Walid Jumblatt

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Lebanese marijuana among ‘best in the world,’ minister says

A Lebanese minister hinted that marijuana could bring a major boost to Lebanon’s economy, and stand out as “among the best in the world,” Bloomberg News reported.

Minister of Economy and Trade Raed Khoury said marijuana, which is illegal in Lebanon, could diversify the economy and open new markets.

“The quality (of cannabis) we have is one of the best in the world,” Khoury told Bloomberg News, adding that marijuana could become a one-billion-dollar industry.

Lebanese Minister of Economy and Trade Raed Khoury. (Facebook/Raed Khoury)
Lebanese Minister of Economy and Trade Raed Khoury. (Facebook/Raed Khoury)

In a plan to help grow Lebanon’s economy, the New York-based consulting firm McKinsey & Company suggested “quick wins” to help the country in the short term.

The plan reportedly included investing in prefabricated housing for reconstruction in Iraq and Syria, investing in tourism and growing two crops — avocados and cannabis.

RELATED: Officials: 15 tons of marijuana seized at Beirut paint warehouse

RELATED: LAU to study ‘potential medical value’ of marijuana in Lebanon

Khoury said implementing the McKinsey & Company report would substantially help Lebanon’s economy, which is the third most-indebted nation in the world.

He believes Lebanon, which has marijuana farms in the Bekaa Valley, could legalize the growing and exporting of the drug for medical treatment.

Khoury is not the first minister to stand by the legalization of marijuana. In 2015, former minister Walid Jumblatt suggested the economic impact would be significant for the region.

RELATED: Jumblatt renews call for legalizing weed in Lebanon

“Never in my life have I smoked marijuana, but I support growing cannabis for medical use and to improve the living conditions of farmers in north Lebanon and the Bekaa Valley,” Jumblatt previously told Al-Jadeed television.

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Lebanese leaders react to London Bridge terror attack

Lebanese political leaders submitted their reactions to the Lebanese National News Agency Sunday in response to the terror attack at the London Bridge.

ISIS has claimed responsibility for the attack Saturday night that killed 7 people and injured at least 48 others. At least 21 people are in critical condition at the hospital, officials said.

London security officials said 12 people have been arrested in connection with the attack. Police are also executing raids in parts of London as of Sunday night.

READ: Statements from Lebanese political leaders:

President Michel Aoun

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“Targeting Britain repeatedly with brutal attacks indicates that it still stands in the face of dark and inhuman ideologies represented by terrorism, which is desperately trying to circulate them as an alternative culture to the dialogue of civilizations and religions. The Lebanese stand in solidarity with Britain in fending off all kinds of terrorism.”

Speaker Nabih Berri

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“We reaffirm our strong condemnation of the terrorist acts that targeted London Bridge and Boro Market, which resulted in the death and injury of a large number of innocent civilians.”

Prime Minister Saad Hariri

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“There are always attempts to link Islam to terrorism. Islam is innocent of these terrorist acts.”

MP Walid Jumblatt

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“I hope the foundations of Western democracy would remain firm and strong, since it reflects the values of freedom and human rights regardless of its positions vis-à-vis various issues. I deplore this terrorist act and extend my condolences and sympathy to the British Government, the British people and the victims’ families.

We will update statements as they become available.

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Lebanese officials react to Iran nuclear deal

(BEIRUT, LEBANON) — Lebanese Prime Minister Tammam Salam and other Lebanese officials praised the deal reached between Iran and world powers Tuesday and expressed hope that the agreement would usher a new era of peace to Lebanon and the Middle East.

“We hope that this development will have positive repercussions on the situation in the Middle East, in a way that helps reduce tensions and spreads peace and stability,” Salam said in a statement.

Before the agreement was reached, Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri said on Sunday that an Iranian nuclear deal could help pave the way to ending the presidential vacuum in Lebanon.

Other leaders from opposing parties also expressed their delight, including Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel Aoun, Marada Movement chief Sleiman Frangieh, and former President Michel Sleiman.

Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea and Progressive Socialist Party chief Walid Jumblatt were the only officials in Lebanon who spoke against the deal on Tuesday.

“Some have hopes about the nuclear deal but I disagree,” Geagea told reporters after meeting with Prime Minister Tammam Salam.

He said the deal is only a “mere agreement” and that it can potentially “aggravate” the situation in the Middle East.

