Emirati businessman Khalaf al-Habtoor, who owns, among other things, two hotels in Beirut, announced Thursday in a post on X that he will be making new investments in Lebanon as soon as a new Cabinet is established.  “As a lover of Lebanon … I am happy to announce my intention to invest in a large project as soon as the government is formed. This project carries a vision that could enable economic revival and create thousands of jobs,” he wrote.  Habtoor said a level of stability is required in order to ensure the investment and that Joseph Aoun election as president and Nawaf Salam's appointment as prime minister are signs that "Lebanon is heading toward stability.  "Habtoor, who Forbes has listed at 335th among the world's wealthiest individuals with a net worth of $2.3 billion, wrote that any investment he makes in Lebanon "will mainly depend on the correct establishment of this government." "The next government must not include … those who have led Lebanon to its downfall, the economic crisis, and who have declared wars,” he wrote. The Emirati billionaire had given up last June on launching a television channel in Lebanon, citing “security risks,” and did not provide further details.  One of his hotels, where several foreign media outlets occupied rooms converted into offices during the recent conflict, temporarily closed its doors in 2024. The hotel reopened in early November.  In an interview with the news site Arab News a week ago, Habtoor indicated that he planned to renovate Habtoor Land, an amusement park he opened in the early 2000s in Jamhour, in Baabda district, and has abandoned since, as well as the Habtoor mall, located near his hotel in Beirut, which had closed at the onset of the economic crisis in 2019. (ICE BEIRUT)

Fonte notizia: L'Orient Today