Political situation in Lebanon
Lebanon begins disarming Palestinian militia groups
The Lebanese government plans to disarm armed groups in the country's Palestinian refugee camps, where the military currently has no presence, reports the New York Times. It is part of the government's goal to take state control of all the country's weapons.
Although the state has the formal authority in the country, there are areas that are in practice controlled by a number of armed groups, not just the Iran-backed terrorist group Hezbollah. According to a government spokesman, President Joseph Aoun reached an agreement this week with the leader of the Palestinian Authority, Mahmoud Abbas, on the disarmament of the Palestinian groups.
- They expressed their belief that the time for weapons outside the authority of the Lebanese state is over, Abbas said in a joint statement.
Abbas heads the administration that controls parts of the West Bank, which is occupied by Israel.
Expert: It's a test – then Hezbollah awaits
Lebanon's start to disarm militia groups that currently control a number of Palestinian refugee camps in the country should be seen as a test. Mohanad Hage Ali of the Carnegie Middle East Center in Beirut told the New York Times.
The ultimate goal for the Lebanese government is to disarm the powerful Iranian-backed terrorist group Hezbollah, he says.
- If it goes smoothly, it could very well speed up the process.
Lebanon's government has the formal authority in the country, but the army does not control the entire country and is militarily inferior to Hezbollah.
The Lebanese government plans to disarm armed groups in the country's Palestinian refugee camps, where the military currently has no presence, reports the New York Times. It is part of the government's goal to take state control of all the country's weapons.
Although the state has the formal authority in the country, there are areas that are in practice controlled by a number of armed groups, not just the Iran-backed terrorist group Hezbollah. According to a government spokesman, President Joseph Aoun reached an agreement this week with the leader of the Palestinian Authority, Mahmoud Abbas, on the disarmament of the Palestinian groups.
- They expressed their belief that the time for weapons outside the authority of the Lebanese state is over, Abbas said in a joint statement.
Abbas heads the administration that controls parts of the West Bank, which is occupied by Israel.
Expert: It's a test – then Hezbollah awaits
Lebanon's start to disarm militia groups that currently control a number of Palestinian refugee camps in the country should be seen as a test. Mohanad Hage Ali of the Carnegie Middle East Center in Beirut told the New York Times.
The ultimate goal for the Lebanese government is to disarm the powerful Iranian-backed terrorist group Hezbollah, he says.
- If it goes smoothly, it could very well speed up the process.
Lebanon's government has the formal authority in the country, but the army does not control the entire country and is militarily inferior to Hezbollah.
Political situation in Japan
Record price of rice creates crisis in Japanese government
The price of rice in Japan has almost doubled in the past year, which has put heavy pressure on the country's crisis-stricken government, writes CNN.
Rice is one of the country's most important staples and the price trend has become a charged political issue.
Japan's agriculture minister recently resigned after comments that he had never bought rice himself and had so much that he "could sell it", something that aroused great criticism in the country.
The situation has forced the government to take emergency measures such as importing foreign rice and selling the country's emergency reserves of the grain at auction.
New figures show that inflation for food, among other things, has reached the highest level in Japan in two years, which could further aggravate the problems for the Japanese government ahead of the upcoming elections in July, reports AFP.
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Record price of rice creates crisis in Japanese government
The price of rice in Japan has almost doubled in the past year, which has put heavy pressure on the country's crisis-stricken government, writes CNN.
Rice is one of the country's most important staples and the price trend has become a charged political issue.
Japan's agriculture minister recently resigned after comments that he had never bought rice himself and had so much that he "could sell it", something that aroused great criticism in the country.
The situation has forced the government to take emergency measures such as importing foreign rice and selling the country's emergency reserves of the grain at auction.
New figures show that inflation for food, among other things, has reached the highest level in Japan in two years, which could further aggravate the problems for the Japanese government ahead of the upcoming elections in July, reports AFP.
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