Here are the top stories for Lebanon today:

Lebanon urged by ERBD to pursue “painful” economic reforms to avoid crisis

Lebanon has one of the biggest public debt burdens in the world, equivalent to about 150 percent of gross domestic product (GDP).  EBRD first vice president Jurgen Rigterink  said “The economic indicators now point to an impending crisis”. “We at the EBRD feel that there is a need for important, bold reforms, especially in terms of correcting the general fiscal situation and energy,” he added. Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri’s government has pledged to reduce the government’s state deficit as a proportion of GDP by 5 percent over five years. However, his government only took office in late January after nine months of political arguments over the composition of the new coalition cabinet, delaying the reforms.

Hezbollah praises Aoun’s stances at  Arab League Summit

In a statement issued by its media relations department, the party said it was proud of “the national and nationalist stances that were expressed by His Excellency President Michel Aoun regarding Lebanon, Palestine and the Golan, and his insistence on the return of Syrian refugees to their country in a manner that would preserve the interests of Lebanon and Syria.” But the Iranian backed militant group   which is allied with Aoun criticized the summit’s resolutions, saying “they fell too short of the seriousness of the stage that the nation is going through.” The Arab leaders said on Sunday they would seek a U.N. Security Council resolution against the U.S. decision to recognize Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights and promised to support Palestinians in their bid for statehood. They also called  for cooperation with non-Arab Iran based on non-interference in each others’ affairs. U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who also addressed the meeting in Tunis, said any resolution to the Syrian conflict must guarantee the territorial integrity of Syria “including the occupied Golan Heights”.

People Have Right to 24Hr Electricity without Theft, says Franjieh

“The people have the right to have 24hr electricity and without theft,” Franjieh said, expressing suspicion that some politicians are seeking financial gains from the proposed electricity plans.Lebanon has daily blackouts  because the government owned utilities are unable to provide the power needed ,  this is why all the Lebanese have buy power at exorbitant  prices from private generator owners during these blackouts