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Lebanon Fuel Crisis Disrupts Paperwork at Foreign Ministry

Lebanese protesters are pictured inside the foreign ministry in Beirut on August 8, 2020. (Stringer/AFP)
Lebanese protesters are pictured inside the foreign ministry in Beirut on August 8, 2020. (Stringer/AFP)
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Lebanon Fuel Crisis Disrupts Paperwork at Foreign Ministry

Lebanese protesters are pictured inside the foreign ministry in Beirut on August 8, 2020. (Stringer/AFP)
Lebanese protesters are pictured inside the foreign ministry in Beirut on August 8, 2020. (Stringer/AFP)

In a surreal scene that points to the severe crisis hitting Lebanon, a number of citizens gathered in front of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Beirut to protest the disruption of paperwork as the lack of diesel fuel led to a power cut on Wednesday.

The depletion of diesel fuel from petrol stations, as well as the tanks of the owners of private electricity generators, is a major problem that threatens to take the country into darkness, after electricity rationing in most regions amounted to about 22 hours per day.

“Diesel tanks are either empty or are about to run down, which would force owners of power generators to turn them off completely. This has already been seen in more than one area,” the head of the association of private generators owners, Abdo Saadeh, told Asharq Al-Awsat.

Describing the situation as “catastrophic”, he said: “The state asks us to cover its shortcomings by providing citizens with electricity, but at the same time it withholds diesel fuel... How do we operate our generators?”

The representative of fuel distributors, Fadi Abu Shakra, noted that the stocks would start running dry.

Abu Shakra emphasized that an urgent solution was needed, whether by lifting or rationalizing state subsidies on fuel, or fixing its price on the exchange rate of LBP 3,900 against the US dollar.

Citizens flocked to buy diesel fuel to store it for the winter, after the Minister of Energy explicitly announced last week a price hike.

Several roads across the country were blocked by citizens on Wednesday in protest against the shortage of diesel and gasoline.

In a statement, the security forces said they have seized large quantities of subsidized diesel and gasoline intended for sale and smuggling, and the arrest of three people involved in the north of the country.

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Smotrich Again Calls For Reduction of Half of Gaza’s Population

Settler activists dance at a conference calling for the establishment of Jewish settlements in Gaza, close to the Israel-Gaza border, October 21, 2024. (Jeremy Sharon/Times of Israel)
Settler activists dance at a conference calling for the establishment of Jewish settlements in Gaza, close to the Israel-Gaza border, October 21, 2024. (Jeremy Sharon/Times of Israel)
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Smotrich Again Calls For Reduction of Half of Gaza’s Population

Settler activists dance at a conference calling for the establishment of Jewish settlements in Gaza, close to the Israel-Gaza border, October 21, 2024. (Jeremy Sharon/Times of Israel)
Settler activists dance at a conference calling for the establishment of Jewish settlements in Gaza, close to the Israel-Gaza border, October 21, 2024. (Jeremy Sharon/Times of Israel)

Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich on Monday again called for the occupation of the Gaza Strip and the reduction of its Palestinian population “by half within two years,” raising concerns about the presence of similar plans.
Speaking at a conference organized by the Yesha Council, an umbrella group representing Israeli municipalities in the West Bank, Smotrich said that “it is possible to create a situation where Gaza’s population will be reduced to half its current size in two years.”
“It won’t cost too much money. Even if it does, we should not be afraid to pay for it,” he added.
Smotrich’s calls for the occupation of Gaza are not new. However, they reflect the unstated goals of the current war in Gaza, including a prolonged occupation, military rule and rebuilding of settlements.
Israel continues to announce that its goals of the Gaza war are the “elimination of Hamas” and “returning of the captives.” However, developments in Tel Aviv and the Gaza Strip do not support such claims.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has not yet announced a plan for the post-war phase in Gaza, where Israel is working to deepen its control by expanding the axes it holds and establishing permanent military outposts.
Meanwhile, Smotrich’s speech revealed that the minister is setting a budget for the occupation of Gaza.
He said that “Occupying Gaza is not a dirty word.”
“If the cost of security control is 5 billion shekels ($1.37 billion), I will accept it with open arms. If that is what it takes to ensure the security of Israel, then so be it,” the Minister added.
He appeared to be referencing concerns raised by members of Israel’s security establishment along with Treasury officials who have warned about the massive implications that occupying Gaza would have on Israel’s economy.
Smotrich insisted that the only way to defeat Hamas is to replace its governing capabilities in Gaza and that Israel is the only party that can do so, even if that means making the Israeli Army responsible for managing the civilian affairs of Palestinians in Gaza.
Smotrich claimed that once the success of “encouraged migration” is proven in Gaza, it can be replicated in the West Bank, where another three million Palestinians live.
The Religious Zionism party chairman has long spoken in favor of annexing large parts of the West Bank and declared earlier this month that US President-elect Donald Trump’s election victory offers an opportunity to see that vision through.
Smotrich was one of several government ministers who attended an event last month calling for the reestablishment of Jewish settlements in Gaza.
Ahead of his attendance at the conference, Smotrich said that territory relinquished by Israel in the past had turned into “Iranian forward terror bases,” and endangered the country.
But is Smotrich capable of reoccupying and rebuilding settlements in Gaza? For many Israelis, the matter depends on how the war in the Strip ends.
In an article published by The Times of Israel, Eran Hildesheim accused Smotrich of trying to convince the public of a new narrative that if Israel achieves its goals in the war and defeats its enemies, peace and security will return to the region.
The author said this narrative aims primarily to prepare the public opinion that the war should continue, while at the same time promoting the vision of rebuilding settlements in the Gaza Strip.
According to Hildesheim, “the end of the war, as Smotrich put it, implies a large land seizure in the Gaza Strip.”
In the first phase, the minister said the army would distribute food to the population.
Later, Smotrich plans a full military rule to directly manage the lives of the Palestinian population. The ultimate goal of this plan is to rebuild settlements in the Gaza Strip.
“Smotrich's vision places an unbearably heavy financial burden on Israel,” Hildesheim wrote.
He added that such a plan would cost about NIS 20 billion per year, not taking into account the costs of rebuilding the Strip.
He said while the state does not currently own this amount, Israel will therefore be forced to adopt an “economy based on God’s help” to get out of this situation peacefully.