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Fearing War, Lebanese Stock Food, Medicine and Fuel

Workers at Beirut airport unload emergency medical aid provided by the World Health Organization (WHO). (AP)
Workers at Beirut airport unload emergency medical aid provided by the World Health Organization (WHO). (AP)
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Fearing War, Lebanese Stock Food, Medicine and Fuel

Workers at Beirut airport unload emergency medical aid provided by the World Health Organization (WHO). (AP)
Workers at Beirut airport unload emergency medical aid provided by the World Health Organization (WHO). (AP)

Lebanese people rushed to stock food, medicine and fuel amid fears of the eruption of war with Israel at any moment.

Despite assurances by relevant ministries and unions about the availability of these goods for the coming months, that didn’t stop people from stocking up on some essential products, most notably infant formula and medicines for chronic and incurable diseases.

Chairman of the Lebanese economic organizations, former Minister Mohamed Choucair explained that the markets have enough supplies to last three to six months. Enough flour is also available for bakeries to continue operating for three months, which is the longest period flour can be stored.

Choucair, however, told Asharq Al-Awsat: “The rush to store food, medicine, and other products creates confusion among the people and reduces the reserve stocks available in warehouses.”

The fear of war seems justified among the Lebanese with memories of the July 2006 conflict between Hezbollah and Israel still fresh in their minds. Israel bombed Beirut’s Rafik Hariri International Airport, putting it out of service, and imposed a strict blockade on seaports as soon as the war broke out.

Choucair said the greatest concern is that fuel supplies will be interrupted.

He said: “It is true that gasoline and diesel are available for three months, and fuel tanks cannot contain more than this amount, but the interruption of fuel will inevitably lead to a halt in operations at factories and it will become difficult for people to move from one area to another.”

Photos posted on social media showed shelves at some supermarkets completely empty of goods. Head of the Food Importers Syndicate in Lebanon Hani Al-Bohsali said the rush to stock goods has gone too far and is unjustified, at least for now, given the availability of supplies at warehouses.

In remarks to Asharq Al-Awsat, he added however that problems may arise should a war erupt, leading to roads being blocked and therefore creating difficulties in the delivery of goods from warehouses to merchants and stores.

Meanwhile, caretaker Public Health Minister Firas Abiad received 32 tons of emergency aid on Monday from the World Health Organization (WHO) to Lebanon, which included “medical supplies and medicines designated for treating war injuries.”

The shipment arrived in a charter plane on Monday morning at the Middle East Airlines cargo terminal at Beirut international airport, in the presence of the representative of the WHO in Lebanon, Abdel Nasser Abu Bakr.

The shipment is part of efforts to raise Lebanon’s health sector readiness to confront any possible escalation.

Speaking to reporters, the minister said: “Lebanon does not want any war... We have been demanding from day one a ceasefire extending from Gaza to Lebanon and its south, but at the same time we are seeing the Israeli attacks that are being carried out daily not only in Gaza, but in Lebanon and elsewhere in the region.”

“The health sector can only be as prepared as possible in the event of any emergency,” he added.

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Arab World

Syria Says Australia Won't Repatriate Families from Camp for Those with Alleged Ties to ISIS Militants

A brick wall surrounds a tent camp housing people with alleged ties to ISIS militants at Roj Camp in eastern Syria, Friday, April 24, 2026. (AP)
A brick wall surrounds a tent camp housing people with alleged ties to ISIS militants at Roj Camp in eastern Syria, Friday, April 24, 2026. (AP)
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Syria Says Australia Won't Repatriate Families from Camp for Those with Alleged Ties to ISIS Militants

A brick wall surrounds a tent camp housing people with alleged ties to ISIS militants at Roj Camp in eastern Syria, Friday, April 24, 2026. (AP)
A brick wall surrounds a tent camp housing people with alleged ties to ISIS militants at Roj Camp in eastern Syria, Friday, April 24, 2026. (AP)

A group of Australian women and children who left a camp in Syria that houses people with alleged ties to ISIS group are stuck in the country because Australian authorities have refused to allow their return, Syrian officials said Wednesday.

