• A patient with Covid-19 symptoms is checked by a staff member at Saint George Hospital in Lebanon's capital Beirut. Getty
    A patient with Covid-19 symptoms is checked by a staff member at Saint George Hospital in Lebanon's capital Beirut. Getty
  • A person is silhouetted behind a door near the coronavirus intensive care unit at the American University of Beirut (AUB) Hospital. Tom Nicholson for The National
    A person is silhouetted behind a door near the coronavirus intensive care unit at the American University of Beirut (AUB) Hospital. Tom Nicholson for The National
  • A patient in the Emergency Room at the American University of Beirut (AUB) Hospital. Tom Nicholson for The National
    A patient in the Emergency Room at the American University of Beirut (AUB) Hospital. Tom Nicholson for The National
  • Paramedics rest in an ambulance parked outside the Emergency Department at the American University of Beirut (AUB) Hospital. Tom Nicholson for The National
    Paramedics rest in an ambulance parked outside the Emergency Department at the American University of Beirut (AUB) Hospital. Tom Nicholson for The National
  • A patient is moved in the Coronavirus Emergency Room at the American University of Beirut (AUB) Hospital. Tom Nicholson for The National
    A patient is moved in the Coronavirus Emergency Room at the American University of Beirut (AUB) Hospital. Tom Nicholson for The National
  • Staff members work in the Emergency Room at the American University of Beirut (AUB) Hospital. Tom Nicholson for The National
    Staff members work in the Emergency Room at the American University of Beirut (AUB) Hospital. Tom Nicholson for The National
  • Oday Hamad, a nurse at the Coronavirus intensive care unit at the American University of Beirut (AUB) Hospital poses for a portrait. Tom Nicholson for The National
    Oday Hamad, a nurse at the Coronavirus intensive care unit at the American University of Beirut (AUB) Hospital poses for a portrait. Tom Nicholson for The National
  • Tatiana Chahine, a nurse at the Coronavirus intensive care unit at the American University of Beirut (AUB) Hospital poses for a portrait. Tom Nicholson for The National
    Tatiana Chahine, a nurse at the Coronavirus intensive care unit at the American University of Beirut (AUB) Hospital poses for a portrait. Tom Nicholson for The National
  • Staff members work in the Emergency Room at the American University of Beirut (AUB) Hospital. Tom Nicholson for The National
    Staff members work in the Emergency Room at the American University of Beirut (AUB) Hospital. Tom Nicholson for The National
  • A patient is moved in the Emergency Room at the American University of Beirut (AUB) Hospital. Tom Nicholson for The National
    A patient is moved in the Emergency Room at the American University of Beirut (AUB) Hospital. Tom Nicholson for The National

Lebanon coronavirus lockdown extended as hospitals fill up

All intensive care beds in Beirut were full on Wednesday

Gareth Browne
Gareth Browne

January 26, 2021

  • English
  • Arabic

Lebanon will extend its lockdown for a further two weeks as it battles to keep its health system from collapsing in the face of record coronavirus deaths.

The lockdown, which includes a general 24-hour curfew, and the closure of all shops other than for deliveries, was introduced last Thursday for an initial 11-day period. It will now last until February 8.

Though Beirut's Rafik Hariri International airport remains open, it has reduced flights by 80 per cent as part of the measures.

The country has repeatedly registered record coronavirus deaths in the past two weeks.  On Wednesday, 64 people died of the virus, while 4,332 cases were registered.

Firass Abiad, director of the Rafik Hariri University Hospital, the largest public hospital in Beirut, took to Twitter to warn that not extending the lockdown could result in calamity.

“Lifting or easing the lockdown at this time will surely lead to a collapse of the health system and result in more deaths,” he tweeted.

All intensive care beds in the capital were full on Wednesday, and the national occupancy of ICU units sat at 84 per cent. Experts expect a further increase in serious cases as the country continues to feel the effects of relaxing measures of the Christmas and New Year period.

