The following are summaries of today's major stories published in the Arabic press. LBCI does not edit press digest articles for content, giving English-language readers insight into the various views expressed in newspapers across the Arab world.
Industry Minister Hussein Hajj Hassan declared that the issue pertaining to the damage caused by the latest storm to the agricultural crops, and which was presented by the agriculture minister has been approach in a positive manner.
In a statement to
as-Safir daily, the minister said that the government has neglected this issue, while paying its full attention to security.
“The cabinet has resigned from its role in the field development,” he said.
Lebanese sources told
Acharq al-Awsat daily that Hezbollah’s allies have begun to sense a decrease in the amount of money allocated to them, noting that the Shiite party is suffering from money scarcity and a reduction in Iranian funding.
The sources added that Hezbollah is still receiving the amount of funds assigned by the office of Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, but the assistance usually sent by the government through the foreign ministry has been completely cut off, due to “a reorganization of matters,” the sources explained.
Labor Minister Sejaan Azzi said that he presented two proposals during the cabinet session held on Tuesday, whereby he exposed statistics conducted by the International Labor Organization and the International Monetary Fund, concerning the repercussions of the influx of the Syrian refugees on the Lebanese economy.
According to the numbers presented by the minister, 47% of the refugees constitute the work force in Lebanon, while 43% of the Lebanese citizens are unemployed; adding that the year 2014 will witness a peak in the displacement of the Syrian people, while Lebanon will need a yearly amount of USD 4.4 billion in order to keep the economic situation stable.
In a statement to
as-Safir daily, the minister called on President Michel Sleiman to launch international campaigns similar to the International Support Group for Lebanon and the conferences held in Kuwait to tackle the issue of the Syrian refugees, in a bid to collect financial assistance for Lebanon. He added that Lebanese campaigns must be launched in order to establish refugee camps inside the Syrian territories.
The governor of Lebanon's central bank, Banque du Liban, Riad Salameh stressed that the Lebanese State’s treasury is capable of covering 24% of the annual expenses of the series of ranks and salaries, without exposing the Lebanese currency to any fluctuations, stressing the need to improve the state’s resources, end waste and to immediately start financial reform.
In a statement to
al-Liwaa daily, Salameh expressed his optimism regarding the capability of the private sector to bear the increase imposed by the Pay Scale, in case the security situation remained stable and the economic situation restored its normal course.