Ethiopia's Tola Wins Olympic Men's Marathon, Kipchoge Drops Out

2024-08-11 13:00 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Ethiopian Tamirat Tola delivered a masterclass in solo front running to win the Olympic men's marathon in Paris on Saturday as Eliud Kipchoge's bid for a third gold went up in smoke. Tola clocked an Olympic record of 2hr 06min 26sec for victory, finishing 21 seconds ahead of Belgium's Bashir Abdi, whose silver marked an upgrade from his bronze ...

U.S. Military: U.S. Destroyers Cross Strait of Hormuz, Enter Gulf

This is Beirut 04/05 17:35 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

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U.S. Navy-guided missile destroyers have passed through the Strait of Hormuz and entered the Gulf as part of a new mission to restore maritime traffic in the vital waterway, the U.S. military said Monday. The warships "are currently operating in the Arabian Gulf after transiting the Strait of Hormuz in support of Project Freedom," U.S. Central ...

Iran Executes Two Men Convicted of Spying for Israel: Judiciary

This is Beirut 02/05 11:20 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

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Iran hanged two men on Saturday convicted of spying for Israel, the judiciary said, the latest in a string of executions in recent weeks. "Yaghoub Karimpour and Nasser Bekrzadeh were hanged for the crime of intelligence cooperation and espionage in favour of the Zionist regime," the judiciary's Mizan Online website said. It was not ...

Lebanon Ceasefire Opens a Diplomatic Window, Now Comes the Hard Part

Amal Chmouny 02/05 18:40 - Reading : 6 minute(s)

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When the ambassadors of Lebanon and Israel met at the White House on April 23, it was the kind of image that would have seemed unthinkable just months earlier. Their joint appearance alongside President Donald Trump — to announce a three-week extension of the cessation of hostilities — was a shift from decades of indirect, back-channel ...

MP Makhzoumi Backs State Sovereignty and Direct Talks with Israel

This is Beirut 02/05 19:45 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

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Parliamentarian and founder of the National Dialogue Party Fouad Makhzoumi on Saturday stressed the primacy of state sovereignty and endorsed direct negotiations with Israel as key to ending the country’s current crisis, saying “the exclusive right of the state to decide on war and peace” must be upheld.  Speaking at a ...

Syria Dismantles Lebanon-Linked Captagon Smuggling Network

This is Beirut 02/05 22:35 - Reading : less than a minute

Lebanon

A major shipment of nearly one million Captagon pills originating from Lebanon was intercepted in Syria’s border region of Rankous, where authorities say they dismantled a cross-border smuggling network moving narcotics through Syria toward neighboring countries. According to a statement from the Syrian Ministry of Interior, the ...

'Angry Birds'-Style Video Caricaturing Hezbollah Draws Rebuke

This is Beirut 03/05 05:30 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

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A video published by a Lebanese TV outlet caricaturing Hezbollah's leaders and fighters as characters from the "Angry Birds" mobile phone games drew a rebuke from the group, which called the clip "offensive" on Saturday. On social media, Hezbollah's supporters condemned what they considered the ridiculing of leader ...

Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Warns U.S., Sets Deadline to Lift Naval Blockade

This is Beirut 03/05 14:30 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

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Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) intelligence arm issued a series of new warnings on Sunday, saying Tehran has given Washington a deadline to lift its naval blockade on Iranian ports, as tensions escalate alongside fragile diplomatic efforts. The IRGC said on Sunday that Iran had granted the Pentagon a “final ...

Netanyahu Warns Israel Can Strike Anywhere in Iranian Airspace

This is Beirut 03/05 15:15 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday in a recorded speech that Israel is capable of striking “anywhere in Iranian airspace" in a renewed warning to Tehran as indirect negotiations between Iran and the United States continue through Pakistani mediation. Netanyahu emphasized that Israeli pilots are “ready” to ...

Funeral Gunfire Sparks Tensions Between Army and Hezbollah Supporters

This is Beirut 03/05 17:55 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

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Tensions flared in Beirut’s southern suburbs on Sunday as units of the Lebanese Armed Forces deployed during a funeral procession for four individuals killed in recent violence, sparking friction with supporters of Hezbollah and highlighting the limits of state authority in the area. According to eyewitnesses and local media, the situation ...

