Welcome back to our lesson on politics. This is a more advanced lesson where we will break down full sentences related to news and current events in Lebanon, covering topics like the garbage crisis, protests, and the government.
While the sentences are a bit longer, we will go through them slowly so you can learn how to construct complex ideas and better understand Lebanese news reports.
Full Transcript: Analyzing Political Sentences
1. The Garbage Crisis
Let’s start with a topic that has been in the news in Lebanon.
Sentence: “There is a garbage crisis in Lebanon and the government did not find a solution yet.”
In Lebanese Arabic: fi ‘azmit-nifeyeit b lebnen wel Hkoumeh ba3ed ma le’yit Hall. (في أزمة نفايات بلبنان والحكومة بعد ما لقيت حل)
- Crisis: ‘azmeh (أزمة)
- Garbage: nifeyeit (نفايات) or zbeleh (زبالة)
- Government: Hkoumeh (حكومة)
- Yet: ba3ed (بعد)
- Solution: Hall (حل)
Sentence: “Every municipality is responsible of waste sorting.”
In Lebanese Arabic: kil baladiyyeh mas’ooleh 3an farz el nifeyeit. (كل بلدية مسؤولة عن فرز النفايات)
- Municipality: baladiyyeh (بلدية)
- Responsible: mas’ooleh (مسؤولة)
- Sorting: farz (فرز)
2. Protests & Demands
This sentence covers vocabulary related to civil movements.
Sentence: “There are ongoing peaceful protests in the Lebanese capital demanding the resignation of the Minister of the Environment.”
In Lebanese Arabic: fi muzaharat silmiyyeh mustamirra bil 3asmeh el-lebneniyyeh 3am bt-talib bi-isti’alit wazir el-bi’a. (في مظاهرات سلمية مستمرة بالعاصمة اللبنانية عم بتطالب بإستقالة وزير البيئة)
- Peaceful: silmiyyeh (سلميّة)
- Protests: muzaharat (مظاهرات)
- Ongoing: mustamerra (مستمرة)
- Demanding: 3am bt-talib (عم بتطالب)
- Resignation: isti’aleh (إستقالة)
- Minister of the Environment: wazir el-bi’a (وزير البيئة)
3. Tragic Events
This is a difficult but sometimes necessary sentence to understand from the news.
Sentence: “Today, 50 people were killed as a result of an explosion.”
In Lebanese Arabic: lyom khamseen shakhes meito natijit ‘enfijar. (اليوم خمسين شخص ماتوا نتيجة إنفجار)
- 50 people: khamseen shakhes (خمسين شخص)
- Were killed: meito (ماتوا)
- As a result: natijit (نتيجة)
- Explosion: ‘enfijar (إنفجار)
- Note: A related word you might hear is shaheed (شهيد), which means “martyr.”
4. Amending the Constitution
This sentence deals with parliamentary actions.
Sentence: “In 2013, the parliament amended the constitution to extend their term.”
In Lebanese Arabic: bil 2013, majlis el nuwweib 3addalo el dostour ta y’addro ymeddo la nafson. (بالـ ٢٠١٣، مجلس النواب عدّلوا الدستور تيقدروا يمدّدوا لنفسهم)
- Amended: 3addalo (عدّلوا)
- The constitution: el dostour (الدستور)
- To extend their term: ta ymeddo la nafson (تيمدّدوا لنفسهم)
Key Vocabulary & Phrases
| Lebanese Phrase | Transliteration | English Meaning |
| أزمة نفايات | ‘Azmit nifeyeit | Garbage crisis |
| حكومة | Hkoumeh | Government |
| بلدية | Baladiyyeh | Municipality |
| مظاهرات سلمية | Muzaharat silmiyyeh | Peaceful protests |
| إستقالة | ‘Isti’aleh | Resignation |
| وزير البيئة | Wazir el-bi’a | Minister of the Environment |
| إنفجار | ‘Enfijar | Explosion |
| شهيد | Shaheed | Martyr |
| عدّلوا | 3addalo | They amended |
| الدستور | El dostour | The constitution |
