{"id":15045,"date":"2025-03-24T11:53:53","date_gmt":"2025-03-24T11:53:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/lebanon-ravaged-by-israel-hezbollah-war-needs-changes-to-unlock-aid\/"},"modified":"2025-03-24T11:53:53","modified_gmt":"2025-03-24T11:53:53","slug":"lebanon-ravaged-by-israel-hezbollah-war-needs-changes-to-unlock-aid","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/lebanon-ravaged-by-israel-hezbollah-war-needs-changes-to-unlock-aid\/","title":{"rendered":"Lebanon, Ravaged by Israel-Hezbollah War, Needs Changes to Unlock Aid"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-6606220950177433\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- ItShrt World News -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-6606220950177433\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"1882483372\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\r\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\r\n<script>\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script>\r\n<br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-0\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">On his first day in office, Lebanon\u2019s new finance minister, Yassine Jaber, sat at his desk reading a color-coded report on the dire state of the ministry\u2019s operations. Nearly everything was marked in alarming red.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The computers were decades old \u2014 some still ran on Windows 98. <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/watch\/?v=3378245175738164\" title=\"\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">Like much of the government<\/a>, the ministry relied on mountains of paper records, allowing dysfunction and corruption to fester.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cThings cannot continue as they are,\u201d he sighed.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">To fix how it\u2019s run, Lebanon needs money. But to attract money, it needs to fix how it\u2019s run: For years, it has failed to enact sweeping financial and governance overhauls required to unlock billions in international financial assistance that it has needed to address a debilitating <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2021\/08\/04\/world\/lebanon-crisis.html\" title=\"\">economic crisis<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Now, that support is even more critical after the devastating 14-month war between Israel and Hezbollah, the Iran-backed militia that has long held political sway in this tiny Mediterranean country. A fragile truce is holding, but large parts of Lebanon are in ruins. Hezbollah has been left battered and cannot pay for reconstruction. <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/search?q=nyt+lebanon+new+government&amp;rlz=1C5CHFA_enUS973US973&amp;oq=nyt+lebanon+new+government+&amp;gs_lcrp=EgZjaHJvbWUyBggAEEUYOTIHCAEQIRiPAjIHCAIQIRiPAtIBCDM1NzRqMGo3qAIAsAIA&amp;sourceid=chrome&amp;ie=UTF-8\" title=\"\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">Lebanon\u2019s new government<\/a> is able to afford \u201cfrankly none\u201d of the bill, Mr. Jaber said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-1\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Foreign donors hold the key to Lebanon\u2019s recovery, but to meet their demands, the state must do what it has never done before: Undertake painful economic and structural changes, while confronting the thorny issue of Hezbollah\u2019s arms.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cThe foreign aid is not just charity,\u201d said Paul Salem, the vice president for international engagement at the Middle East Institute in Washington. \u201cThey are not going to give billions and billions of dollars unless their position is respected.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The total damage and economic loss from the war is estimated to be $14 billion, and Lebanon needs $11 billion to rebuild, the World Bank said this month, making the conflict the country\u2019s most destructive since its long civil war ended in 1990. <\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cIt\u2019s very important to move fast on reconstruction; people are sleeping in tents. You have a whole part of Lebanon paralyzed,\u201d said Mr. Jaber on that day in his office last month. \u201cEverything today is a priority.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-2\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The devastation has compounded the country\u2019s economic woes, which began in 2019 when its financial system collapsed under the burden of state debt. That triggered a sovereign default and prompted banks to impose informal capital controls, leaving many Lebanese people <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2023\/07\/28\/world\/middleeast\/lebanese-bank-depositors-robbery.html\" title=\"\">with their life savings frozen<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-3\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Lebanon reached a draft funding deal with the International Monetary Fund in 2022 that was billed as a lifeline for the country, but it was conditioned on changes, including addressing the country\u2019s weak governance and restructuring its financial sector. The government failed to deliver, hindered by deadlock and vested interests of the country\u2019s political elite.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cLebanon has to start by helping itself,\u201d Mr. Jaber said. \u201cHow do you do that? By starting to show real action.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Mr. Jaber spoke with The New York Times the day after Lebanon\u2019s new government received a vote of confidence <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2025\/01\/10\/world\/middleeast\/lebanon-hezbollah-politics.html\" title=\"\">that has sidelined Hezbollah politically<\/a>. Mr. Jaber, now one of the country\u2019s most powerful figures, holds the reins to public spending and is responsible for reconstruction efforts and securing foreign aid.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Hezbollah\u2019s patron, Iran, contributed heavily to reconstruction after their the group\u2019s last major conflict with Israel in 2006, but is now largely unwilling because of its own <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/12\/21\/world\/middleeast\/iran-economy-energy-crisis.html\" title=\"\">crises<\/a>, analysts said. The group has been further isolated by the collapse of another ally, the Assad regime in neighboring Syria.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-4\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">As a result, Hezbollah \u2014 so powerful before the war that it was widely considered a state within a state \u2014 cannot finance reconstruction, Mr. Jaber said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cIt\u2019s a different era,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-5\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Lebanon has so far secured a pledge of $250 million in reconstruction aid from the World Bank, said Mr. Jaber, an initial loan that is part of a broader $1 billion fund to be provided by donor countries, but amounting to only 2 percent of what the World Bank says the country needs. <\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Some experts question how quickly the government can make systemic changes. President Joseph Aoun has said that he hopes the foreign aid can come \u201cstep by step\u201d as new policies are implemented.