Beiruting News

The head of Lebanon's Olympic Committee says the International Basketball Federation has suspended Lebanon's basketball federation for four years because of political bickering between two clubs.
The Lebanon national team was already in Manila training when the news broke.
Four clubs refused to sign the MOU requested by FIBA which aims to negate the use of courts. The clubs are Mouttahed, Riyadi, Amchit and Byblos, who have all withdrawn their representatives from the local federation. The governing body had fulfilled three of the four conditions requested by FIBA but that wasn't enough for the ban to be lifted.
Lebanese basketball has suffered from a host of problems this year, including the suspension of the league during the semifinals, following a lawsuit filed by Amchit, and open political interference.