Raouche incident: Government defuses crisis, but does not give in

Tension has eased. The Cabinet, which met on Monday at the Baabda Presidential Palace under the chairmanship of President Joseph Aoun, suspended the license of the Rissalat Association pending the conclusion of the ongoing investigations. The latter had projected without authorization photos of former Hezbollah leaders Hassan Nasrallah and Hashem Safieddine onto the Pigeon Rocks. The move represents a middle ground solution between Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, who called for the dissolution of the Hezbollah-affiliated NGO, and Hezbollah, which had threatened to escalate against the government if such action were taken.The government opted for a cautious approach to avoid turmoil amid the country’s tense political climate. Monday’s meeting also allowed the government to hear from Army Chief Rodolph Haykal, who presented the army’s first...