Commercial bank depositors with foreign currency accounts can now withdraw so-called local dollars — or “lollars” — at a rate of LL8,000 to the US dollar. Yesterday afternoon, Banque du Liban announced a new circular setting the higher rate. The lollar had been fixed at a rate of LL3,900 to the dollar since April 21, 2020. The new rate is valid until the end of June 2022, although past experience shows it could be cancelled before then or extended past that date. Under the latest circular, BDL also set a withdrawal limit of $3,000 per account per month to limit the growth in the money supply. The amount of lira in circulation has increased dramatically since the start of the financial crisis, which observers say creates inflationary pressure. The new “lollar” rate is still far below the parallel market rate for currency exchange, where one dollar was valued at more than LL25,000 as of Thursday. A withdrawal of a dollar from the bank at LL8,000, therefore, represents an effective haircut of 68 percent.

Lebanon is evaluating two suspected cases of the COVID-19 Omicron variant after two infected travelers arrived at Beirut’s airport, the health ministry announced yesterday. The travelers have been in isolation since their arrival in the country and are in good health, according to Health Minister Firass Abiad. The virus molecules collected from the patients are being sequenced by the national COVID-19 screening laboratory to officially confirm the presence of the Omicrom variant. Abiad said the majority of Lebanon’s current COVID-19 cases are from the Delta variant. A total of 8,814 people in Lebanon have died from COVID-19 since the global pandemic first reached the country.

Free Patriotic Movement head Gebran Bassil, among other politicians, denounced yesterday the decision taken by the labor minister on Wednesday to expand Palestinian refugees’ access to the Lebanese labor market. Bassil called on professional syndicates to appeal the minister’s decision to the State Shura Council, the country’s highest administrative court, saying, “We will not allow the Lebanese to be relieved of their jobs in these circumstances.” His attacks were echoed by leaders in the pharmacists’ and doctors’ syndicates, who pushed back against the minister’s move, in particular citing the principle of reciprocity, which holds that foreign professionals are only admitted based on a reciprocal agreement between the two countries; such an agreement between Lebanon and Palestinian authorities would be, for various logistical and geopolitical reasons, all but impossible to implement. On Wednesday, Labor Minister Mustafa Bayram opened the door for Palestinians born in Lebanon and registered with the Interior Ministry, as well as stateless residents of Lebanon and the children of Lebanese mothers and non-Lebanese fathers, to work in professions from which they had long been excluded, although in practical terms much will likely depend on the various syndicates which regulate each profession and may block Palestinians from joining their ranks. Bayram is affiliated with Hezbollah, which has been an ally of Bassil’s Free Patriotic Movement since 2006. Bayram has scheduled a press conference for 10:30 a.m. today to provide additional details about the changes to the ministry’s regulations.

Prime Minister Najib Mikati arrived in Cairo yesterday for meetings with the Egyptian president and prime minister, and the Arab League secretary general, as the government continues to try to repair Lebanon’s damaged relations with several Gulf states. Egypt and the Arab League have both attempted to mediate between Lebanon and the Gulf states since the latter withdrew their ambassadors from Beirut in October. Meanwhile, following his meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron in which Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman seemed to offer an opening to Lebanon, Salman began a tour of the Gulf on Tuesday. During his tour, he discussed Lebanon with counterparts in other countries. A joint Saudi-Emirati statement on Wednesday called on Lebanon to enact reforms so that it “will not be a starting point for any terrorist acts and a hub for organizations and groups … such as the terrorist Hezbollah.” On Thursday a joint statement with Qatar called for Lebanon not to become a “platform” for “any actions that destabilize the security and stability of the region” but did not include the references to Hezbollah or terrorism contained in the Saudi-Emirati statement. Commenting last night on the rift with the Gulf countries, Lebanon’s Foreign Minister Abdallah Bou Habib told the TV station MTV that these states have asked for “many conditions” from Lebanon that “we cannot meet.”