spring of 2022, she says.
The government’s first political setback comes a day before the first visit by a high-level US delegation to Lebanon since prime minister Najib Mikati assumed his duties.
The group, led by Under Secretary of State Victoria Nuland, will arrive in Beirut on Thursday where she will meet civil society groups and government officials to discuss reforms and the coming elections.
The international community, led by the US and France, has called on the government to endorse reforms in exchange for financial aid and to allow for free and independent elections and a transparent investigation into the port blast.
Mrs Bou Mounsef says Hezbollah could be sending an explicit message to the international community before the US delegation’s visit that the party continues to dictate the rules.
“Why is Hezbollah attacking the judge and probe when none of its officials have been indicted?” she asked.
Hezbollah MP Hassan Fadlallah criticised what he described as the US state department’s “interference” in the probe and its support for Mr Bitar on Wednesday.
“This is an open attempt to terrorise and prevent Lebanese officials from putting the investigation back on the legal track,” he said.
Hezbollah and its allies have threatened to take to the streets if the judge pursues his inquiry. Media reports have linked the shipment of hundreds of tons of ammonium that exploded at Beirut port to businessmen with ties to Syrian President Bashar Assad, a close ally of Hezbollah.
What triggered the detonation of the explosive fertiliser or why it was left sitting at the port for more than six years remains unclear.
Hezbollah’s political rival and leader of the country’s second biggest Christian party, said his party would peacefully confront attempts to subdue Mr Bitar.
“The president, prime minister and government ought to bear their responsibility in refusing to bow to Hezbollah’s intimidation. If they halt the investigation into the port case … they must resign immediately,” a prominent member of the opposition said.
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Kat Wightman's tips on how to create zones in large spaces
- Area carpets or rugs are the easiest way to segregate spaces while also unifying them.
- Lighting can help define areas. Try pendant lighting over dining tables, and side and floor lamps in living areas.
- Keep the colour palette the same in a room, but combine different tones and textures in different zone. A common accent colour dotted throughout the space brings it together.
- Don’t be afraid to use furniture to break up the space. For example, if you have a sofa placed in the middle of the room, a console unit behind it will give good punctuation.
- Use a considered collection of prints and artworks that work together to form a cohesive journey.
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Tonight's Chat on The National
Tonight's Chat is a series of online conversations on The National. The series features a diverse range of celebrities, politicians and business leaders from around the Arab world.
Tonight’s Chat host Ricardo Karam is a renowned author and broadcaster who has previously interviewed Bill Gates, Carlos Ghosn, Andre Agassi and the late Zaha Hadid, among others.
Intellectually curious and thought-provoking, Tonight’s Chat moves the conversation forward.
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The specs
Price, base / as tested Dh1,470,000 (est)
Engine 6.9-litre twin-turbo W12
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Power 626bhp @ 6,000rpm
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What it means to be a conservationist
Who is Enric Sala?
Enric Sala is an expert on marine conservation and is currently the National Geographic Society's Explorer-in-Residence. His love of the sea started with his childhood in Spain, inspired by the example of the legendary diver Jacques Cousteau. He has been a university professor of Oceanography in the US, as well as working at the Spanish National Council for Scientific Research and is a member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Future Council on Biodiversity and the Bio-Economy. He has dedicated his life to protecting life in the oceans. Enric describes himself as a flexitarian who only eats meat occasionally.
What is biodiversity?
According to the United Nations Environment Programme, all life on earth – including in its forests and oceans – forms a “rich tapestry of interconnecting and interdependent forces”. Biodiversity on earth today is the product of four billion years of evolution and consists of many millions of distinct biological species. The term ‘biodiversity’ is relatively new, popularised since the 1980s and coinciding with an understanding of the growing threats to the natural world including habitat loss, pollution and climate change. The loss of biodiversity itself is dangerous because it contributes to clean, consistent water flows, food security, protection from floods and storms and a stable climate. The natural world can be an ally in combating global climate change but to do so it must be protected. Nations are working to achieve this, including setting targets to be reached by 2020 for the protection of the natural state of 17 per cent of the land and 10 per cent of the oceans. However, these are well short of what is needed, according to experts, with half the land needed to be in a natural state to help avert disaster.
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
Name: Colm McLoughlin
Country: Galway, Ireland
Job: Executive vice chairman and chief executive of Dubai Duty Free
Favourite golf course: Dubai Creek Golf and Yacht Club
Favourite part of Dubai: Palm Jumeirah
GYAN’S ASIAN OUTPUT
2011-2015: Al Ain – 123 apps, 128 goals
2015-2017: Shanghai SIPG – 20 apps, 7 goals
2016-2017: Al Ahli (loan) – 25 apps, 11 goals
The drill
Recharge as needed, says Mat Dryden: “We try to make it a rule that every two to three months, even if it’s for four days, we get away, get some time together, recharge, refresh.” The couple take an hour a day to check into their businesses and that’s it.
Stick to the schedule, says Mike Addo: “We have an entire wall known as ‘The Lab,’ covered with colour-coded Post-it notes dedicated to our joint weekly planner, content board, marketing strategy, trends, ideas and upcoming meetings.”
Be a team, suggests Addo: “When training together, you have to trust in each other’s abilities. Otherwise working out together very quickly becomes one person training the other.”
Pull your weight, says Thuymi Do: “To do what we do, there definitely can be no lazy member of the team.”
Brief scores:
Juventus 3
Dybala 6', Bonucci 17', Ronaldo 63'
Frosinone 0
The specs: 2019 Jeep Wrangler
Price, base: Dh132,000
Engine: 3.6-litre V6
Gearbox: Eight-speed automatic
Power: 285hp @ 6,400rpm
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Fuel economy, combined: 9.6L to 10.3L / 100km
Gulf Under 19s final
Dubai College A 50-12 Dubai College B
UK’s AI plan
- AI ambassadors such as MIT economist Simon Johnson, Monzo cofounder Tom Blomfield and Google DeepMind’s Raia Hadsell
- £10bn AI growth zone in South Wales to create 5,000 jobs
- £100m of government support for startups building AI hardware products
- £250m to train new AI models
TEAMS
US Team
Dustin Johnson, Jordan Spieth
Justin Thomas, Daniel Berger
Brooks Koepka, Rickie Fowler
Kevin Kisner, Patrick Reed
Matt Kuchar, Kevin Chappell
Charley Hoffman*, Phil Mickelson*
International Team
Hideki Matsuyama, Jason Day
Adam Scott, Louis Oosthuizen
Marc Leishman, Charl Schwartzel
Branden Grace, Si Woo Kim
Jhonattan Vegas, Adam Hadwin
Emiliano Grillo*, Anirban Lahiri*
* denotes captain's picks
UAE-based players
Goodlands Riders: Jamshaid Butt, Ali Abid, JD Mahesh, Vibhor Shahi, Faizan Asif, Nadeem Rahim
Rose Hill Warriors: Faraz Sheikh, Ashok Kumar, Thabreez Ali, Janaka Chathuranga, Muzammil Afridi, Ameer Hamza
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