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COVID-19 Outbreak Threatens Lebanon’s Health Safety

King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Centre (KSrelief) delivered on Monday medical assistance to Lebanese hospitals (SPA)
King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Centre (KSrelief) delivered on Monday medical assistance to Lebanese hospitals (SPA)
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COVID-19 Outbreak Threatens Lebanon’s Health Safety

King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Centre (KSrelief) delivered on Monday medical assistance to Lebanese hospitals (SPA)
King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Centre (KSrelief) delivered on Monday medical assistance to Lebanese hospitals (SPA)

The Lebanese Health Ministry warned Monday that the pandemic has reached a dangerous stage as the country witnessed record-high COVID-19 cases and deaths.

“The pandemic has extended in several Lebanese regions. Health safety is in danger and everyone must possess a high sense of responsibility,” said Health Minister Hamad Hassan.

And amid the spread of rumors about fake COVID-19 death tolls issued by the Health Ministry, Hassan called on the Lebanese not to listen to such false news.

He wrote on his Twitter account, “There is no compensation or aid to the families of the victims who die of coronavirus, contrary to all the rumors," adding that "all that is being circulated may be for the purpose of thwarting the strenuous efforts to fight the epidemic, belittling it or justifying a specific medical shortcoming or for some purpose."

On Monday, the Health Ministry said 457 new cases of the novel coronavirus have been confirmed, raising the tally of infected people in the country to 13,155.

Last Friday, the country entered a partial lockdown, which is set to end on 7 September.

And despite a decision to close most businesses, gathering spots, and private and public spaces, and a daily curfew imposed between 6 pm and 6 am daily activities in Lebanon seemed quite normal in several cities.

Even Beirut’s main entrances witnessed too much traffic, while a large number of merchants refused to close their shops in light of the dire economic crisis.

For his part, Nicolas Chammas, the chairman of Beirut Merchants Association, announced a “total rejection of the lockdown in light of the failure of the state to provide an alternative income for the people, and the restrictions on access to money deposited in banks.”

Meanwhile, King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Centre (KSrelief) continued delivering medical assistance to Lebanese hospitals that provide free medical services. The center delivered to Rafik Hariri University Hospital in Beirut medical aids, in the presence of the Director of KSrelief's Office in Lebanon, Fahad Al-Qannas, and the Secretary-General of High Relief Commission in Lebanon, Major General Mohammad Khair.

Khair, thanked the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia under the leadership of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud and HRH the Crown Prince for the urgent humanitarian aid provided through the Center, noting that the Kingdom has always stood in solidarity with the Lebanese people in times of crisis, most recently after Beirut's port explosion.

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Lebanon’s PM Visits Syrian President to Discuss Border Demarcation and Security

Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam meets with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa in Damascus, Syria April 14, 2025. (Dalati & Nohra/Handout via Reuters)
Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam meets with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa in Damascus, Syria April 14, 2025. (Dalati & Nohra/Handout via Reuters)
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Lebanon’s PM Visits Syrian President to Discuss Border Demarcation and Security

Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam meets with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa in Damascus, Syria April 14, 2025. (Dalati & Nohra/Handout via Reuters)
Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam meets with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa in Damascus, Syria April 14, 2025. (Dalati & Nohra/Handout via Reuters)

Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam led a high-level ministerial delegation to Syria on Monday for talks with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa, marking the most significant diplomatic visit between the two countries since the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s government in December.

"My visit to Damascus today aims to open a new page in the history of relations between the two countries, based on mutual respect, restoring trust, good neighborliness," Salam said in a statement on X.

At the center of discussions was implementing a March 28 agreement signed in Saudi Arabia by the Syrian and Lebanese defense ministers to demarcate land and sea borders and improve coordination on border security issues, Salam said in the statement.

The Lebanese-Syrian border witnessed deadly clashes earlier this year and years of unrest in the frontier regions, which have been plagued by weapons and illicit drug smuggling through illegal crossings.

During Monday’s meeting, Salam and Sharaa agreed to form a joint ministerial committee to oversee the implementation of the border agreement, close illegal crossings and suppress smuggling activity along the border.

The border area, especially near Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley and Syria’s Qusayr region, has long been a corridor for illicit trade, arms trafficking, and the movement of fighters — including Hezbollah fighters who backed the Assad government during Syria’s 14-year civil war.

Hezbollah has been significantly weakened in its recent war with Israel and since Assad's ousting, it lost several key smuggling routes it once relied on for weapons transfers.

Lebanon also pressed Syria to provide clarity on the fate of thousands of Lebanese nationals who were forcibly disappeared or imprisoned in Syrian jails in the 1980s and 1990s, during Syria’s nearly 30-year military presence in Lebanon. Human rights groups have long documented the lack of accountability and transparency regarding these cases, with families of the missing holding regular demonstrations in Beirut demanding answers.

Syrian officials for their part raised the issue of Syrian nationals detained in Lebanese prisons, Salam said. Many of the detainees were arrested for illegal entry or alleged involvement in militant activity. Rights advocates in both countries have criticized the lack of due process in many of these cases and the poor conditions inside detention facilities.

Lebanon pledged to hand over people implicated in crimes committed by the Assad government and security forces, many of whom are believed to have fled to Lebanon after the government’s collapse, if found on Lebanese soil, a ministerial source told The Associated Press.

The official spoke on the condition of anonymity because they are not authorized to publicly comment.

In return, Lebanese officials requested the extradition of Syrians wanted in Lebanese courts for high-profile political assassinations, "most notably those involved in the bombing of the Al-Taqwa and Al-Salam mosques, those convicted of assassinating President Bashir Gemayel, and other crimes for which the Assad regime is accused," Salam said.

For decades, Lebanon witnessed a long series of politically motivated assassinations targeting journalists, politicians and security officials, particularly those opposed to Syrian influence. The 2013 twin bombings of the Al-Taqwa and Al-Salam mosques in Tripoli in northern Lebanon killed more than 40 people and intensified sectarian tensions already heightened by the spillover from the Syrian war.

Syria has never officially acknowledged involvement in any of Lebanon’s political assassinations.

Salam said he also pushed for renewed cooperation on the return of Syrian refugees.

Lebanese government officials estimate the country hosts about 1.5 million Syrian refugees, of whom about 755,000 are officially registered with the UN refugee agency, or UNHCR, making it the country with the highest number of refugees per capita in the world.

While Lebanese authorities have long urged the international community to support large-scale repatriation efforts, human rights organizations have cautioned against forced returns, citing ongoing security concerns and a lack of guarantees in Syria.

Since the fall of Assad in December, an estimated 400,000 refugees have returned to Syria from neighboring countries, according to UNHCR, with about half of them coming from Lebanon, but many are hesitant to return because of the dire economic situation and fears of continuing instability in Syria.