DAILY NEWS

Jordan to Sign Deal Next Week Supplying Electricity to Lebanon 
According to the Jordanian Minister of Environment, Jordan will sign an electricity deal with Lebanon and Syria next week and will supply Lebanon with 150 megawatts from midnight to 6 AM and 250 megawatts during the rest of the day. This announcement comes after US government officials recently gave assurances that the deal, which requires Syria’s involvement as an intermediary, would not trigger sanctions. [Reuters]

Protesters in Tripoli Call for Control Over Food Prices 
According to L’Orient Today, “protesters staged  a sit-in at the entrance of Tripoli’s Serial, demanding that the Economy Minister ‘control foodstuffs stores because they did not reduce the prices of goods in conjunction with the decline in the lira-to-dollar exchange rate’.” Minister of Economy and Trade Amin Salam responded to criticisms in a press conference when he said, “recovery begins with the Consumer Protection Directorate for its important role, entrusted with legislative reforms, and we refuse to say that the directorate is powerless.” [L’Orient Today]

Delegation of European Union Urges Lebanon to Move Forward on IMF Deal, Other Key Issues
On Wednesday, the EU delegation, in a joint statement, said, “we call on the Government of Lebanon and other decision-making bodies to conclude … an agreement with the IMF which would support in finding a way out of the macro-economic and fiscal crises the country is facing, and to take all the decisions and measures which need to be taken prior to such an agreement immediately.”[Naharnet]

OPINION & ANALYSIS

The Jerusalem Post
Iran and Hezbollah Analyze Israel’s ‘War Between the Wars’
Seth J. Frantzman

Frantzman writes, “While Israel has been doing important joint training with Western and local partners, such as the US Air Force and Marines, the next conflict always looms. That conflict could be a multi-front war…The real discussion is done behind the scenes and is about Israel’s strategy and tactics. Iran must weigh this question before it makes any moves in Syria, or even in Iraq where it has brought in drones and ballistic missiles. Reports say that while Tehran may have known about its proxies conspiring to attack the Iraqi prime minister, they were not behind the assassination attempt.”
Read More Here

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in these articles are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the position of the American Task Force on Lebanon, a non-profit, nonpartisan leadership organization of Lebanese-Americans.