Supporters of Hezbollah carry flags as they ride in a convoy, marking the commemoration of Israel's withdrawal from southern Lebanon in 2000, in Kfar Kila near the border with Israel on May 25, 2022. (Credit: Aziz Taher/Reuters)
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Patients will find it harder to access hospital care today and tomorrow, as the syndicate of doctors in Beirut and the North alongside the syndicate of private hospital owners launch a two-day strike. Hospitals participating in the strike have said they will allow only emergency cases and dialysis patients to access health care at their premises. The doctors and hospital owners will hold a sit-in in front of the Banque du Liban in Beirut.
Ogero head Imad Kreidieh, as well as the heads of the boards of mobile network operators Alpha and Touch, will hold a press conference this afternoon with caretaker Communications Minister Johnny Corm to explain updates to telecom and internet prices. Last Friday the cabinet acted during its final regular session to approve an increase in the price of internet and mobile data services, with household internet prices set to rise 2.5 times and cell phone charges set to rise fivefold. According to initial announcements, the changes are expected to take effect July 1.
Two of Lebanon’s caretaker ministers were on foreign visits yesterday, with caretaker Foreign Minister Abdallah Bou Habib in Washington and caretaker Interior Minister Bassam Mawlawi in Doha. Bou Habib received promises from two US senators to “accelerate” US support for the Lebanese Army and security forces, according to a report published by the state-run National News Agency. Bou Habib also spoke with World Bank officials in Washington about its support for Lebanon on electricity and food security. Meanwhile, Mawlawi met with the Qatari prime minister, who assured him that “his country stands alongside Lebanon,” according to Mawlawi’s press office, which said that the visit was an opportunity for the caretaker minister to “reaffirm the depth of the relations that bind Lebanon to the countries of the Arab Gulf.”
Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah ended his Liberation and Resistance day address yesterday on an ominous note, saying that “within days, things may happen in the region that will lead to an explosion of the region” and calling for “anticipation, attention and preparation for what might happen around us.” He went on to warn the Israelis against attacking the Islamic holy sites in the old city of Jerusalem, which were stormed by Israeli forces as recently as late April in an attack that left over 40 Palestinians injured. In related news, Israeli forces fired five tear gas canisters at Lebanese civilians gathered at the border with occupied Palestine to celebrate Liberation Day yesterday, commemorating the May 2000 withdrawal of Israeli forces from most of the South.
In case you missed it, here’s our must-read article from yesterday: “Making voting more accessible in Lebanon: It’s not that difficult”