Dbeibeh Discusses Libyan Political Crisis with Egyptian Officials

The Egyptian Minister of Trade and Industry during her meeting in Cairo with the Libyan Ministers of Transportation and Economy, Mohamed al-Shoubi and Mohamed al-Hawij (Libyan Ministry of Economy and Trade)
The Egyptian Minister of Trade and Industry during her meeting in Cairo with the Libyan Ministers of Transportation and Economy, Mohamed al-Shoubi and Mohamed al-Hawij (Libyan Ministry of Economy and Trade)
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Dbeibeh Discusses Libyan Political Crisis with Egyptian Officials

The Egyptian Minister of Trade and Industry during her meeting in Cairo with the Libyan Ministers of Transportation and Economy, Mohamed al-Shoubi and Mohamed al-Hawij (Libyan Ministry of Economy and Trade)
The Egyptian Minister of Trade and Industry during her meeting in Cairo with the Libyan Ministers of Transportation and Economy, Mohamed al-Shoubi and Mohamed al-Hawij (Libyan Ministry of Economy and Trade)

Libya's Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibeh will visit Cairo to discuss the political crisis with Egyptian officials and sign several agreements in the economic and trade fields.

A Libyan ministerial delegation arrived in Cairo Tuesday, consisting of Economy Minister Mohammad al-Hawaij, Transport Minister Mohammad al-Shhoubi, Housing and Construction Minister Abu Bakr al-Ghawi, and a number of officials.

Hawaij chaired the ministerial delegation of the unity government, ahead of the meetings of the Libyan-Egyptian Joint Higher Committee scheduled for Thursday.

The committee's meeting will be chaired by the Libyan PM and his Egyptian counterpart Mostafa Madbouly, which comes within the framework of boosting bilateral relations, increasing trade exchange, and concluding agreements in several areas of common interest.

The Libyan and Egyptian governments had previously signed 11 agreements to enhance cooperation in several areas during Madbouly's visit to Tripoli in April at the head of a large ministerial delegation.

The two sides signed several memoranda of understanding (MoU) on cooperation in road and infrastructure projects, transportation, and health, and in addition to investments in the electricity sector.

In September 2020, Egypt's Minister of International Cooperation Rania al-Mashat received Hawaij to discuss the ongoing preparations for the meetings of the eleventh session of the Egyptian-Libyan Supreme Committee.

The Libyan-Egyptian Joint Ministerial Committee held its second Cairo meeting on September 10. The panel discussed issues of the Egyptian workers, and the date they will be allowed to return in addition to their integration into the Libyan labor market.

The Libyan Ministry of Labor and Rehabilitation said in a previous statement that the joint meeting, which was held at the office of the Egyptian Ministry of Manpower in Cairo, discussed the issue of Egyptian workers in Libya and the mechanism for their entry under the supervision of the Libyan Ministry of Labor provided that it is done during the current year.



Rescue Teams Search for Survivors in Building Collapse that Killed at Least 2 in Northern Lebanon

A Lebanese flag is pictured, in the aftermath of a massive explosion, in Beirut's damaged port area, Lebanon August 17, 2020. REUTERS/Hannah McKay
A Lebanese flag is pictured, in the aftermath of a massive explosion, in Beirut's damaged port area, Lebanon August 17, 2020. REUTERS/Hannah McKay
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Rescue Teams Search for Survivors in Building Collapse that Killed at Least 2 in Northern Lebanon

A Lebanese flag is pictured, in the aftermath of a massive explosion, in Beirut's damaged port area, Lebanon August 17, 2020. REUTERS/Hannah McKay
A Lebanese flag is pictured, in the aftermath of a massive explosion, in Beirut's damaged port area, Lebanon August 17, 2020. REUTERS/Hannah McKay

At least two people were killed and four rescued from the rubble of a multistory apartment building that collapsed Sunday in the city of Tripoli in northern Lebanon, state media reported.

Rescue teams were continuing to dig through the rubble. It was not immediately clear how many people were in the building when it fell.