The surging numbers have left Lebanon with one of the steepest rates of infection increases in the world.

The lockdown extension came as the World Bank announced it will divert $34 million to fund vaccines for more than two million people in Lebanon.

Funds re-allocated from the Lebanon Health Resilience Project will be used to purchase vaccines which it is expected will begin to arrive by early February, the institution said.

This is the first instance of the World Bank financing the procurement of Covid-19 vaccines.

The World Bank added that the vaccines would target "priority groups". It defined these as: high risk health workers, those aged over 65, epidemiological and surveillance staff and people aged between 55-64 with co-morbidities.

Unilateral efforts to buy the vaccine were stifled by the country’s morass of bureaucracy, though the government announced last month that it had succeeded in procuring more than two million doses of the Pfizer vaccines.

Yet questions remained about how Lebanon, which is convulsing under its worst economic crisis since the end of the civil war in 1990, would pay for those vaccines.

Arabian Gulf League fixtures:

Friday:

  • Emirates v Hatta, 5.15pm
  • Al Wahda v Al Dhafra, 5.25pm
  • Al Ain v Shabab Al Ahli Dubai, 8.15pm

Saturday:

  • Dibba v Ajman, 5.15pm
  • Sharjah v Al Wasl, 5.20pm
  • Al Jazira v Al Nasr, 8.15pm
Analysis

Members of Syria's Alawite minority community face threat in their heartland after one of the deadliest days in country’s recent history. Read more

Turkish Ladies

Various artists, Sony Music Turkey 

Labour dispute

The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.


- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law 

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5pm: Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan Racing Festival Purebred Arabian Cup Conditions (PA) Dh 200,000 (Turf) 1,600m
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5.30pm: Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak Cup Conditions (PA) Dh 200,000 (T) 1,600m
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Winner: AF Alareeq, Connor Beasley, Ahmed Al Mehairbi

Heather, the Totality
Matthew Weiner,
Canongate 

So what is Spicy Chickenjoy?

Just as McDonald’s has the Big Mac, Jollibee has Spicy Chickenjoy – a piece of fried chicken that’s crispy and spicy on the outside and comes with a side of spaghetti, all covered in tomato sauce and topped with sausage slices and ground beef. It sounds like a recipe that a child would come up with, but perhaps that’s the point – a flavourbomb combination of cheap comfort foods. Chickenjoy is Jollibee’s best-selling product in every country in which it has a presence.
 

Know before you go
  • Jebel Akhdar is a two-hour drive from Muscat airport or a six-hour drive from Dubai. It’s impossible to visit by car unless you have a 4x4. Phone ahead to the hotel to arrange a transfer.
  • If you’re driving, make sure your insurance covers Oman.
  • By air: Budget airlines Air Arabia, Flydubai and SalamAir offer direct routes to Muscat from the UAE.
  • Tourists from the Emirates (UAE nationals not included) must apply for an Omani visa online before arrival at evisa.rop.gov.om. The process typically takes several days.
  • Flash floods are probable due to the terrain and a lack of drainage. Always check the weather before venturing into any canyons or other remote areas and identify a plan of escape that includes high ground, shelter and parking where your car won’t be overtaken by sudden downpours.

 

The specs

Engine: 4.0-litre V8 twin-turbocharged and three electric motors

Power: Combined output 920hp

Torque: 730Nm at 4,000-7,000rpm

Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch automatic

Fuel consumption: 11.2L/100km

On sale: Now, deliveries expected later in 2025

Price: expected to start at Dh1,432,000

Specs

Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric

Range: Up to 610km

Power: 905hp

Torque: 985Nm

Price: From Dh439,000

Available: Now

Gully Boy

Director: Zoya Akhtar
Producer: Excel Entertainment & Tiger Baby
Cast: Ranveer Singh, Alia Bhatt, Kalki Koechlin, Siddhant Chaturvedi​​​​​​​
Rating: 4/5 stars

LebanonCoronavirus