Archive | Lebanon

Today is the big day. Lebanon finally got back its 5 prisoners from Israel including Samir Kuntar and 4 Hizbullah members Khodr Zeidan, Mohammed Srour, Hussein Sulaiman and Maher Kourani.

On the other hand, Israel also got back its 2 soldiers, Eldad Regev and Ehud Goldwasser, from Hizbullah, but in a couple of black coffins. I really would like to see the look on their parents’ face when they saw the 2 coffins at Hizbullah personnels’ feet.

We have suffered a lot, I believe it is our turn now to see them crying over the dead bodies of their sons and soldiers.

However, Some people claim that Kuntar is a terrorist because he killed a 4 years old girl… Well, sometimes a photo is worth a 1000 words.

This clearly shows who’s the terrorist, no?

As part of a “Let us not Forget” campaign, Sowar Magazine released a special edition entitled “Snapshots from the Lebanese Civil War (1975-1990),” which features by some of the most prominent international photographers (including Pulitzer Prize winning photojournalist Bill Foley).

The intent of the initiative is to remind people of the horrors of war so that they’re not repeated, particularly as Lebanon passes through a politically-charged time, although a unity government was announced yesterday!

Anyway, I already seen a preview of this issue via this link and the available photos look pretty interesting, so I will of course buy it as it is worth keeping in my library.

For the last 30 minutes or so, whenever I try to access the Lebanese forces website I receive the following error:

We got use to witnesing political websites getting hacked each time a political crisis arises, let’s see if they did it again to the LF website!

While our army studs are resting on their rusty vehicles…

Idiot Lebanese motherfuckers dressing like clowns as this one below, are working really hard in Tripoli to get us back into a second civil war. (one is never enough for us!)

Seriously, شو هالمنظر؟؟

This time it’s Alawites VS. Sunnis in Tripoli. Weapons in the hand of Alawites is somehow justified, since they can easily get from Syria (I assume), BUT how did the Sunnis lay their hands on weapons? And who has been supplying them with it?

If you got any answer, let me know by comment!

If you’re watching the Euro Cup 2008 on Al-Jazeera Sport then you probably have seen the latest Coca-Cola advertisements, the ones featuring the national anthems of some European countries and using them as… advertising jingles!

I liked the idea so much, and I loved the way the egyptians executed it. I don’t think somebody else would have executed the idea the same successful way as I believe egyptians have a unique sense of humor!

Here are some of  advertisement clips for you to enjoy. Sorry if you don’t understand Arabic.

Remember when I asked you in an early post if you will still afford going to the beach in Lebanon with the constant increase in the price of fuel?

Back then I disregarded the fact that beach resorts might also increase their entrance fees… and guess what! They did it! Few days ago I learned that the places I used to go to last summer (Jiyyeh Marina & Laguava) have increase their charges by 25%. So this summer, just to get in there, you will be charged 25,000 L.L

As for the price of fuel in Lebanon, it is currently at 31,900 L.L per 20 liters and might increase in the few coming minutes!
I won’t go full throttle at any boulevard in Beirut anymore!!!

All in all, the inflation rate is near 40% for the first quarter in 2008, and given that I still have NOT received any increase in my salary, then I am getting poorer and poorer my purchasing power is decreasing each and every day…!

And then?? و بعدين؟؟

Today was the day, Michael Suleiman is finally a president or (فخامة الرئيس)!

And while the majority preferred to stay home watching politicians making out with the new president on TV, I chose to go to Ain El-Mraiseh for a walk on the corniche with some friends. It turned out to be a good decision, especially when some entertaining motorcades returning from the parliament and heading to Phoenicia Hotel passed by with bodyguards inside that are fully equipped with machine guns and aiming at potential threats, also known as “pedestrians”!

Anyway, for once everybody seemed to be happy and relieved, and once again they were congratulating each other… OK I will shut my mouth this time!

One thing that interested me in Ain El-Mraiseh was a bunch of guys jumping from the sidewalk into the sea, check out this photo of one of them (Click to enlarge).

Decamping of the opposition from Downtown Beirut is an old news by now, and as you know people are back to going there again and filling almost every cafe and restaurant around the Nejmeh square.

So I went there today to see how does things look like now, and I was honestly surprised how fast the recovery phase was. Although there are still some business owners that are not done yet with the renovation work, but most of the almost all of the famous places are back into business again.

Here are some of the photos I took there.

Nejmeh Square (Click to enlarge)

Full restaurants (Click to enlarge)

In case you’re wondering about Buddha Bar, I think it will be re-opened soon since it’s currently being renovated. (Click to enlarge)

And finally, a silhouette of Riyadh Al-Solh statue. (Click to enlarge)

Yeeha! Our dear leaders have finally arrived to an agreement in Qatar (يا فرحة قلبي)!! And the Lebanese blogsphere is all happy today!! What a perfect day… but NOT for me.

I encountered lot of people today telling me “mabrouk” (congratulations), they were actually congratulation each other because the leaders have finally reached a long awaited agreement, an agreement that has cost us a lot. No need now to list the very famous price list that is full of blood and shame.

That’s beautiful, just beautiful… I am amazed by how naive you people are, I envy those politicians who are literally “milking” each and every one of you until the last drop. You people are happy today and thanking your leaders because they have reached an agreement? Are you kidding me? Are you thanking them for granting you one of your RIGHTS? Living in a peaceful place is the least they can provide for you guys! There’s no justification to have all that amount of tension spread all over Lebanon.

And seriously, are you happy today because you have finally “earned” a peaceful summer? Happy that you will go to the beach knowing that there’s a President in Baabda? Guess what, you might have disregarded one of the news today, but the price of 20 liters of fuel has risen by 1000LL.

Know what does that mean? 20 liters of fuel now cost you 30,000L.L or $20, are you still able to afford going to one of the resorts in Jiyyeh and Rmeileh? Or will you choose heading to somewhere nearby?

Forgot to tell that the inflation rate has increased by a massive 6 point in 1 month!!! Let’s disregard the increase compared to last year, it might make some of you faint. Are you still able to go party the way you used to do in the past years? Or will you choose to spend some additional nights in front of your TV? I am fully aware that NOTHING can stop a Lebanese from partying, but an empty pocket is guaranteed to get the job done (unless some bank comes up with a “Partying” loan).

Give me a break now… And you people are happy today because Geagea and Aoun are friends again? and because Hariri and Mohammad Raad are also friends again? Nasrallah no longer belongs to the axis of evil? Jounblat is no more an ugly zionist? Oh really?? What a relief!!

If you really think that bad things has finally come to an end, then allow me to tell you that you are making a fool out of yourself. What about sharing the ministerial posts in the upcoming government? And will the new government support the resistance or not? Are these questions easy to answer? Think well.

NO, I didn’t feel happier today, and I will probably not feel happier even on Sunday after electing Michael Suleiman as a president. Call me a pessimist, but you people are fools.

The text on the left says: “While Lebanon burns, a new economy and society takes shape in the Gulf”. Loved the analogy! (Click on the cover image to enlarge).

Via Nihil Declaro