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Hezbollah, which emerged significantly weakened from a devastating war with Israel, now faces an existential crisis as it struggles to cope with sweeping changes across the Middle East -- changes that have also shaken its key ally, Iran, according to political analysts.
Thursday, October 2, 2025
Hardly anyone alive today remembers the roaring ‘20s, the post-First World War cultural revival; the jazz age that rejected the values, ideas and institutions of a previous generation that had led Europe to self-destruction. Lebanon may today be going through something similar, with traumatized postwar youths reacting to what they see as a society and a state that has failed them in every possible way.
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Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola says the club expects to learn the outcome of the hearing into its 115 charges of alleged Premier League financial rule breaches "in one month".
Saturday, February 8, 2025
Former Brazil and Real Madrid defender Marcelo has announced his retirement from football, bringing the curtain down on a trophy-laden career that included five UEFA Champions League triumphs.
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Monday 29 September 2025 13:21:26
The Kataeb Party’s parliamentary bloc walked out of Monday’s legislative session, citing the legislature’s failure to address the voting rights of Lebanese citizens living abroad under the current election law.
Speaking to reporters after the walkout, Kataeb leader MP Samy Gemayel warned that the registration period for expatriate voters is only weeks away, yet citizens remain unclear on how their ballots will be counted.
“A parliamentary subcommittee has produced no results, and a recent Cabinet session confirmed that the current law is unworkable. Parliament must clarify how voting for Lebanese abroad will be implemented, especially since the majority supports allowing them to vote for all 128 seats,” Gemayel said.
“Parliament is supposed to either clarify how voting for the six designated seats would be carried out, or amend the law if needed. That hasn’t happened. We pushed to have the issue addressed, but our request was denied. We even asked Speaker Nabih Berri to give the floor to the Interior Minister and the Prime Minister so they could confirm that the current law cannot be implemented.”
He stressed that the current law only provides six seats for expatriates, a measure he described as marginalizing citizens living outside Lebanon.
“Including expatriates fully would allow them to play a meaningful role in Lebanon’s political life,” he said. “If this issue is not addressed, we risk disenfranchising hundreds of thousands of Lebanese abroad, potentially postponing elections or holding them without granting these citizens their right to vote.”
Gemayel added that the Kataeb bloc’s withdrawal was meant to highlight the urgency of the matter.
“To voice our objection and underscore the importance of this issue, as well as the threat it poses to democracy and the voting rights of expatriates, we withdrew from the session. Everything else is secondary. We will watch how events unfold before making any further decisions," he stated. “All other topics are secondary. The Kataeb are the only bloc that opposed this law when it was unanimously passed."
“Democracy demands that a repeated urgent proposal to amend the election law be brought before Parliament. We support it and are prepared to accept the outcome, whatever it may be. But not even presenting the issue makes no sense. Expatriates still don’t know whether they will be able to vote, and that’s a serious problem. We hope the matter is reconsidered and that a session is held soon to resolve it. Nothing is more important than this issue.”
“We will oppose any extension of the Parliament's term or postponement of elections. We support holding elections on time under the law adopted in the previous term,” Gemayel concluded.
At the session’s opening, Gemayel asked Interior Minister Ahmed al-Hajjar whether elections could be conducted under the current law. Al-Hajjar replied: “No, it is not possible.” Gemayel then addressed Speaker Nabih Berri: “You see, Mr. Speaker? He says it is not possible.”
As Speaker Berri warned against bypassing the current law, Gemayel insisted: “We no longer insist on voting for all 128 seats; we only want the six designated seats. Can the law still be applied?”
