to promise to honor those who never came home. like sir bryan al jazeera oh. and then the organizes continue to be widely criticized by the japanese public for holding the games. despite the rising corona virus cases, the head of the international olympic committee has been in her visiting a peace memorial. more than 70000 people signed a petition opposing his visit. during the pandemic. the eiffel tower has reopened to visit his afterwards. longest closures since world war 2. the french landmark have been shot since the start of the pandemic. it's not going to accept 13000 people a day. ah, this is all. these are the top stories, more than 1300 people are missing in western europe to severe flooding. at least a 104 people have died in germany,

which is experiencing its worst weather disaster in decades. so vasa has more from bond in germany. people are basically locked up in that area. you could see the extent of the damage. they are a visibly very strong current of water has damage, houses has damage, roads has damage, shops, everything was clothes, people were really looking for food and some water to drink. so supplies are running short pretty quickly, and as you can actually really feel, when you talk to people there, they will very much caused by surprise, by this immense amount of water. so i think there's presidents as a week of unrest that's killed 212 people was planned and coordinated, around opposes says 25000 soldiers will patrol the streets to stop more looting and violence. bribes began after former president jacob zoom was sent to jail last week . and it's quite clear that this all these incidents,

invest and looting, were instigated, instigated people who planned it, coordinated it. how expects a warning of arising covered 19 infections in england, which is days away from lifting all restrictions more than 50? 1000 new cases were reported on friday, almost all from the delta. varian rushes, capitals also, even corona virus restrictions, despite surgeon cases, they are most provis. adams were no longer have to provide proof of vaccination or immunity at public venues. a 5th of nearly 26000 new cases recorded in russia on friday. our new capital appeal as a prize winning indian photo journalist has been killed in afghanistan kind of hard district. that is to dicky, worked for the reuters news agency, and he was travelling with the african special forces. those are the headlines will be back in about half an hour or by ah,

ah ah, the back to square one, lebanon's prime minister designate resigns again after failing to form a new government. who's to blame for this latest set back? and is their political will to pull lemma on out of this crisis? this is inside store. ah. hello and welcome to the program. i'm hammer, jim john. lebanon is thinking deeper into political and economic turmoil. prime minister designate science,

how did he has stepped down again after the latest failure to form a new government? he and president michelle our own are blaming each other. many lebanese vented their anger on the streets of beta wood. the country hasn't had a government in 9 months. its currency has lost nearly all its value, pushing many into poverty, food medicine and fuel are in short supply. france has called another international aid conference for lebanon on august 4th, a year after the bay route port explosion destroyed much of the capital will bring in our guests in a moment. first, this report from santa holder, a long political struggle has just become more difficult to resolve. lebanon's prime minister designate, sad and heady has been locked in and 9 months power struggle with president michelle has failed to form his 4th government. that's not a 100 res. so i met with the president and he demanded what i deem as substantial change to the formation of the government. i suggested to the president if he

needed more time to consider my proposal, but he saw no prospect for agreement. for these reasons, i stepped down. the political paralysis is expected to accelerate the country's economic collapse. lights are out. most of the day. the cash struck save barely has money to buy fuel, and there is a shortage of medicine making life a daily struggle. as more lebanese are pushed into poverty, the local currency which already lost 95 percent of its value in recent months, has depreciated further in the hours following heavy it is announcement level needs the government to put in place an economic recovery plan. but that government has to be able and willing to carry out the reforms in state institutions. that's the condition set by the international community, which is refusing to issue blank checks after decades of corruption. but there's also the regional dynamic lebanon is entangled in the power struggle between mainly

she or iran, and saudi arabia, which used to be an influential player here. and the financial supporter to the mainly some, the muslim pro western camp. it too, has stepped the site. saudi arabia is deeply concerned about their growing power and role of hezbollah and 11 is political arrangement would look forward for any kind of solution that will curtail has of all us, all in the country, the anger among lebanon, johnson, these build onto the streets. they have long complained their power as a community is being taken away and any attempt to name a new prime minister without the support of this and the leadership headed by how do they won't solve the crisis. the previous prime minister was chosen by the president and his muslim she off allies. they believe that since darville of general own to the presidency he's trying to confiscate or to restore part of the

law secretion authorities this year are actually they have no problem. whatever the situation is, is for the benefits, and they know that any changes in this political system is going to be for their benefit. and for this benefit, because from 5050, we're going to move to one sort of part to day the state is deadlocked. the power sharing agreement between religious communities, which ended lebanon's civil war in 1990, no longer seems to be working center for the elder sita balte the. all right, let's bring in our guests in beirut, run a hoodie, a political activist and campaigner for a gender equality and it's tumble, but shot it had to be middle east and north africa senior geo political analyst for clipper data and also invaded christoph, i see the director of the 11 on program at the middle east institute. a warm welcome to you all. thanks so much for joining inside story today. but i want to