Israel Expands Air Power with F-35I and F-15IA Deal Following Lessons from Iran Conflict

This is Beirut 03/05 23:30 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

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Israel has approved the acquisition of two additional fighter jet squadrons from the United States. The deal includes a fourth squadron of F-35I stealth fighters and a second squadron of F-15IA strike aircraft, both supplied by U.S. defense manufacturers Lockheed Martin and Boeing. The announcement, made by the Israeli Ministry of Defense, ...

Tanker Hit by 'Unknown Projectiles' off UAE Coast: UK Maritime Agency

This is Beirut 04/05 04:35 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

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A tanker was hit by unidentified projectiles off the coast of the United Arab Emirates, a British maritime agency reported Monday, as the United States said it would escort ships through the blocked Strait of Hormuz. "A tanker has reported being hit by unknown projectiles," the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said, ...

Why Iran’s Influence in Lebanon Persists Despite Hezbollah’s Losses

Marwan El Amine 04/05 11:40 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

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Israel’s military blows to Hezbollah and its seizure of a strip of territory in southern Lebanon have not changed Tehran’s strategic calculus. The Islamic Republic of Iran continues to regard its influence in Lebanon as a strategic priority, despite the scale of casualties among Lebanon’s Shia population, the waves of displacement, and the ...

Hezbollah Signals Openness to Indirect Talks with Israel

This is Beirut 04/05 12:30 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

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In a notable shift in tone, Hezbollah’s Secretary General Naim Qassem signaled for the first time openness to indirect negotiations with Israel, framing diplomacy as a viable path—while firmly rejecting any form of direct talks. “We support diplomacy that stops the aggression and enforces agreements,” Qassem said in a statement on Monday, ...

Iran Foreign Ministry Says U.S. Must 'Abandon its Excessive Demands'

This is Beirut 04/05 12:45 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

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Iran's foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said on Monday that the United States must reduce its demands on the Islamic republic, with negotiations stalled over ending the two-month-long Middle East war. "At this stage, our priority is to end the war," he said in a briefing broadcast by state television. "The other side ...

Seoul Reports 'Explosion and Fire' on S. Korean Ship in Hormuz Strait

This is Beirut 04/05 17:55 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

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Seoul said on Monday that an "explosion and fire" had struck a South Korean ship in the Strait of Hormuz, the crucial Middle Eastern waterway effectively blocked following U.S.-Israeli attacks on Iran. The foreign ministry said that, at around 8:40 pm in Seoul (11:40 GMT), "an explosion and fire occurred on a vessel operated by a South Korean ...

U.S. Hits Iran With New Sanctions, Warns Against Hormuz ‘Fees’

This is Beirut 01/05 21:20 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

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The United States on Friday imposed new sanctions on Iran, targeting three Iranian exchange companies, while warning that any attempt to charge transit fees in the Strait of Hormuz could trigger further punitive measures. According to a statement by the U.S. Treasury Department, the sanctions are part of Washington’s broader effort to cut ...

Iran Strikes UAE in First Breach of Ceasefire

This is Beirut 04/05 20:05 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

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The United Arab Emirates confirmed on Monday that its air defense systems intercepted missiles and drones launched from Iran, marking the first direct attack on the country since the ceasefire took effect on April 8, according to official Emirati statements. The UAE Ministry of Defense announced that four cruise missiles were detected heading ...

Lebanese President: “No Turning Back” on Negotiations Track

This is Beirut 04/05 20:20 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

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Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said Monday that Lebanon will not reverse course on ongoing U.S.-backed negotiations with Israel, declaring that diplomacy remains the country’s only viable option amid the ongoing conflict. “There is no turning back from the negotiations track because there is no other choice for us,” Aoun said, ...

Trump Threatens Iran with “Total Destruction” if It Targets U.S. Forces in Hormuz Operation

This is Beirut 04/05 20:50 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

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U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday issued a stark warning to Iran, vowing it would be “blown off the face of the Earth” if it attacks American vessels involved in the ongoing “Project Freedom” operation in the Strait of Hormuz. Speaking in an interview with Fox News, Trump escalated his rhetoric as tensions deepen around the strategic ...

