[Produced with Reuters colleague Laila Bassam and published here on October 29, 2022]
BAABDA, Lebanon Oct 29 (Reuters) – Outgoing Lebanese President Michel Aoun told Reuters on Saturday his nation could be sliding into “constitutional chaos”, with an unprecedented situation of having no one in line to succeed him and a cabinet that is operating in a caretaker capacity.
Continue reading[Published here on March 8, 2022]
BEIRUT, March 8 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – Nathaly Daou zigzags through an underground fabric store in Beirut, pulling out bolts of neon Lycra and patterned polyester before settling on a roll of white cotton.
Continue reading[Produced with my colleagues Tala Ramadan in Beirut and Menna Farouk in Cairo, and published here on February 28, 2022]
ADEN/CAIRO, Feb 28 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – The war in Ukraine may be unfolding several thousand miles away, but 32-year-old Ilham fears her family will feel its consequences on their dinner table in Yemen.
Continue reading[Published here on December 28, 2021]
The decline had been steep and painful already. By the time Lebanon entered 2021, thousands had already lost their jobs, around half the population had been plunged into poverty, and the explosion at the Beirut port the previous year had stolen lives, limbs, and homes.
But this year, Lebanon simply began to come apart at the seams.
Continue reading[Published here on December 16, 2021]
What could bring Syrian refugees, Sudanese migrants and marginalised Lebanese around the same table in Beirut? The threat of eviction – and the housing rights project trying to prevent it.
Continue reading[Published here December 16, 2021]
Lebanon has for the first time eased restrictions on thousands of undocumented workers – but advocates say the long-awaited move fails to protect a community that struggles to survive even on the outer margins of life.
Continue readingBEIRUT, Oct 8 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – Lebanese psychologist Bernard Sousse started offering online therapy sessions when patients said surging fuel prices meant they could no longer drive in to see him – but then the power cuts began.
Continue reading[Published here August 20, 2021]
Frequent power outages in Lebanon caused by a shortage of fuel are spilling into every aspect of life: empty bakeries; hospitals pushed to crisis point; family businesses struggling to survive.
With both government power grids and privately-run generators faltering, here’s what you need to know about the power crisis hitting Lebanon amid a financial meltdown.
Continue reading[Published here on June 25, 2021]
BEIRUT, June 25 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – Syrian refugee girls are increasingly at risk of child marriage due to a surge in pandemic-linked poverty, legal loopholes and long-term displacement in countries across the Middle East and North Africa, charity Save the Children said on Friday.
Continue readingOn May 19, I took part in a panel hosted by the UCLA Center for Middle East Development titled, “Can the US Still Promote Democracy in the MENA Region?” I noted the varied approaches to democracy promotion that the US has adopted across the Middle East – with little success. Watch the full panel discussion here:
MAYA GEBEILY 