start by talking about the human toll of this political deadlock. the lira has lost 90 percent of its value. more than half of the population has slipped into poverty . there are fuel shortages and medicine shortages. how much are people in lebanon struggling right now? and 1st, hello. i don't know if you are hearing me correctly because part of the total collapse of lebanon is also activity and the internet. now the, it's definitely a very severe you maintain crisis when it comes to basic needs approved medication . the health care system is collapsing the after day. however, this is not as typical him anything in crisis. so it's not something that was not that we couldn't prevent. this is a systematic murder of the lebanese people and people living in, in lebanon. everything that we're seeing here has the effect on

a violent war or an embargo without actually having violent war. and embargo is actually the acts and a years of the ruling of, of this political class. this led to here we are in a very, very difficult situation. i think the label of that people used to put on the lebanese people, after millions has to be banished. we are in a very, very severe situation when it comes to basic access, access to basic mean. and i think what's the most dangerous now if you want to take, i want to talk purely from a human level. is the total collapse, or the day by the collapse of the health care system, which means people don't have access to medication, but also don't have access to health care and to hospitals. and while the market is watching, i don't call it, you may think i would like to call it as systematic murder of the lebanese people, because all of this could have been prevented if we weren't ruled by by the people who are ruling bus today. kristof did sad, had a resignation. come as

a complete surprise. was there any expectation that there might be some last minute political deal, or was nobody expecting that? i highly doubt that a lot of people were actually surprised by this resignation yesterday. at the end of the day, it's just a pure continuation the episode that we've been seeing over the past month or really decade or to any total and capacity and unwillingness on behalf of the political establishment and how it is part of that establishment to really be able to push forward the reforms that are needed to be able to reverts and at some point to recover from the collapse. therefore it's clearly not a surprise. 9 months have the last $200.00 to $60.00 days, $266.00 days to be exact. and over the course of these 9 months, the status quo have been maintained politically, at least, which is a total impasse. but what we've seen and my call to get touched upon a couple of minutes ago, just purely seen the depreciation of the currency,

the reserves at the central bank that are essential for any recovery effort being depleted without really any purposeful depletion. at least it's not being used for any particular stake. therefore, it's not a surprise, the political step stalemate continues. and if there's one thing that you know, people in love in on and hopefully observers and countries outside of the country. if there's one thing they haven't really liked by now, hopefully they do is that this is tablets meant days are pretty much over, and they are absolutely incapable of handling managing. and one day resolving crisis, political impasse continues in lebanon. i'm curious from your vantage point, how much has sad, how do you, these resignation complicated this already intractable, political crisis. even complicated, even more situation in the country. because previously there was some sort of

a consensus over how d, the leading the government formation process, whether on national or whether also local course on the regional level. we know that there's a veto or some so called by your radio on you to particular which kind of complicated his drive in order to or kind of make him leverage and his process with different needs stakeholders in terms of forming governments. but the problem is at right now, and this is something how do you spell the last night and you reschedule interview? i look at the station. he said that you will not be naming any candidates to replace them as the prime minister designate department government. and he might not even give the both the competence for prime minister if he manages to form a government. so what does this mean? this means that any new government that it might be formed that probably the other

political stakeholders agree on will not or will lack the confidence of one of the major constituencies in the country, which makes it hopping on one foot. it's better to do that, but in terms of applying the much needed reform, no prime minister was there, touched the very explosive buy of the country in terms of b as forms without having the support of all the different parts of the country. this is why, how do you yesterday raise the state by not being that in addition to the fact that he kind of hinted at the role of basic needs. and not pressuring enough current sitting president, president in terms of, or for to drive by actually the government formation, which would got a exasperate tension between the different constituencies in the country. run out with this so delicate sectarian power sharing system in place in lebanon is there.

is there any hope that a technocratic and reform minded government can ever really become a reality in the country? you know, i think it's almost 2 years after the revolution, the voices that were actually questioning whether an alternate this could work. i think what we are sure about is that the current state is a total failure and that due to the people currently ruling us are a total failure. and not only because they are incompetent, but also because they are criminal and august for the biggest. i think at proof of that now would you tell me that the system is a functional this them and if we get green people and people that are not a couldn't, it will work. i don't think we will be in this situation, but i don't think that it would work. i think there is an essential problem in the system today in the system, in this power sharing system. and yes, obviously, if you want to be, if we want to have