U.S. Downs Iran Missiles and Drones, Destroys Six of Tehran's Boats

This is Beirut 04/05 22:10 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

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The United States shot down multiple Iranian missiles and drones fired at U.S. Navy and commercial vessels and destroyed six of Tehran's small boats, a top U.S. admiral said on Monday. The hostilities occurred as American forces sought to facilitate the transit of commercial shipping through the Strait of Hormuz in an effort dubbed "Project ...

South Korea to Review Joining U.S. Hormuz Operation

This is Beirut 05/05 09:50 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

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South Korea said Tuesday it will "review its position" on joining U.S. operations in the Strait of Hormuz after President Donald Trump urged Seoul to take part following an apparent Iranian attack on one of its ships. An explosion and fire were reported on a South Korean cargo vessel on Monday in the key waterway, which has been effectively ...

Lebanese Army Arrests Suspects in Beirut's Southern Suburbs After Gunfire at Funeral

This is Beirut 05/05 11:10 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

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The Lebanese Armed Forces carried out arrests in Beirut’s southern suburbs on Monday, a stronghold of Hezbollah, detaining several individuals accused of opening fire during a funeral procession on Sunday. In a statement, the army said its units raided the homes of those involved in the gunfire, arresting two individuals in the southern ...

UN Chief Urges Iran to Provide Medical Care to Nobel Laureate Amid Abuse Reports

This is Beirut 05/05 14:00 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

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UN Secretary-General António Guterres on Monday called on Iran to ensure urgent medical care for imprisoned Nobel Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi, amid mounting reports of severe health deterioration and alleged abuse in custody. Guterres expressed concern over Mohammadi’s condition, urging Iranian authorities to guarantee she receives ...

Hegseth warns of ‘overwhelming’ response as Hormuz tensions rise despite ceasefire

This is Beirut 05/05 16:00 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

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U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Tuesday a ceasefire with Iran remains in place despite rising tensions in the Strait of Hormuz, where Washington has deployed forces to protect commercial shipping. Speaking at the Pentagon alongside Joint Chiefs Chairman Dan Caine, Hegseth said the United States is “not seeking a wider conflict” in ...

Israeli FM: Israel Seeks Normalization with Lebanon

This is Beirut 05/05 20:00 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

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At a joint press conference on Tuesday, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar said Israel intends to pursue a diplomatic track with Beirut, stating, “We will work with the Lebanese government toward a path of peace and normalization.” He also underscored Israel’s security priorities in the north, stating, “We are ...

U.S. Announces $10 Million Reward for Iraqi Militia Leader

This is Beirut 05/05 20:10 - Reading : less than a minute

The U.S. Department of State’s Rewards for Justice program announced on Tuesday a reward of up to $10 million for information on Akram ‘Abbas al-Kabi, identified as the founder and leader of the Iraqi militia group Harakat al-Nujaba (HAN). In its official statement the program said, “Akram ‘Abbas al-Kabi is the founder and leader of ...

Syria Announces Dismantling of New Hezbollah-Linked Cell

This is Beirut 05/05 21:55 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

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The Syrian Ministry of Interior announced on Tuesday the dismantling of a cell linked to Hezbollah that was allegedly preparing the assassination of government officials, while the pro-Iran Lebanese movement denounced what it called repeated “baseless accusations.” In a statement, the ministry said Syrian security forces had foiled “a ...

Rubio Says Lebanon-Israel Peace Deal “Imminently Achievable”

This is Beirut 05/05 23:05 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

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U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Tuesday a peace deal between Lebanon and Israel is “imminently achievable” and emphasized that the Lebanese Armed Forces must have both the will and capability to directly confront Hezbollah’s arms.  Rubio said there is no fundamental conflict between the Lebanese and Israeli ...

Trump Says Pausing Hormuz Operation in Push for Iran Deal

This is Beirut 06/05 09:50 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

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President Donald Trump said Tuesday he was halting the US military operation to escort ships through the Strait of Hormuz after just one day, in a bid to reach a deal with Iran to end the Middle East war. Trump's so-called "Project Freedom" to help vessels leave the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow chokepoint to the Gulf where Iran has seized control ...