The Lebanese government signed a U.S.-brokered framework agreement with Israel on June 26.

One of its central objectives is to strengthen the Lebanese state and consolidate all weapons under state authority.

For many, this is an unprecedented moment that could pave the way for a peaceful resolution to a decades-old problem.

History suggests otherwise. Forty-three years ago, another U.S.-backed agreement promised something remarkably similar.

The May 17 Agreement of 1983 sought to restore Lebanese sovereignty, strengthen the state and empower the Lebanese army.

📢 [PSA] 📢

Last Monday, the Ministry of Health released new drug pricing after the Central Bank drastically cut funding for medicine subsidies.

Life-saving drugs for common chronic diseases like heart failure, hypertension, and diabetes are now several fold more expensive. In Lebanon, 1.4 million people have hypertension, nearly 530,000 have diabetes & 12,238 people are on the National Cancer Registry. These conditions + cardiovascular diseases are the leading causes of death in the country (73%), according to 2016 WHO data. bit.ly/30zXY2s

[PSA] Forest fires broke out earlier today in al-Qoubaiyat, north Lebanon, and continue to spread, seemingly inching toward residential areas. In a widely circulated video, people can be seen trying to flee. The Lebanese state knew the danger was looming, yet it did nothing to mitigate the risks and is barely capable of responding to them every fire season. Firefighting helicopters are still out of commission. To make matters worse this year, Civil Defense vehicles barely have fuel.

[PSA] Lebanon's already frequent power cuts are getting longer and wreaking havoc on the country's deteriorating economy. And while private diesel generators are providing a temporary lifeline to those who can still afford a subscription, they come at a high & overlooked price. Head of the private generator owners' syndicate, Abdo Saade, told The Public Source that more than 7,000 generators are operated around Lebanon, some for as long as 19 hours/day. More often than not, generators are placed in close proximity to people's homes and left uncontained.

[معني] من إعداد يارا المرّ

شاركت الصيدليات في كافة أنحاء لبنان في إضراب لمدّة يومين الأسبوع الماضي احتجاجاً على النّقص الحادّ في الأدوية الذي فاقمه التهريب والاحتكار وذلك في ظلّ اقتراب موعد رفع الدعم.

(لا يسمح لزباءن معظم الصيدليات شراء أكثر من عبوة من نفس الصنف. مروان طحطح) سؤال: هل تواجهون صعوبة في الحصول على أدويتكم (سواء كانت للعلاج النفسي أو غيره)؟

Less than a third of eligible residents (1,289,004) registered on the @impact_gov platform to receive a COVID-19 vaccine in Lebanon.

Vaccine hesitancy is one of many hurdles to reaching so-called herd immunity. So let's break it down, in our first PSA. Q: Vaccines were rushed & we're being used as guinea pigs?

A: They were developed at pandemic speed bc well of the pandemic, which expedited bureaucratic processes & quickly moved funds. They were rigorously tested on 10s of 1000s before their approval.

lau.edu.lb/covid19/images…