|   | Sabah el kheir. Pull up a chair, pour your coffee, and let's talk about the week that was. It was a week of accountability and quiet reckoning. Lebanon's Court of Audit moved to actually collect public funds from former telecom ministersânot just rule on paper, but enforce. Prime Minister Nawaf Salam marked one year in office with the kind of speech that makes you cautiously optimistic and nervously cynical at the same time. And a story about water tankers and gas stations reminded us that in Lebanon, even the most basic human needs have been quietly privatized into a shadow economy. Meanwhile, Lebanese artists are heading to Venice, the EU is putting up real money for the Lebanese Army, and the south is still carrying wounds most of the world has moved on from. Kteerna. Let's get into it. |
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 | - Water as a Black Market: An investigative report revealed that 14 out of 28 water springs tracked in and around Beirut are located inside or directly adjacent to gas stationsâraising serious questions about who controls Lebanon's informal water economy. The so-called "tanker market" has turned a basic human right into a privatized commodity, with fuel stations doubling as water hubs. It's a shadow system operating in plain sight, and nobody's shutting it down.
- Salam's One-Year Mark: Prime Minister Nawaf Salam marked one full year in office thisâ week, declaring that his government has "laid the foundation for rebuilding the state" and vowing to continue holding top officials accountable. He made clear that his cabinet will consider itself resigned once a new parliament is electedâand that he won't cut deals with the so-called "deep state" if it tries to block reform. One year in, the rhetoric is strong; the test is what follows.
- Gold Reserves on the Table: Lebanon is reportedly exploring the sale of its gold reserves as a mechanism to rescue banks and stabilize the economy, according to the Financial Times. The country holds one of the larger gold reserves in the region, and the ideaâpolitically explosive in any normal contextâis being floated as options narrow. It signals just how serious the fiscal situation remains, even as reform talks continue.
- EU Pledges Army Funding: The European Union announced it plans to contribute $100 million to an international conference supporting the Lebanese Army, scheduled for Marâ ch 5 in Paris. The announcement came on the sidelines of a Cairo preparatory meeting thisâ week. The funds are expected to go primarily toward logistical and equipment needsâa sign that the international community is putting real resources behind Lebanon's military as a stabilizing institution.
- Telecom Ministers Finally Face the Bill: Lebanon's Court of Audit moved thisâ week from ruling to enforcement, issuing actual collection orders against former telecommunications ministers to recover public funds. This is a significant shiftâthese aren't recommendations or moral judgments; they're enforceable financial orders. Whether the system follows through remains to be seen, but the fact that accountability is moving from theory to practice is a moment worth noting.
- South Lebanon's Silent Environmental Collapse: A detailed report thisâ week documented the scale of environmental destruction in southern Lebanon since the war, warning that vast stretches of agricultural land have been rendered unusable. The analysis describes a pattern of what it calls forced displacement through environmental destructionâwhere the land itself becomes uninhabitable, driving people out without a single displacement order ever being issued.
- Airport Threat Denied, Tensions Linger: An Israeli official denied claims by Lebanese Foreign Minister Youssef Rajji that Israel had threatened to target civilian infrastructureâincluding Beirut's airportâif Hezbollah chose to back Iran in a potential confrontation. Rajji had made the remarks in Geneva, where he said Lebanese authorities had already appealed to Hezbollah not to respond to any regional escalation. The denial offered some relief, but the fact that the conversation is happening at all says plenty.
- Gasoline Tax Is Now Real: Lebanon's new gasoline tax went into effect thisâ week, and drivers are already paying it daily. The government dropped a proposed 1% VAT increase after pushback, but questions remain over how it will fund the second half of public sector salary adjustments. The budget math still doesn't fully add up, and the policy debate over sustainable revenue isn't going anywhere soon.
- Lebanese Artists Shine at Venice: The 61st Venice Biennale, running Mayâ through Novâ ember 2026 under the title In Minor Keys, will feature 6 Lebanese-linked artists in what's being called one of the decade's most symbolically significant editions. Lebanese-born Sydney artist Khaled Sabsabiâwho was appointed, dropped, and then reinstated to represent Australia after a politically charged controversyâwill not only lead the Australia Pavilion but has also been invited to exhibit in the main Biennale show.
- General Amnesty Law Moves Forward: Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri referred a general amnesty bill to joint parliamentary committees thisâ week, following a conversation with Lebanon's top public prosecutor about the country's severe prison overcrowding crisis. The prosecutor reportedly told Berri that a general amnestyâwith certain exceptionsâwas the most viable solution. The proposal is politically and judicially complex, but the fact that it's formally in committee now means momentum is building.
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That's your week in review. Enjoy the rest of your Sunâ day â we'll be back in your inbox toâ morrow morning. |
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