a brighter look on them and we would know that don't be secular democratic states would work, especially in today's world, especially with the generation of the revolution. and especially after the systematic failure of the system, this doesn't mean that we don't need an emergency plan today. and that we need people to handle the what we have been left with. what these people have actually destroyed in this country, and in, and even any sound mind today that we members be with, or think of lebanon, would have never imagined that they would need us to where we are today. so we need an emergency plan. yes, we're the general government. this is a possible realizable, but there is a profound looting problem within the system we live in and i don't think it is possible to have long term surviving lever on where the current system is also very delusional. to think that the problem in the community and the problem and that people have each other because of their say,

we need to make to need to make it clear that this is regina problem. and it is a ruling mafia that had the arm, the militia, the corruption, the money, the best people to where they are to date. so, you know, it's kind of when you say, oh, but between israel and palestine, it's a religious issue or it's not, it's a colony that's occupying it people, it's the same thing in leather, not so yes, the system is a secretary and system that is completely dysfunctional. but the basic problem are these, these criminals and that lead the country to way it is today. so yes, with a change of system, but also yes with an emergency plan today because it is also in can amik problem. yes. but also a big political problem. it's impossible the same day of the resignation that you had jumped from 190-0000 through 223324000. this means that of course, we have an economic problem, but it did deeply and, and, and the root of it is the political, political problem. we're not in the real estate crisis. we are in

a regime crisis. christ off. how difficult is it going to be to find somebody to fill the post vacated by sad? how did he and will mr. how do you read back a replacement when it comes to skills and qualifications? definitely not terribly complicated. the problem is, at the end of the day, purely political and not technical and not one of qualifications. which is why i'm how much i think there are one of 3 options in front of us today. and i highly doubt there's going to be anything other than died. so 1st of all is to your point, we do not find a replacement. and what that ends up doing is just creating an cementing this political vacuum that we are now living in for that. and i did mentioned that he was going to call for the consultations with parliament's. we don't know if that's going to happen anytime soon. so that doesn't end up happening. then we're going to see a reactivation of the pretty much defunct job caretaker government that we have today . so that's option one, cure political vacuum until either a total explosion, or we end up going to words election, but elections are really 9 months away. and

a lot of things can happen then. option 2 is just playing the classic consensual democracy guard which is becoming tougher and tougher really to implement, which is where he ends up under international pressure by discussing with allied domestically whatever is left up is allied domestic. we tried to potentially flow to name that could be accepted by the f b m by his butler and the coalition there. and then what we'll end up producing really, sadly, is just yet another government that had absolutely no capacity to deal with the crisis. and hopefully that's one of the lessons learned from the french initiative that any establishment link government is going to be totally incapacity. they're not able to do anything on the ground. and at a 3rd point just touched upon a slightly earlier. and we need that the only way forward to actually be able to manage and get out of the crisis. is the traditional government with exceptional legislative powers which have been floated months and more than you know, 2 years ago, probably by a lot of the alternate political parties that will effectively transition us towards the secular civil state and be able to adequately unfair the manage and

allocate all of the systemic losses in the crisis and hopefully that's one of the lessons learned from this entire fiasco and the repeated gasket for the international community. that what has been tried before, it is simply no longer working. the type agreement is pretty much that at this stage, the good thing about it were never implemented. and what we're living now, 30 years later is just the remnants of a fail system that needs to be revamped. bashar, the european union has said it wants to agree by the end of july on a legal framework for a package of sanctions targeting lebanese leaders. do you think that the you will actually do that? and if they do, what would those sanctions look like? i think you is definitely heading that direction after almost a year off, throwing a lifeline for the needs which why, or which symbolize the french initiative by presidents french doesn't say menu,

right. the baby with right after the august that druck the heart of the cities. so the french were heavily involved in the process of trying to form a government and they have the 1st row experience. how difficult, how complex that that process is and who are there. like a disruptive factors and forming a government that can actually start implementing certain forms to try and say, what is the country. so at the end, the french have basically worked everything over the past a few months and trying to achieve a consensus within the european union in order to officially announced their invention. also trying to are there demand functions on the needs politician? what will those sanction be? i think there will be going to target the quality that probably tier one or 2 to politicians at the 1st step, maybe their advisors, their bank accounts,

and trying to strip them up there. be that you know that many of the members of the ruling kind of have other passports so they might be bad from job. but you know that many of the politicians actually need their money over the past 3 years or even more, or they transferred their money abroad and they're kind of relying on bells outside in order to reestablish them and becoming paid and one action. so this is something that might complicate their plans, but it becomes ethic during the lease. but i might look for that this will drive the country and the difference in order to achieve some sort of an agreement over a new government. i'm not that hope because i think it's the one for us, the department start get the privacy of the. 3 current president and he had the largest parliament through block and parliament and nothing happened,

