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Lebanon: Hospitals at Closure Risk Amid Financial Crisis

A Lebanese Red Cross ambulance leaves the emergency building of the government-run Rafik Hariri University Hospital in Beirut, March 11. (AP)
A Lebanese Red Cross ambulance leaves the emergency building of the government-run Rafik Hariri University Hospital in Beirut, March 11. (AP)
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Lebanon: Hospitals at Closure Risk Amid Financial Crisis

A Lebanese Red Cross ambulance leaves the emergency building of the government-run Rafik Hariri University Hospital in Beirut, March 11. (AP)
A Lebanese Red Cross ambulance leaves the emergency building of the government-run Rafik Hariri University Hospital in Beirut, March 11. (AP)

Amid the Corona pandemic and the severe economic situation, a new problem has emerged threatening Lebanon’s hospital sector.

Several private hospitals could face closure due to scarce funds and their failure to obtain their dues from the state, which are estimated at $1.3 billion.

“The week portends a catastrophe in the private hospital sector, as the state’s debt reached its peak, and the operation cost increased with the rise of the value of the dollar, threatening the closure of a number of hospitals in Keserwan, Metn and Beirut,” MP Ibrahim Kenaan, the head of the parliamentary finance and budget committee, said on Twitter.

On Monday, Health Minister Hamad Hassan touched on the issue, stressing that hospital contracts were ready to be settled. He noted that dues were paid until the month of June 2019, and that the remaining amounts would be disbursed soon.

Hamad added that hospitals facing financial difficulties could be given an advance for 2020.

In remarks to Asharq Al-Awsat, Sleiman Haroun, the head of the Syndicate of Private Hospitals, said that a proposal would be presented to the government, for the payment of outstanding dues in monthly installments, in order to enable the hospitals to pay the salaries of its employees and the dues owed to the importers at this stage, until a clear and integrated plan is found.

Haroun emphasized that the problem was not new.

“We have always warned about this problem and its repercussions, until the crisis began to worsen. In addition to the failure of the state to pay its dues, we are facing the increase of the dollar value against the local currency and lately the outbreak of Corona,” he told Asharq Al-Awsat.

“We buy all medical supplies from A to Z in US dollars, the exchange rate of which has doubled, but we provide invoices to the state at the official exchange rate set by the central bank,” he explained.

Haroun noted that with the spread of the corona virus, hospitals were forced to make a decision not to receive patients except in emergency cases, which led to a decrease in the occupancy rate to a quarter, while the expenses remained the same, leading to additional losses.

This situation threatens the closure of about 20 hospitals in the coming weeks, out of 126 private hospitals in Lebanon, he warned.

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Arab World

Houthi Charges of Espionage: A Tool to Intimidate, Control the Population

Houthis demonstrate in the center of the capital Sanaa against American and British strikes on their positions. (AP)
Houthis demonstrate in the center of the capital Sanaa against American and British strikes on their positions. (AP)
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Houthi Charges of Espionage: A Tool to Intimidate, Control the Population

Houthis demonstrate in the center of the capital Sanaa against American and British strikes on their positions. (AP)
Houthis demonstrate in the center of the capital Sanaa against American and British strikes on their positions. (AP)

The Houthi militia has recently released several individuals it had abducted for celebrating Yemen’s September Revolution. However, over the past few days, it has detained hundreds of residents in its stronghold of Saada, accusing them of espionage.

The campaign coincides with the airing of alleged confessions from a purported spy cell and the abduction of a former employee of the US Embassy in Yemen.

Local sources in Saada province, approximately 242 kilometers north of Sanaa, report that the Houthis have launched a widespread campaign of arrests targeting civilians. These individuals have been taken from their homes, workplaces, and businesses under allegations of collaborating with Western nations and Israel. Families of those detained have been warned to remain silent and refrain from discussing the arrests with the media or on social media platforms.

According to the sources, more than 300 individuals, including dozens of women, have been abducted across various districts in Saada. The arrests have also targeted relatives and associates of Othman Mujalli, a member of Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council, who hails from the region.

The sources suggest that the Houthis are detaining women as hostages to pressure their relatives, who may either be out of the militia’s reach or living outside Houthi-controlled areas. They also appear to be using the women to coerce confessions from male relatives. Last month, the Houthis accused Hamid Mujalli, Othman Mujalli’s brother, of engaging in espionage for Arab and Western nations for nearly two decades.

In a separate incident, the Houthis abducted a former employee of the US Embassy in Sanaa from his home on Monday without providing any explanation for their actions.

Release of Detainees

The Houthis recently released Sheikh Amin Rajeh, a tribal leader from Ibb province, after detaining him for four months. Several other individuals were also freed, none of whom had been formally charged during their detention. Rajeh, a member of the General People’s Congress Party, was one of many political activists, students, workers, and public employees abducted in September for celebrating Yemen’s September 26, 1962, revolution.

One of the released individuals, a shop owner, told Asharq Al-Awsat that he was unaware of the reason for his detention. He had been abducted in November, two months after the Houthis initiated a crackdown on those commemorating the revolution.

Alleged Spy Cell

Houthi-controlled media recently broadcast confessions from what they claimed was a newly uncovered spy cell. The group linked the cell to its broader narrative of “promised conquest and sacred jihad” against the West and Israel.

According to Houthi security officials, the alleged spy cell was working to compile a “target database,” monitor sites linked to missile forces and drones, and track specific military and security locations. They also claimed the cell had been observing the residences and movements of Houthi leaders.

In response, the Houthis issued warnings to residents, forbidding them from discussing or sharing information about militia-controlled sites, facilities, or the whereabouts of their leaders.

The Houthis’ actions reflect mounting concerns over potential strikes targeting their senior leadership, similar to the recent attacks on Hezbollah figures in Lebanon. Those fears come amid ongoing tensions with Israel, the United States, and the United Kingdom, following the Houthis’ assaults on international shipping lanes in the Red Sea and missile attacks on Israel.