Lebanon

SpotlightTripoli’s Municipal Battle: Power Gaps and Fractured Alliances

Rayan Chami 09/05 10:00 - Reading : 5 minute(s)

Tripoli Municipal Elections Al Mina Lebanon

Tripoli district is gearing up for pivotal municipal elections on May 11, with 359 candidates competing across Tripoli city, al-Mina and Beddawi. In Tripoli municipality, 187 candidates are vying for 24 council seats in what observers call the city’s most fragmented and unpredictable race in decades. Al-Mina sees 69 candidates competing for 21 ...

Lebanese Leaders Welcome Election of Pope Leo XIV

This Is Beirut 08/05 21:50 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Pope Francis Lebanese Forces Joseph Aoun Lebanon Nawaf Salam Najib Mikati

Lebanese officials and political leaders extended their congratulations Thursday following the historic election of American Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost as the new head of the Catholic Church, assuming the papal name Pope Leo XIV. His election, following the passing of Pope Francis on April 21, was officially confirmed as white smoke billowed ...

Salam from Beqaa: Border Reform and Development

This Is Beirut 08/05 19:50 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Baalbeck Lebanese Army UN Security Council Nawaf Salam

Prime Minister Nawaf Salam underscored the strategic importance of Lebanon’s official border crossings during a visit to the Beqaa Governorate on Thursday, describing them as “the mirror of Lebanese sovereignty” and the “first line of defense for internal stability.” Touring the Masnaa border crossing, Salam was briefed by General ...

Akkar: 3,569 Register for Municipal Elections as Dozens Win by Acclamation

This is Beirut 08/05 17:20 - Reading : less than a minute

Akkar Lebanon Municipal Elections Interior Ministry

Akkar’s Governorate announced that 3,569 candidates have registered for the upcoming municipal and mayoral elections, according to figures released by the Ministry of Interior after the close of nominations. Of these, 44 municipal councils and 48 mukhtar lists secured victories by acclamation, eliminating the need for voting in those areas. On ...

Bou Saab: Parliamentary Session to Be Scheduled Soon, Municipal Elections to Proceed on Time

This is Beirut 08/05 17:15 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Nabih Berry Elias Bou Saab Parliament Beirut Municipal Elections

Ahead of an upcoming parliamentary session, set to be scheduled soon, Speaker Nabih Berri chaired a meeting of Parliament’s Bureau on Thursday to review an agenda packed with long-delayed expedited law proposals. Deputy Speaker Elias Bou Saab announced that Berri intends to call for a legislative session once lawmakers have had around five ...

Israel Pounds South Lebanon in Major Strikes on Hezbollah Targets

This is Beirut 08/05 14:40 - Reading : less than a minute

Hezbollah Israel South Lebanon Lebanon

Israeli raids targeted the hills of Kfar Tebnit and Nabatieh al-Fawqa. Panicked residents also reported frequent overflights by fighter jets.

SpotlightLebanese-Syrian Border and UNIFIL Renewal: Two Critical Challenges Ahead

Bassam Abou Zeid 08/05 13:35 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Lebanon France Border demarcation Joseph Aoun Emmanuel Macron Ahmad al-Sharaa Syria

France has stepped in decisively to take a leading role in the border demarcation process between Lebanon and Syria—an initiative announced by President Emmanuel Macron during the visit of Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa to France. According to French sources, Macron expressed his country’s readiness to provide both the Lebanese and Syrian ...

Israeli Strikes Target Hezbollah Sites in Southern Lebanon; Two Killed, Multiple Injured

This is Beirut 08/05 13:30 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Israeli airstrikes South Lebanon Israel war

An Israeli security source reported that the Israeli military targeted a Hezbollah military compound in Nabatiyeh. The source, speaking to Al-Arabiya, confirmed that the compound contained weapons and tunnels used by the group. In a tweet posted on Thursday, Avichay Adraee, the Israeli army spokesperson announced: "Israeli Air Force fighter ...

France Hands Over Border Maps to Raggi

This is Beirut 08/05 12:40 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Lebanon Syria France Lebanon-Syria border

Lebanon’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Joe Raggi, received on Thursday the French Ambassador to Lebanon, Hervé Magro, who presented him with copies of documents and maps from French archives related to the Lebanon-Syria border. This handover follows Lebanon's official request and a promise made by French President Emmanuel Macron to Lebanese ...

Op-edBanking Sector: The BDL Takes Back the Helm

Marc Saikali 08/05 11:25 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Central Bank of Lebanon Banks Joseph Aoun lebanon Karim Souhaid

"The Central Bank of Lebanon (BDL) has a major responsibility in restoring confidence in the banking system." Those were the words of the President of the Republic during his visit this Wednesday to the headquarters of the Central Bank. The days when another President Aoun launched heavy-handed attacks on the ...

Aoun Calls on Central Bank to Restore Confidence in the Banking System

This is Beirut 08/05 10:32 - Reading : less than a minute

Joseph Aoun Central Bank Karim Souhaid Lebanon

During a visit to the Central Bank (BDL) on Thursday morning, President Joseph Aoun called on Central Bank Governor Karim Souhaid and the bank’s deputy governors to fully shoulder their responsibilities in reviving Lebanon’s struggling financial sector. “You bear the heavy responsibility of restoring the confidence of the ...

SpotlightBatroun at the Ballot: Power Struggles, Family Loyalties and Political Shifts

Chelsea Al Arif 08/05 10:00 - Reading : 5 minute(s)

Batroun City Batroun Municipal Elections Tannourine

Following a smooth first round of municipal elections on Sunday, May 4, electors in Batroun and across North Lebanon will head to the polls on Sunday, May 11, to elect municipal councils and mukhtars. In a governorate comprising 31 municipalities, Batroun-city holds particular attention as the second-largest municipality after Tannourine, with 15 ...