Thirteen women and children from four families last week left Roj camp, a remote facility near the border with Iraq that houses relatives of suspected militants, on Friday and traveled to Syria's capital.

An official at the camp at the time said that the families were expected to remain in Damascus for around 72 hours and then be sent to Australia.

In response to an Associated Press inquiry about their status, Syria's information ministry said in a statement that after the families left the camp, the foreign ministry was informed that "the Australian government had refused to receive them.”

They were turned back from reaching Damascus International Airport, the information ministry's statement said.

“These families are still awaiting a solution, which can only be achieved through coordination with the relevant international parties.”

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said at a news conference on Wednesday that “we are providing no support for repatriation and no assistance for these people.”

Syria's information ministry said that the families, through a lawyer, had obtained passports that were delivered by an “individual” that it didn't identify while they were still in northeastern Syria in an area under the control of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, or SDF.

A Lebanese-Australian doctor, Jamal Rifi, previously told Australian media that he was helping to coordinate the repatriation effort. Rifi couldn't be reached for comment.

A previous attempt to return 34 women and children to Australia from the camp in February was turned back by Syrian authorities.

Former ISIS militants from multiple countries, along with their wives and children, were held in a network of camps and detention centers in northeast Syria after the militant group lost control of its territory in Syria in 2019. Though defeated, the group still has sleeper cells that carry out deadly attacks in Syria and Iraq.

The larger al-Hol camp has now been closed down, and thousands of suspected ISIS militants previously held in Syria were transferred to Iraq by the US military to stand trial there.

The moves came after fighting between government forces and the SDF in January. Government forces seized much of the territory formerly held by the SDF. Amid the chaos, many detainees fled al-Hol and some prisoners escaped from a detention center.

Australian governments have repatriated Australian women and children from Syrian detention camps on two occasions. Other Australians have also returned without government assistance.

Arab World

Saudi Envoy Says Adherence to Taif Accord is Key to Any Settlement in Lebanon

Saudi Ambassador to Lebanon Walid Bukhari meets Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdul Latif Derian (X)
Saudi Ambassador to Lebanon Walid Bukhari meets Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdul Latif Derian (X)
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Saudi Envoy Says Adherence to Taif Accord is Key to Any Settlement in Lebanon

Saudi Ambassador to Lebanon Walid Bukhari meets Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdul Latif Derian (X)
Saudi Ambassador to Lebanon Walid Bukhari meets Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdul Latif Derian (X)

Saudi Ambassador to Lebanon Walid Bukhari said adherence to the 1989 Taif Agreement is the backbone to any settlement in Lebanon, alongside the need to reinforce civil peace and prioritize wisdom and reason.

Bukhari made the remarks during visits to Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdul Latif Derian, Deputy Head of the Higher Islamic Shiite Council Sheikh Ali al-Khatib and Druze spiritual leader Sheikh Sami Abi al-Muna.

During his meeting with Derian, Bukhari stressed Saudi Arabia’s commitment to Lebanon’s unity in facing current challenges, saying the Kingdom was pursuing diplomatic efforts to help Lebanon through its crisis and stood by the Lebanese state and its institutions in support of solutions that promote security, stability and prosperity.

Derian, for his part, praised Saudi Arabia’s role in the region, particularly in supporting Lebanon’s stability, security and unity under exceptional circumstances.

He said rebuilding the state was the only path to saving Lebanon by restoring its authority across all its territory, confining weapons to the Lebanese army and adhering to the Taif accord while strengthening national unity.

Derian also welcomed diplomatic efforts by President Joseph Aoun and Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, with the support of Arab and international partners, to halt the war in Lebanon and reach a settlement that ensures stability.

In a second stop, Bukhari met Ali al-Khatib at the Higher Islamic Shiite Council, where they reviewed developments in Lebanon and the region and prospects for the coming phase.