Jumblatt said the deal “excludes Arabs…with total disregard for the Palestinian cause” and provided a “boost” to the “murderous” regime of Bashar Assad.

Under the deal, sanctions imposed by the United States, the European Union and the United Nations will be lifted, in return for Iran’s acceptance of long-term curbs on its nuclear program, which the West had claimed was aimed at creating a nuclear weapon.

The lifting of sanctions and the release of frozen assets in the United States will provide Iran with billions of dollars.

The former Iranian ambassador to the United Nations, Mohammad Sadegh Kharazi, was quoted as saying by The Guardian that the deal ended the “Cold War” between Iran and the United States.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described the agreement as a “historic mistake” and said he would do what he could to block Iran’s nuclear ambitions.

“Iran is going to receive a sure path to nuclear weapons. Many of the restrictions that were supposed to prevent it from getting there will be lifted,” Netanyahu said at the start of a meeting with Dutch Foreign Minister Bert Koenders in Jerusalem.

“Iran will get a jackpot, a cash bonanza of hundreds of billions of dollars, which will enable it to continue to pursue its aggression and terror in the region and in the world. This is a bad mistake of historic proportions.”

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 Entertainment, Lifestyle

12 Photos of Walid Jumblatt Keepin’ it Real

(BEIRUT, LEBANON) — Walid Jumblatt, one of Lebanon’s most visible and outspoken politicians, is known for his lively personality — often making him the subject of amusing photos.

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Walid Jumblatt keepin’ it real on a trip in Moscow, Russia.

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Walid Jumblatt keepin’ it real in front of a portrait of himself.

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Walid Jumblatt keepin’ it real while checking his gun.

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Walid Jumblatt keepin’ it real while reading tweets on his iPad.

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Walid Jumblatt keepin’ it real while drinking traditional mate.

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Walid Jumblatt keepin’ it real with the ladies.

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Walid Jumblatt keepin’ it real while hanging out with his pet dog.

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Walid Jumblatt keepin’ it real during a press conference….with a smorgasbord of weaponry in the background.

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Walid Jumblatt keepin’ it real while driving himself around.

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Walid Jumblatt keepin’ it real when his pet dog interrupts during a press interview.

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Walid Jumblatt keepin’ it real while warming his cold hands.

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Walid Jumblatt keepin’ it real during a sobhiye’ outside of his home.

Let’s just say Jumblatt adds a lot of personality to the Lebanese political system!

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Jumblatt renews call for legalizing weed in Lebanon

(BEIRUT, LEBANON) — MP Walid Jumblatt renewed calls for legalizing the cultivation of cannabis in Lebanon’s eastern Bekaa Valley, saying its economic impact could be substantial for the region.

In a statement published Wednesday in As-Safir Newspaper, Jumblatt applauded the crackdown on inmates in Roumieh Prison as a bold security move, but called it the first step to improving security strifes in the country.

“The treatment cannot be a security one only, but it should be backed by development, and thus I still believe that the cultivation of hashish should be legalized because the theory of alternative crops has failed,” Jumblatt said.

Jumblatt believes the “page has turned” in the Roumieh issue, and efforts should now focus on security and economic stability in the Bekaa. He says regulating security and cannabis growers should go hand-in-hand.

“Never in my life have I smoked marijuana, but I support growing cannabis for medical use and to improve the living conditions of farmers in north Lebanon and the Bekaa Valley,” Jumblatt previously told Al-Jadeed television.

“Let’s legalize cannabis and regulate its cultivation.”

Lebanon remains one of the top five global producers of hashish, accounting for around 5-6% of total world supply since 2002.

Global demand for cannabis and hashish is ever-increasing, and the incentive for impoverished Lebanese farmers to return to their traditional livelihood is great.

A hectare of cannabis may produce anything from 40-100 kg of hashish, worth between $20,000 and $40,000 USD.

WATCH: Inside a Lebanese marijuana factory:

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Ex-Jumblatt aide jailed 2 years, fined $3.45M

(BEIRUT, LEBANON) — Ex-Jumblatt aide and businessman Bahij Abou Hamze was sentenced to two years in jail and ordered to pay $3.45 million on Friday over charges of breach of trust and embezzlement from the Safa football team, sources told Beirut-based newspaper, The Daily Star.

