Lebanon: Media’s 'Retreat' from Covering the Movement Angers Activists 

Demonstrators carry national flags during an anti-government protest in Tripoli, Lebanon October 21, 2019. REUTERS/Omar Ibrahim
Demonstrators carry national flags during an anti-government protest in Tripoli, Lebanon October 21, 2019. REUTERS/Omar Ibrahim
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Lebanon: Media’s 'Retreat' from Covering the Movement Angers Activists 

Demonstrators carry national flags during an anti-government protest in Tripoli, Lebanon October 21, 2019. REUTERS/Omar Ibrahim
Demonstrators carry national flags during an anti-government protest in Tripoli, Lebanon October 21, 2019. REUTERS/Omar Ibrahim

Many of the Lebanese popular movement activists expressed their displeasure with the media’s “retreat” over the past few weeks after they had played a critical role in the first period after the revolt erupted on the 17th of October.   
 
While some link this retreat to the loss of some of the movement’s momentum because of the holidays and the bad weather, others believe that the power retained their grip over media.  

Lucian Bourjeili, an activist, believes: "With the beginning of the new year, TV stations started hosting the rulers who bankrupted the country again, in an attempt to whitewash their image. This reminds me of what happened in the last parliamentary elections when politicians used their money to monopolize screen time and make false promises."
 
Walid Abboud, the editor in chief of MTV, refuses the accusation that media coverage retreated, emphasizing that, at least not in the media institutions which he works for which, according to Abboud “is still covering the events that lost their momentum due to several factors, including the weather, the holidays and other reasons."

"We are not in the position of creating or igniting events but in the position of covering them when they happen,” he added.

Abboud goes on to tell Asharq Al-Awsat: “Live coverage compels, to a certain extent, more people to join the revolutions by showing them the revolution’s beautiful and expressive scenes”.

Abboud believes that it is likely that the momentum will return in the next few days, emphasizing that the TV channel which he works for will: "Cover the events with the same enthusiasm as before, despite deductions to our long-overdue salaries because of the economic and financial crisis that is hurting institutions across the country." 
 
A study issued by the Maharat (Talents) Foundation on “freedom of expression and the media during the October 17 revolution” said that freedom of expression “reached a degree that Lebanon had not previously known during the revolution and broke the limits that had prevailed.

Some of the criticism leveled at the political class could be considered defamation, with public accusations of corruption and theft. This criticism has become part of revolutionaries’ daily discourse, expressed publicly through various media outlets and social media platforms without fear or ambiguity.



Desperate for Cash, Gazans Sell Clothes Plucked from Rubble

Desperate for Cash, Gazans Sell Clothes Plucked from Rubble
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Desperate for Cash, Gazans Sell Clothes Plucked from Rubble

Desperate for Cash, Gazans Sell Clothes Plucked from Rubble

Moein Abu Odeh clambered up a pile of rubble in southern Gaza, searching for clothes, shoes, anything he could sell to raise cash more than a year since Israel started its relentless bombardments.

The father-of-four delved under blocks and brushed away piles of concrete dust at the site of one airstrike in the wrecked city of Khan Younis. His plan was to sell what he found to buy flour.

"If food and drink were available, believe me, I would give (these clothes) to charity," he said. "But the struggles we are going through (mean we) have to sell our clothes to eat and drink."

Widespread shortages and months of grinding war have generated a trade in old clothing, much of it salvaged from the homes of people who have died in the conflict.

At one makeshift market, shoes, shirts, sweaters and sneakers were laid out on dusty blankets, Reuters reported.

A girl tried on a single worn-out boot, which could come in handy this winter if she can afford it in Gaza's ruined economy.

A trader got an edge on his competitors by shouting out that his wares were European.

One man laughed as he got a young boy to try on a green jacket.

"We get clothing from a man whose house was destroyed. He was digging in the concrete to get some (clothing) and we buy them like this and sell them at a good price," displaced Palestinian Louay Abdel-Rahman said.

He and his family arrived in the city from another part of Gaza with only the clothes they were wearing. So he also keeps some back for them. "The seasons have changed from summer to winter and we need clothing," he said.

In April, the UN estimated it would take 14 years to dispose of the wreckage in Gaza. The UN official overseeing the problem said the clean-up would cost at least $1.2 billion.

More than 128,000 buildings have been destroyed or severely or moderately damaged in Gaza as a result of the conflict, the UN says. Underneath all of that are seams of mangled clothes.

"All our children only have short-sleeve clothing and nobody is helping them," Saeed Doula, a father-of-seven, said. "The war is all-encompassing."