Five Noteworthy Stories You Might Have Missed in Lebanon This Past Week (3/23)

You’re busy, we get it. No sweat. Here’s some of the most important news stories you might have missed from the past week.

1. Lebanon’s Cabinet Granted Vote of Confidence

Lebanon’s parliament on Thursday granted the new government a vote of confidence. (Photo credit: Amal Awad via Facebook.com)

After weeks of political wrangling over its ministerial statement, Lebanon’s parliament on Thursday granted Prime Minister Tammam Salam’s new government its vote of confidence.

Of the 101 MPs present at the session, 96 of them granted their votes of confidence, three Lebanese Forces MPs as well as Nicolas Fattoush voted no-confidence, and Al-Jamaa al-Islamiya MP Imad al-Hout abstained from voting.

2. Death Toll Rises in Tripoli Fighting

Lebanese Army soldiers inspect the site of the roadside bomb that blew up in a military patrol in Tripoli, north Lebanon, March 21, 2014. (Photo by Reuters via The Daily Star )

Three people were killed in clashes that broke out Thursday between the warring neighborhoods of Jabal Mohsen and Bab al-Tabbaneh in Tripoli. The latest deaths bring the toll in clashes which broke out last week to 22, including the death of a 10-year-old girl, and 152 wounded.

3. Ski Resorts Finally Open

A lift boosts skiers at Mzaar ski resort during last year’s winter season. (Photo via Executive Magazine)

Following an abnormally warm and dry winter, a brief snow storm last week allowed ski resorts to open up the slopes for the first time this year.

The snow drought spelled bad news for business owners, as NOW Media’s Alex Rowell reports.

4. Syrian Airstrikes Come Down on Lebanese Border

Lebanese soldiers are seen on an armored personnel carrier on the road leading to Arsal in northeast Lebanon Wednesday March 19, 2014. (Photo by Nidal Solh via The Daily Star)

The outskirts of Arsal have been subjected to dozens of Syrian airstrikes since the Syrian army, backed by Hezbollah fighters, retook the rebel bastion of Yabroud in Qalamoun on March 16.

Residents of the area say they are under siege and have blocked roads in protest of the Syrian shelling, which began in late February.

5. As Spring Begins, So Does Stork Hunting

A photo from Facebook shows an unidentified man holding up a stork he shot down. (File photo via dearkitty1.wordpress.com)

Every Spring, white storks migrate from Africa to Europe, flying across the Lebanese coast. And with this great migration of birds, come the Lebanese hunters excited to shoot them down, often spurring a deluge of photos and videos on Facebook and other social media sites, showing off their activities.

German-based conservation society the Committee Against Bird Slaughter has been in contact with Lebanese environmental organizations to conduct studies and find a way to protect the species, The Daily Star newspaper reports.

According to the paper, hunting any animal is banned in Lebanon, but the law has not been enforced.