Bukhari voiced optimism about the future and stressed the need to strengthen civil peace in Lebanon, saying this had been a focus of recent Saudi efforts and expressing confidence in “people of wisdom and reason.”

He stressed that what is needed today is a path agreed by Lebanon’s three top leaders to safeguard civil peace, while praising the wisdom and experience of Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri at every critical juncture.

Bukhari said a return to the Taif accord was the main gateway to agreement on broad principles that protect every Lebanese component and avoid excluding any party, recalling late parliament speaker Hussein Husseini’s saying that “the alternative to Taif is implementing Taif.”

Khatib, for his part, praised Saudi Arabia’s role in strengthening civil peace in Lebanon and repeated that “we have no separate political project of our own.”

He said hopes rested on Saudi Arabia’s role in curbing Israeli and Western overreach, calling for cooperation among major Arab and Islamic states to forge a project capable of confronting the Zionist plan.

He added that the Arab and Islamic worlds needed a front to protect them and that Saudi Arabia was central to that effort, expressing hope such cooperation would lead to greater integration while preserving each state’s particularities.

Bukhari also met Abi al-Muna to discuss broader developments in light of continued military operations, efforts to stop the war, Saudi Arabia’s role in helping Lebanon overcome its difficult circumstances, the importance of preserving civil peace and national unity, and the outcome of the recent visit to Lebanon by Saudi Foreign Ministry adviser Yazid bin Farhan.

Arab World

Officials Exert Efforts to Unify Lebanon’s Stance on Negotiations with Israel

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun receives MP Melhem Riachi (Lebanese Presidency)
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun receives MP Melhem Riachi (Lebanese Presidency)
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Officials Exert Efforts to Unify Lebanon’s Stance on Negotiations with Israel

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun receives MP Melhem Riachi (Lebanese Presidency)
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun receives MP Melhem Riachi (Lebanese Presidency)

Efforts are underway to unify Lebanon’s position on negotiations with Israel amid disagreements on how to approach the issue, particularly as Hezbollah objects to the process and wages what critics describe as a systematic campaign against President Joseph Aoun and Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, even as both enjoy broad support among most political factions.

A meeting between Aoun, Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri and Salam is expected to be held this week in an effort to consolidate Lebanon’s position.

Meanwhile, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said his country had no intention of seizing Lebanese territory.

Speaking at a joint news conference with Serbian Foreign Minister Marko Djuric, Saar said: “Israel has no territorial ambitions in Lebanon. Our presence in areas along our northern border serves one purpose only: protecting our citizens,” referring to the deployment of Israeli forces in parts of southern Lebanon.

His remarks came as the Israeli military continues air and ground operations against Hezbollah despite the ceasefire.

Aoun has drawn broad domestic backing since a first-of-its-kind statement Monday in which he accused Hezbollah of betrayal, saying: “The traitor is the one who dragged his country into war in pursuit of foreign interests.”

In a sign of support, MP Melhem Riachi visited him as an envoy of Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea.

After the meeting, Riachi said: “We held wide-ranging talks on current developments, particularly negotiations between Lebanon and Israel aimed at securing a ceasefire and containing the situation in the south.”

“I expressed full support for the president’s efforts,” he added.

Referring to reports about a possible meeting involving Aoun and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Washington, Riachi said: “We encourage him to meet (US) President Donald Trump, and if other meetings are to take place, they should come at the appropriate time .... We have no objection to any step that spares Lebanon and its people, especially our people in the south.”

Echoing his remarks, the political bureau of the Kataeb Party, meeting under the chairmanship of MP Sami Gemayel, said Aoun’s position “expressed the will of the Lebanese, who reject a militia - Hezbollah - unilaterally imposing its will on the Lebanese in service of the interests of the Islamic Republic of Iran.”

It added that the roadmap laid out by Lebanon to reach peace is being translated in practice through the negotiating track launched under Arab and international sponsorship.

The political bureau called for creating the conditions necessary for the Israeli withdrawal, the end to attacks, the return of detainees, the end to war, the deployment of the Lebanese army and the launch of reconstruction.