The decision marks the first sentence against Abou Hamze, the former head of the board of trustees for the football team. Abu Hamze is also the husband of TV personality Mona Abou Hamze, most notable for “Talk of the Town” on MTV Lebanon.

Abu Hamzeh’s lawyers have been petitioning for charges against the defendant to be dropped. The case was filed by the chairman of the Safa football team Issam Sayegh, who is currently representing the team.

Abu Hamzeh was earlier charged with impersonating Sayegh by forging documents and using counterfeit papers, but that case was dismissed, a judicial source told The Daily Star.

Abu Hamzeh still faces several other charges filed by Jumblatt.

The lawsuits are the culmination of a dramatic deterioration of relations between Jumblatt and Abu Hamzeh, who used to run Jumlatt’s real estate endeavors and managed his private properties for more than two decades.

Abu Hamzeh’s family has consistently worked for the Jumblatt family over the past century.

In one of the lawsuits filed by Jumblatt, he accused Abu Hamzeh and business partner Hussein Bdeir of selling him a piece of land that did not actually exist.

Abu Hamzeh is a chemical engineer and a Middle East agent for the U.S. pharmaceutical company Upjohn, Abu Hamzeh lived in Paris before moving to Lebanon in 1987 at the request of Jumblatt in order to manage the PSP chief’s companies.

He is also the former head of the Association of Oil Importing Companies and served as the head of Safa’s board of trustees.

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 Entertainment, News

Three Lebanese politicians to attend Clooney and Alamuddin’s London ceremony

(BEIRUT, LEBANON) — A London ceremony celebrating the wedding of Amal Alamuddin and George Clooney will welcome three Lebanese politicians on October 23.

Progressive Socialist Party Leader Walid Jumblatt, Environment Minister Mohammad Machnouk, and MP Marwan Hamade will fly to England for a dinner hosted by Alamuddin’s father Ramzi.

Previously, Jumblatt voiced positive opinions of Alamuddin and Clooney’s marriage, expressing hope they would set an example of openness for the Druze community.

“Tell me when George Clooney will be coming to Lebanon so I can greet him in Moukhtara,” he wrote, referring to his ancestral home in the Chouf mountains. “I will bring a delegation of Druze sheikhs.”

Ramzi Alamuddin is a retired professor of business studies at the American University of Beirut and comes from a prominent Lebanese Druze family. Amal’s mother, Bariaa Alamuddin, is the foreign editor of the Pan-Arab newspaper al-Hayat.

During the 1980s, when the Lebanese Civil War was in full scale, Alamuddin’s family left Lebanon for London and settled in Buckinghamshire, England.

Amal Alamuddin is a graduate of the University of Oxford and the New York University School of Law.

The Lebanese-British human rights lawyer Alamuddin, 36, and Hollywood actor Clooney, 53, dominated world headlines last weekend in a lavish Venice affair that included a wedding ceremony at one of the famed city’s luxurious hotels, the Aman Canal Grande.

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Walid Jumblatt offers presidential compromise

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(BEIRUT, LEBANON) — Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Jumblatt presented a compromise on Tuesday to end the presidential void, offering to withdraw the nomination of Henry Helou.

“I don’t mind withdrawing the nomination of MP Henry Helou if the others withdraw their candidates to facilitate a settlement that would end the presidential vacuum,” Jumblatt said.

He urged the various political leaders to put national interests above their own.

“We should seek to fortify the country politically through putting national interests above all else and this translates into speedy concessions by everyone, all the way to the election of a consensus president who can manage the crisis,” Jumblatt said.

He warned of the growing dangers on Lebanon of the fast-moving events in Syria, Iraq and recently the Israeli offensive on the Gaza Strip.

Lebanon has been without a head of state since former President Michel Sleiman’s term ended May 25 with MPs botching several attempts at electing a new president over lack of consensus.

While Jumblatt has supported Helou, from his parliamentary bloc, for the presidency, March 14 MPs have backed Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea.

March 8 lawmakers have boycotted the election sessions, refusing to attend until a consensus candidate is agreed upon by the political parties. Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel Aoun is widely viewed as the March 8 candidate, though he has refused to announce his candidacy unless the parties agree on him as a consensus candidate.

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Hariri, Jumblatt expected to meet and discuss presidential void

(BEIRUT, LEBANON) — Prime Minister Saad Hariri and MP Walid Jumblatt are expected to meet within the next two days to discuss the political turmoil that continues to plague Lebanon’s presidency, according to political sources.

