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1/8 #Lebanese Minister of Interior and Municipalities is an ex-army officer with a reputation for integrity& bold action. He could show this by learning how his Jordanian
counterpart used “soft power” towards the Jordan Spring protests of 2011-12
counterpart used “soft power” towards the Jordan Spring protests of 2011-12
2/8 Jordan police exercised restraint, talked to protestors & protected them from government loyalists. If rogue police attack #Beirut 
protestors, interior minister should assert his authority over those supposed to represent state sovereignty & protect all citizens & residents
police exercised restraint, talked to protestors & protected them from government loyalists. If rogue police attack #Beirut protestors, interior minister should assert his authority over those supposed to represent state sovereignty & protect all citizens & residents
3/8 #Lebanese Minister of Interior could take real leadership in devising a genuinely national emergency response plan: a) deploy the police to trace & assist every homeless family wherever it has reached, creating a database that will help future aid & compensation programs;
4/8 b) fully involve #Lebanese municipalities in planning & leading emergency response to help absorb homeless, mapping local resources and needs, & setting up legal authority for them to receive direct external aid (avoiding corrupt or slow government channels);
5/8 c) map the location, capacity, & inventory of storage & distribution points around #Lebanon for grain & flour (bakeries), cooking oil & similar basic foodstuffs, fuel (transport & household), & clean water (wells, pumps, tankers);
for grain & flour (bakeries), cooking oil & similar basic foodstuffs, fuel (transport & household), & clean water (wells, pumps, tankers);
6/8 d) coordinate & share data with #Lebanese service ministries such as MinHealth to contain a surge in COVID-19 cases among the displaced, & MinEducation to absorb displaced children in local schools when classes start in a few weeks, etc;
7/8 e) the #Lebanese army has overall defence & security command under present state of emergency, but interior minister is especially well placed to play a special role in the national response & bring army's managerial & logistical capacity to bear in support of his ministry
8/8 d) create a mechanism to work with #Lebanese civil society orgs & volunteer groups in delivering all above. It’s time to use full potential of interior ministry's considerable institutional, legal, & human capacity. This is not rocket science, it’s about ethics & leadership.
