Ben and Nizar are back to analyze the latest happenings as Lebanon's myriad crises continue to unfold, with the US sanctioning FPM leader Gebran Bassil, the central bank refusing to hand over documents to the forensic auditor, hospitals at breaking point amid financial and coronavirus crises, and investigations into the Beirut port explosion exposing a chronic lack of accountability.

Music track: Zuhal by Elepheel, check out his other work @elepheel

Discussion with Alain Bifani begins at 12:00.

Nizar and Ben are joined this week by Alain Bifani, the former director general of the Ministry of Finance, to discuss the inner workings of the ministry, its importance in government formation talks, and the current political and economic crises in the country.

Also covered, demarcation negotiations between Lebanon and Israel, coronavirus, BDL subsidies, and the lack of progress toward designating a new PM.

Music track: Zuhal by Elepheel, check out his other work @elepheel

Discussion of rising sectarianism in Lebanon begins at 09:20.

Nizar and Ben are joined by Ibrahim Halawi, teaching fellow in international relations at Royal Holloway - University of London, to analyze rising sectarian discourse, its role as part of the counterrevolution, the civil state and alternatives to the current social contract, and whether Lebanon is heading toward civil strife.

Also discussed, coronavirus, the resignation of Adib, and stalled government formation.

Music track: Zuhal by Elepheel, check out his other work @elepheel

Ben and Nizar are back for a mid-week minisode focusing on the two biggest issues in the country right now: the rapid rise in coronavirus and the political stalemate over forming a new Lebanese government.

Music track: Zuhal by Elepheel, check out his other work @elepheel

Discussion of Macron's visit begins at 19:45.

A month since the deadly explosion devasted Beirut's capital, Nizar and Ben analyse the second visit of French President Emmanuel Macron, his reform timetable, and the motives behind both France's actions in Lebanon and the seeming acquiescence of Lebanese politicians.

Also discussed, the World Bank's assessment of the damages caused by the Beirut Port explosion, the cancelation of the Bisri Dam project, coronavirus capacities, and who exactly is Lebanon's new prime minister designate Mustapha Adib.

Music track: Zuhal by Elepheel, check out his other work @elepheel

Ben and Nizar are joined by Ramez Dagher, an MD & psychiatry resident who also writes regularly on Lebanese politics on the Moulahazat blog, to discuss the latest post Beirut Port explosion, with political wrangling to shift blame, worrying spikes in coronavirus threatening an already overwhelmed hospital system, the muted reaction to the STL verdict, and a political class seemingly stalling for time as the country still reels in the aftermath of the blast.

Music track: Zuhal by Elepheel, check out his other work @elepheel

Nizar and Ben are joined by Timour Azhari, Al-Jazeera English's Beirut correspondent, to discuss the deadly explosion at the Beirut Port and its aftermath, including Saturday's violent clashes between protesters and security forces.

Music track: Zuhal by Elepheel, check out his other work @elepheel

Ben and Nizar dive into two of the big news stories in Lebanon this past week: a new lockdown in response to record cases of coronavirus and the border incident between Hezbollah and Israel.

Also discussed: lack of transparency on electricity, political squabbles over the Bisri Dam project, the upcoming STL verdict, and music censorship on Army Day.

Music track: Zuhal by Elepheel, check out his other work @elepheel

Biography and discussion of Riad Salameh begins at 22:30.

Ben and Nizar are back with the news of past week, including the concerning spike in coronavirus case numbers ahead of touted new measures to contain the virus, political chatter on Lebanon's neutrality, the lira's continuing volatility, French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian's visit, and a decision to conduct a forensic audit of Banque du Liban (BDL).

Our main topic this week, on the back of an FT scoop that $6bn of "other assets" on BDL's balance sheet were the result of “seignorage on financial stability” whose value was determined by Governor Riad Salameh, is the man himself. We take a look at Salameh from his private sector work, through his 27-year tenure as BDL governor, to the controversies surrounding him and his financial engineering policies today.

Links referenced:

https://wikileaks.org/plusd/cables/07BEIRUT794_a.html

https://www.ft.com/content/d2d63b9b-9669-4ec0-93e9-ed97cbeb9261

Music track: Zuhal by Elepheel, check out his other work @elepheel

Discussion of economic and political news starts at 05:57, analysis on the banks winning the narrative begins at 27:10.

After managing to record the podcast between power cuts, Ben and Nizar analyze the political and economic news of the past week, including Alain Bifani's resignation, Wazni ruling out a forensic audit, the lira slide, a touted return of former PM Hariri, IMF talks on hold, and the deadly consequences of economic hardship, before taking a closer look at what all this means for country's economic future and the mounting evidence that the narrative pushed by the banks is becoming dominant among Lebanon's political elite.

Music track: Zuhal by Elepheel, check out his other work @elepheel