Parliament has already failed to elect a president six times since April 23, leaving Lebanon without a president after Michel Sleiman’s departure. Hariri and Jumblatt are expected to speak about a possible consensus candidate that would be neither affiliated with March 8 and March 14.

These candidates could possibly be Central Bank Governor Riad Salmeh or Army commander Gen. Jean Kahwaji, according to the political source.

Meanwhile, Maronite Patriarch Beshara Rai criticized lawmakers for failing to elect a president.

“The Lebanese people reject their lawmakers’ failure to elect a new president and the ongoing violation of the constitution and the National Pact,” Rai said. “The Lebanese people are sick and tired of such political practices that run contrary to all democratic and constitutional rules.”

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Aoun’s bloc to cast blank ballot for presidential election

BEIRUT: The Change and Reform bloc headed by MP Michel Aoun will cast a blank ballot during Wednesday’s Parliament session to elect a new president as the presumed candidates have yet to secure a two-thirds majority.

“We will attend tomorrow’s Parliament session and we will cast a blank ballot,” MP Emile Rahme told reporters after a bloc meeting chaired by Aoun in Rabieh.

While the former Army general has said he would only run for the country’s top Christian post as a “consensus candidate,” his rival, Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea announced his candidacy earlier this month.

Meanwhile, MP Walid Jumblatt said his National Struggle Front bloc nominated MP Henry Helou for the post, describing the Aley lawmaker as a “voice of moderation.”

Speaking to reporters after his bloc’s meeting, Jumblatt denied Helou’s nomination was a “political maneuver,” saying he believed his lawmaker can help safeguard the country.

Only Geagea and MP Robert Ghanem have announced their candidacy for the presidency although Lebanon has entered its two-month constitutional deadline to elect a new head of state.

President Michel Sleiman’s six-year term ends on May 25.

None of the candidates including those who consider themselves natural nominees such as Auon and Kataeb head Amin Gemayel have yet worked to secure two thirds majority for the first round of the parliamentary sessions.

In a clear sign Gemayel would not enter the presidential race as announced last week, MP Elie Marounie said Kataeb lawmakers would attend the legislative session and vote in favor of Geagea.

A Lebanese Forces delegation headed by MP Strida Geagea handed Speaker Nabih Berri a copy of presidential hopeful Geagea’s platform during a meeting in Ain el-Tineh.

Geagea said the speaker praised her husband’s agenda, saying the LF expected its head to do well in Wednesday’s session.

“We expect Geagea to get no less than 50 votes for the first round of election… we have 37 votes from the Future bloc, eight votes from the Lebanese Forces along with several other independent lawmakers,” the MP told reporters after the meeting.

“As a March 14 coalition, we insist on having a single candidate. Our candidate, as March 14 forces, is Geagea and it is too early to talk about other options,” she added.

She also thanked Telecoms Minister Butros Harb, once thought to be a presidential hopeful, for contacting Geagea and voicing support for his candidacy.

Earlier in the day, Berri held talks with MP Michel Murr, head of the Lebanese Democratic Party MP Talal Arslan as well as Health Minister Wael Abu Faour who headed a delegation from Jumblatt.

Murr said he along with MP Nayla Tueni would attend Wednesday’s morning session, adding that he expected quorum.

“I will check with my conscious and Lebanon’s interest and then I will elect a president on that basis,” Murr told reporters after the meeting in Ain el-Tineh.

Berri also spoke to Arslan and the PSPS delegation about the presidential election.

The speaker also met with a delegation from Al-Jamaa Al-Islamiya headed by MP Imad Hout.

Several blocs have already confirmed their attendance of Wednesday’s session including lawmakers from Jumblatt and Berri’s blocs.

MP Robert Ghanem who visited Geagea and Maronite Cardinal Beshara Rai Tuesday said he was running for the election because he was a consensus candidate.

“I announced my candidacy on the basis that I am a consensus president. According to Article 49, the president is the head of the nation’s unit and works for its institutions,” Ghanem told reporters after his meeting with Geagea in Maarab.

“When I announced I was running, I was convinced that the power of moderation is the effective power that can restore state institutions,” he added.

Future MP Ahmad Fatfat also met with Rai and ruled out the possibility of Lebanon plunging into a presidential vacuum.

Source: The Daily Star

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