Lebanon: Government to Admit It Can''t Enforce Smoking Ban

Source from:  Beirut Daily Star (lb)  05/06/2013

The government will be unable to implement a ban on smoking in public places, according to caretaker Tourism Minister Fadi Abboud.

During an interview with the Central News Agency, Abboud said his ministry "will issue a statement soon in which it will explain that it is incapable of implementing the law."

Activists and other groups have complained about the government's lax enforcement of the law, although many establishments have abided by the legislation.

Abboud also expressed his optimism over the prospects for tourism this summer, in spite of the deteriorating security situation.

"Based on the statistics carried out by the ministry last week that included 12 hotels in Beirut and its vicinity, the number of hotel reservations for the upcoming summer season has not changed," he said.

However Abboud said the number of reservations from Gulf tourists have markedly decreased, likely due to political uncertainty and security-related tension. Enditem