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First Repatriation Flight from France Lands in Tunisia

A general view shows Tunis-Carthage International Airport in Tunis, Tunisia, on July 30, 2018. REUTERS/Zoubeir Souissi
A general view shows Tunis-Carthage International Airport in Tunis, Tunisia, on July 30, 2018. REUTERS/Zoubeir Souissi
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First Repatriation Flight from France Lands in Tunisia

A general view shows Tunis-Carthage International Airport in Tunis, Tunisia, on July 30, 2018. REUTERS/Zoubeir Souissi
A general view shows Tunis-Carthage International Airport in Tunis, Tunisia, on July 30, 2018. REUTERS/Zoubeir Souissi

Carthage International Airport received Thursday the first flight of Tunisian expatriates returning from Paris as Tunisia lifted this week the majority of restrictions put in place in early March to combat the novel coronavirus.

Passengers were sent to a mandatory one-week quarantine in hotels after the Tunisian authorities had earlier called for self-quarantine measures.

Repatriation flights from Paris, Leon, Marseille, Nice, Munich, Frankfort, Kiev, Bucharest, Brussels, Rome, Naples, Palermo, Verona, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar will continue until June 26.

The country has set a condition for returnees to sign a written paper pledging to abide by a 14-day self-quarantine in addition to other measures such as approving follow-up procedures by health teams and having a negative test result for COVID-19 issued 72 hours before arrival.

Meanwhile, the coronavirus response team and the Tunisian Health Ministry discussed the state’s measures as it opens the border to welcome Tunisians residing abroad or foreigners arriving for medical tourism.

Concerning opening the border, Tunisian Minister of Health Abdellatif Mekki said that Tunisians have a “constitutional right” to return home as he highlighted the significance of respecting health instructions to prevent a second wave of the pandemic.

He asserted the border will open gradually.

Tunisia has recorded 1,128 confirmed coronaviruses cases. A total of 1,004 patients have recovered, reaching a rate of around 89 percent.

The country has recorded 50 deaths.

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Arab World

Lebanon Assesses Damage after Israel Strikes Hezbollah-run Financial Institution

Rescue workers use a bulldozer to remove rubble of destroyed buildings a the site of an Israeli airstrike on Sunday night that hit several branches of the Hezbollah-run al-Qard al-Hassan in Beirut's southern suburb, Lebanon, Monday, Oct. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)
Rescue workers use a bulldozer to remove rubble of destroyed buildings a the site of an Israeli airstrike on Sunday night that hit several branches of the Hezbollah-run al-Qard al-Hassan in Beirut's southern suburb, Lebanon, Monday, Oct. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)
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Lebanon Assesses Damage after Israel Strikes Hezbollah-run Financial Institution

Rescue workers use a bulldozer to remove rubble of destroyed buildings a the site of an Israeli airstrike on Sunday night that hit several branches of the Hezbollah-run al-Qard al-Hassan in Beirut's southern suburb, Lebanon, Monday, Oct. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)
Rescue workers use a bulldozer to remove rubble of destroyed buildings a the site of an Israeli airstrike on Sunday night that hit several branches of the Hezbollah-run al-Qard al-Hassan in Beirut's southern suburb, Lebanon, Monday, Oct. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

Lebanese were surveying the damage on Monday after overnight Israeli strikes hit nearly a dozen branches of a Hezbollah-run financial institution that Israel says is used to fund attacks but where many ordinary people keep their savings.

The strikes targeted Al-Qard Al-Hassan branches in the southern neighborhoods of Beirut, across southern Lebanon and in the eastern Bekaa Valley, where Hezbollah has a strong presence. One strike flattened a nine-story building in Beirut with a branch inside it. Smoke rose from several locations on Monday.

The Israeli military issued evacuation warnings ahead of the strikes. There were no reports of casualties, The AP reported.

Israel invaded Lebanon earlier this month, saying it aims to push Hezbollah from the border after more than a year of rocket, missile and drone attacks that began after Palestinian Hamas militants launched their surprise Oct. 7, 2023, attack into Israel from the Gaza Strip. Israeli airstrikes have pounded large areas of Lebanon for weeks, forcing over a million people to flee their homes.

The United States is hoping to revive diplomatic efforts to resolve both conflicts after the killing of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar in the Gaza Strip last week, but so far all sides appear to be digging in.

Hezbollah-run lender filled gaps left by Lebanon's troubled banks The Arabic language spokesman for the Israeli military, Avichay Adraee, said warplanes targeted several locations “used to store money for the military arm of Hezbollah," including Al-Qard Al-Hassan, which he said finances arms purchases and is used to pay fighters.

He said Hezbollah stores hundreds of millions of dollars in the branches, without providing evidence, and that the strikes were aimed at preventing the group from rearming.

The institution has more than 30 branches across Lebanon. It tried to reassure customers, saying it had evacuated all branches and relocated gold and other deposits to safe areas.

Many customers are civilians unaffiliated with Hezbollah. The registered nonprofit has long served as an alternative to Lebanon's banks, which have imposed restrictions in the face of a severe financial crisis that began in 2019.

Bulldozers cleared mounds of rubble at the site of one strike. Clothes, furniture and the remains of a beauty salon were seen in the debris. Al-Qard al-Hassan documents were scattered across the area, but there was no sign of cash or other valuables.