but he did not back down to actually be leverage in order to fight his relationship with bella. and in order to demand more and more company, which kind of gave him the question n b current or in the previous interface, but were happening with prime minister designate in order to if you are turned out any of the proposition by how do you do on even turn down the international pressure that was made by the weather, by the addictions or the french or the erotic. and so this is definitely, it's something that should happen. it is something like on the being there, talk about principles and a legal principle. but with it, so the problem 11 and i really have read it will be by the end of this month, i don't know. do you think from your vantage point that you, sanctions targeting lebanese leaders would be in any way effective in putting

enough pressure on them to really start trying to enact reforms and potentially starting to turn the situation around. i don't think this is sufficient where and especially where we're headed now, you know, the french initiative and even other foreign powers as well. all the initiative to try to solve the problem and form the government was always being dealt with in the same circle of the political room in class. for me, in this extreme situation where our back is against the wall, i think extreme measure should also be thinking yes. these are people who pull our money and put their money outside. of course they shouldn't have access to it. yes, those are people who kept the nitrate in the port. i don't know and, and be a blue in its entirety with people. yes, they should be in jail. so for me, these are reasonable and legal measures to take. i don't think unfortunately they are sufficient. let's think for example, the u. s. actions on that belong to they obviously the a major runic party and they were mostly at targeted in the banking sector. there

were no actual as sanctions that could actually limit the power and take over even more parts of, of or most of our, our shares in the country. so for me they, they might be necessary. actually, they are ego today. if you understand in the you are outside the you, that some people have go and money and or it's a, you know, laundry laundering money or it did that. it's something to sort of ego. obviously you have to, to take by the rule of law and topics. so it's not a big favor. it's actually applying the line international law. but i don't think to be sufficient. i think we have to have the total or any, any country to the, in the world should have a total break up with the current regime. a total break up and stop pushing for a solution within the actual cast if you want, or the actual system that we have. because as we seen, it's not working chris stuff, i just want to take a look at the big picture here for a moment. does the political will from your vantage point?

does the political will exist right now to pull lebanon out of this current crisis? it does not, and i think at this stage, it's no longer a matter of political well. it's a matter of things being enforced and things the balance of power really changing. and the cost benefit analysis that political parties and domain political players in lebanon are thinking through and reconsidering, and reassessing, and like a regional dynamics. some repro small, the potential deal, or lack thereof between the us in iran and cetera. so, people are still at this stage in a way lacking agency to conduct any real reformat to make any real political decision making lebanon is a tiny country. what needs to be done have been clear for years now. we know where the problems are. it's just a matter of having the right away the sticks and carrots, but also the right institutional set up in place where regional powers international powers. but more importantly, people end up in on can step up to the stage and take matters into their own hands

in a way, not necessarily by violence and all that, but by to your political organizing. so that, that balance of power died is still to the stage on the side of establishment parties, ends up switching. and then realities will then be different and in itself with the support of things such as potential thanks trends which are tools rather than policy. and with an entire revamping of the political system, which once again, it's pretty much that at this stage could impose and that's why it's not a well, it's more often in position of new realities on the ground that will help us hopefully unclogged these issues in a regional international mediation has fail to bridge the differences between lebanese leaders. is there any international actor at this point who can play a more effective mediating role? i mean, it's not effective media can grow as much as a role of the pushing things forward. i think the only layer region can do that is actually the iraq,

surprising or not. because being made power has not been on at the moment and has to do things almost entirely on the different constituencies of the country as well as the closest i off the president ad had retained very good relations with all the different you know what the day the president no one wants to fight against one to drive the situation forward, but i don't think it has to do that. and the tradeoff or the coach bennett approach, which chris mentioned and not. 3 right, to know where to move forward from the current regime and it's for the current balance when it was over the country. all right, we have run out of time, so we're going to have to leave the conversation there. thanks so much. all of our guests on a haughty shot of how to be and christoph, be safe and thank you to for watching. you can see this and all of our previous programs. again, anytime by visiting our website of 0 dot com and for further discussion,

go to our facebook page that facebook dot com forward slash ha inside story. you can also join the conversation on twitter. our handle is at a inside story. for me, how much room and a whole team here, bye for now. the me news news, news, news. news. something was going to change as anything really changed. this is just demick violin that needs to be addressed at its core. we're in a race against the variance. know what to say. we are all say we're looking at the world as it is right now, not the world. we like it to be. the devil is always going to be in the details.

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ah, you want to help save the world needs into your own. ah, on this is al jazeera ah hello, i'm rob matheson, this is the news i live from doha, coming up in the next 60 minutes, a devastating tool from germany's worst flooding in decades. more than 100 people have died and hundreds more missing this is becoming a pandemic of the and back and.