Lebanon
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'Cause of All Ills': Lebanon's Complex Power-Sharing System

Under pressure from its citizens and Western powers, the leaders of multi-confessional Lebanon have vowed to abandon a power-sharing system that is widely seen to plague political life.

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Macron to Return to Lebanon in December

French president Emmanuel Macron will return to Lebanon in December for his third visit to the crisis-hit country since a devastating August explosion in Beirut, the French presidency told French news agency AFP on Tuesday.

Macron, who landed in the Lebanese capital on Monday for a two-day trip, has taken center stage in an international push for long-overdue reforms.

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Macron Warns Lebanese Politicians of 'Last Chance'

French President Emmanuel Macron issued a stern warning to Lebanon's political class Tuesday, urging them to commit to serious reforms within a few months or risk punitive action, including sanctions, if they fail to deliver.

Macron is on a two-day visit to Lebanon, marking the country's centenary and holding talks with officials on ways to help extract it from an unprecedented economic crisis and the aftermath of last month's massive blast that ripped through the capital Beirut.

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Macron Says Hizbullah Elected Party, Denies Picking Adib

French President Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday described Hizbullah as a representative of “a part of the Lebanese people,” as he denied being behind the nomination of Mustafa Adib for the PM post.

“I don’t know the man, who was designated following binding parliamentary consultations… and we hope he enjoys the needed competency,” Macron told reporters at the blast-hit Beirut port.

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Army Contains Renewed Tensions in Khalde

The army intervened after gunshots were fired in Khalde Tuesday following the return to the area of a man involved in the recent sectarian clashes there.

“Gunshots were fired in the Khalde area at the southern entrance of Dawhet Aramoun,” the National News Agency said.

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Macron Says Ready to Host Lebanon Aid Conference in October

Visiting French President Emanuel Macron said Tuesday he is ready to host a second aid conference for blast-hit Lebanon next month. 

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Salameh Reiterates Central Bank ‘Won’t Use Obligatory Reserves’

Governor of Central Bank of Lebanon Riad Salameh reiterated in remarks to Sky News Arabia on Tuesday, that the bank can not use all its obligatory foreign reserves to subsidize medicine, oil and wheat once it reaches the minimum threshold.

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Macron Tours Blast Site in Beirut Port

French President Emmanuel Macron visited the blast site in Beirut port on Tuesday and held meetings with representatives of the United Nations and civil society organizations tasked to help rebuild the port after the colossal August 4 explosion.

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Report: French Presidency Says Lebanon in ‘Very Difficult Situation’

France reportedly considers the situation in crisis-hit Lebanon as “very difficult” and that French President Emmanuel Macron’s efforts will not stop at making officials in Lebanon designate a new PM, but will also make sure that a “productive” government capable of reforms is formed,” Nidaa al-Watan newspaper reported on Tuesday.

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Macron Marks Centennial in Lebanon Presses Reform Drive

French President Emmanuel Macron pressed his "risky" drive for political change in Lebanon Tuesday, as the former French mandate marked its centenary while teetering on the brink of the abyss.

Macron has set an ambitious goal for his second visit since a deadly August 4 explosion ravaged Beirut: to press for change without being seen as a meddler. 

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