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Adding to the uncertainty, international assistance may depend on more than just a financial overhaul. Under the terms of the truce deal that ended the war in November, Hezbollah must also disarm \u2014 a <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.crisisgroup.org\/middle-east-north-africa\/east-mediterranean-mena\/lebanon\/b094-containing-domestic-tensions\" title=\"\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">task that could risk violence<\/a> between Hezbollah\u2019s largely Shiite supporters and domestic opponents. Experts said that the United States and Gulf Arab countries consider disarmament a prerequisite for large-scale assistance.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-6\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The Lebanese government has promised to bring all weapons under the state\u2019s control, but it remains unclear how exactly it will achieve that, and if so, when. Mr. Jaber did not comment on disarming Hezbollah, but noted that the group was an established political party with popular support and that its political role was not a point of contention.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Hezbollah remains a potent military force, and some Lebanese officials have ruled out forcibly disarming it, hinting at a negotiated settlement. Earlier this month, the group\u2019s leader, Naim Qassem, implicitly rejected the idea that the \u201cresistance\u201d would lay down its weapons.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-7\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The government is \u201cbeing bombarded by both demands: painful economic and financial reforms, and strangling Hezbollah\u2019s finances and presence,\u201d said Mohanad Hage Ali, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Middle East Center in Beirut. But, without funding first, \u201cyou are pushing a government and a president, with no juice, to meet the most challenging goals.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Hezbollah officials have insisted that reconstruction must not be linked to overhaul demands, fearing a loss of support if the rebuilding process is drawn out, experts said. Nearly 100,000 people are displaced in Lebanon, according to the United Nations, the vast majority of them from Hezbollah\u2019s heartlands in the south.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-8\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cReform will take a hell of a long time,\u201d Mr. Hage Ali said. <\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Seeking to reassure Hezbollah\u2019s supporters, Mr. Qassem, the group\u2019s leader, has promised compensation for each affected household of between $12,000 and $14,000, intended to cover rent costs and replace furniture. But the process has been marred by delays.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">With Hezbollah largely sidelined, a flurry of diplomatic efforts are underway to reassure foreign donors. Lebanese officials met this month with an I.M.F. delegation in Beirut, which Mr. Jaber said aimed to restart negotiations over the organization\u2019s long-awaited rescue package. A top European Union official said last month that Brussels would monitor the talks to <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.newarab.com\/news\/no-eu-aid-lebanon-without-reform-imf-deal\" title=\"\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">assess whether Europe could offer its own financial aid<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-9\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">An immediate priority, Mr. Jaber said, is appointing a central bank governor who can set about reviving the country\u2019s banking sector. Lebanon has failed to name a successor since Riad Salameh stepped down from the role in 2023, facing accusations that he ran the <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2021\/07\/17\/business\/lebanon-riad-salameh.html\" title=\"\">world\u2019s largest Ponzi scheme<\/a> for overseeing a strategy that required ever more borrowing to pay creditors.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Lebanon\u2019s new leaders have also promised an external audit of all public institutions, part of a broader pledge to crack down on the corruption that has <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2021\/10\/28\/magazine\/corruption-lebanon.html\" title=\"\">long plagued the country<\/a>. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-10\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Mr. Jaber said he was hopeful but acknowledged the uncertainty ahead.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cWhere there is a will, there is a way,\u201d he said. The government faces a test \u201con the issue of their will.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-11\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-798hid etfikam0\">Dayana Iwaza<!-- --> contributed reporting.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-6606220950177433\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- ItShrt World News -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-6606220950177433\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"1882483372\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\r\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\r\n<script>\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script>\r\n<br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2025\/03\/24\/world\/europe\/lebanon-hezbollah-israel-government-economy.html\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>On his first day in office, Lebanon\u2019s new finance minister, Yassine Jaber, sat at his desk reading a color-coded report<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":15046,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[35],"tags":[195,1468,99,196,737,4785],"class_list":["post-15045","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-world","tag-hezbollah","tag-international-monetary-fund","tag-israel","tag-lebanon","tag-world-bank","tag-yassine-jaber"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v24.2 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Lebanon, Ravaged by Israel-Hezbollah War, Needs Changes to Unlock Aid - World News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/lebanon-ravaged-by-israel-hezbollah-war-needs-changes-to-unlock-aid\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Lebanon, Ravaged by Israel-Hezbollah War, Needs Changes to Unlock Aid - World News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"On his first day in office, Lebanon\u2019s new finance minister, Yassine Jaber, sat at his desk reading a color-coded report\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/lebanon-ravaged-by-israel-hezbollah-war-needs-changes-to-unlock-aid\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"World News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-03-24T11:53:53+00:00\" \/>\n<meta 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