The bodies pulled out were of a child and a woman, the state-run National News Agency reported.

Dozens of people crowded around the site of the crater left by the collapsed building, with some shooting in the air.

The building was in the neighborhood of Bab Tabbaneh, one of the poorest areas in Lebanon’s second largest city, where residents have long complained of government neglect and shoddy infrastructure. Building collapses are not uncommon in Tripoli due to poor building standards, according to The AP news.

Lebanon’s Health Ministry announced that those injured in the collapse would receive treatment at the state’s expense.

The national syndicate for property owners in a statement called the collapse the result of “blatant negligence and shortcomings of the Lebanese state toward the safety of citizens and their housing security,” and said it is “not an isolated incident.”

The syndicate called for the government to launch a comprehensive national survey of buildings at risk of collapse.


Israel to Take More West Bank Powers and Relax Settler Land Buys

A view of Israeli settlement of Maale Adumim, in the West Bank, Sunday, June 18, 2023. (AP)
A view of Israeli settlement of Maale Adumim, in the West Bank, Sunday, June 18, 2023. (AP)
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Israel to Take More West Bank Powers and Relax Settler Land Buys

A view of Israeli settlement of Maale Adumim, in the West Bank, Sunday, June 18, 2023. (AP)
A view of Israeli settlement of Maale Adumim, in the West Bank, Sunday, June 18, 2023. (AP)

Israel's security cabinet approved a series of steps on Sunday that would make it easier for settlers in the occupied West Bank to buy land while granting Israeli authorities more enforcement powers over Palestinians, Israeli media reported.

The West Bank is among the territories that the Palestinians seek for a future independent state. Much of it is under Israeli military control, with limited Palestinian self-rule in some areas run by the Western-backed Palestinian Authority (PA).

Citing statements by Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and Defense Minister Israel Katz, Israeli news sites Ynet and Haaretz said the measures included scrapping decades-old regulations that prevent Jewish private citizens buying land in the West Bank, The AP news reported.

They were also reported to include allowing Israeli authorities to administer some religious sites, and expand supervision and enforcement in areas under PA administration in matters of environmental hazards, water offences and damage to archaeological sites.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said the new measures were dangerous, illegal and tantamount to de-facto annexation.

The Israeli ministers did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The new measures come three days before Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is scheduled to meet in Washington with US President Donald Trump.

Trump has ruled out Israeli annexation of the West Bank but his administration has not sought to curb Israel's accelerated settlement building, which the Palestinians say denies them a potential state by eating away at its territory.

Netanyahu, who is facing an election later this year, deems the establishment of any Palestinian state a security threat.

His ruling coalition includes many pro-settler members who want Israel to annex the West Bank, land captured in the 1967 Middle East war to which Israel cites biblical and historical ties.

The United Nations' highest court said in a non-binding advisory opinion in 2024 that Israel's occupation of Palestinian territories and settlements there is illegal and should be ended as soon as possible. Israel disputes this view.


Arab League Condemns Attack on Aid Convoys in Sudan

A general view shows the opening session of the meeting of Arab foreign ministers at the Arab League Headquarters (Reuters)
A general view shows the opening session of the meeting of Arab foreign ministers at the Arab League Headquarters (Reuters)
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Arab League Condemns Attack on Aid Convoys in Sudan

A general view shows the opening session of the meeting of Arab foreign ministers at the Arab League Headquarters (Reuters)
A general view shows the opening session of the meeting of Arab foreign ministers at the Arab League Headquarters (Reuters)

Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit strongly condemned the attack by the Rapid Support Forces on humanitarian aid convoys and relief workers in North Kordofan State, Sudan.

In a statement reported by SPA, secretary-general's spokesperson Jamal Rushdi quoted Aboul Gheit as saying the attack constitutes a war crime under international humanitarian law, which prohibits the deliberate targeting of civilians and depriving them of their means of survival.

Aboul Gheit stressed the need to hold those responsible accountable, end impunity, and ensure the full protection of civilians, humanitarian workers, and relief facilities in Sudan.