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What Iran’s Fate Could Mean for Hezbollah and Lebanon

As Iran’s nationwide protest movement intensifies, a key question is dominating regional and international discourse: what lies ahead for the Islamist regime if unrest continues, and how might its potential collapse impact Middle Eastern states shaped by four decades of Iranian policy? Since Ayatollah Khomeini came to power in 1979, Iran has ...

Khamenei Issued No Mercy, 'Shoot to Kill' Orders

Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei ordered Iran's Supreme National Security Council to suppress the protests on January 9 by using "any means necessary," The New York Times reported on Sunday, citing two officials familiar with the matter.  According to the officials, security forces were then deployed to the streets with ...

Lebanon’s Lost Coast: How Public Rights Became Privileges for the Few

Lebanon’s coastline, which belongs to the state and is considered maritime public domain, is once again in the spotlight. On Tuesday, the cabinet reopened debate on this long-neglected national asset, directing relevant state bodies to coordinate efforts to increase revenues from these seaside properties. The discussion reflected a widely ...

Who are the Shia Opposition Seeking to Break Hezbollah’s Stranglehold?

Lebanon’s upcoming parliamentary elections, coming on the heels of the 2024 Hezbollah–Israel war that devastated the organization and its core constituencies, have reopened the question of Shia political representation. For decades, Lebanese political discourse has treated the Shia community as a unified political bloc, electorally ...

Syrian President Makes Kurdish a 'National Language'

Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa issued a decree on Friday declaring Kurdish a "national language", in an apparent gesture of good will towards the minority following clashes in past days. The move came as the Syrian army warned of new strikes east of Aleppo, despite a meeting between the US-led coalition and Kurdish forces seeking to ...

Gaza Governance Committee Begins Work

The Palestinian committee set to govern post-war Gaza has begun its work in Cairo, a member told AFP on Friday. Formed on Wednesday as the second phase of the US-brokered Gaza ceasefire deal came into effect, the committee is made up of 15 technocrats charged with administering the Palestinian territory after the Hamas-Israel war. The ...

Israel Begins Demolitions at UNRWA Headquarters

Israeli bulldozers began demolitions at the headquarters of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees in East Jerusalem on Tuesday, in what the organization called an "unprecedented attack". UNRWA spokesman Jonathan Fowler said in a statement to AFP that Israeli forces "stormed into" the compound shortly after 7am (0500 GMT) and ousted security ...

Talks Between Damascus And Kurdish-led Forces "Collapse"

Negotiations have collapsed between the Syrian president and the chief of the country's Kurdish-led forces, a Kurdish official told AFP, as the army deployed reinforcements to flashpoint areas in the north. President Ahmed al-Sharaa and Mazloum Abdi, who heads the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), were meeting to discuss a ceasefire ...

Gaza Civil Defense Says Israeli Strike Kills Three Journalists

Gaza's civil defense agency said an Israeli strike in the center of the territory on Wednesday killed three journalists, including a freelancer who regularly contributed for AFP, despite the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. Since October 10, a fragile US-sponsored truce in Gaza has largely halted the fighting between Israeli forces and Hamas, ...

Israel Strikes Buildings in South Lebanon Towns

On Wednesday, following earlier strikes in Zahrani, additional Israeli airstrikes targeted buildings in the south Lebanon towns of Jarjouaa, Qenarrit, and Kfour. The Israeli army carried out the attacks aiming to impair alleged Hezbollah military infrastructure. Prior to the strikes, Israeli army spokesperson Avichay Adraee released an ...

Trump Launches 'Board of Peace' at Davos

US President Donald Trump kicked off his new "Board of Peace" at Davos on Thursday, with a signing ceremony for a body with a $1 billion membership fee and a controversial list of invitees. A group of leaders and senior officials from 19 countries, including Trump allies from Argentina and Hungary, gathered on stage with Trump to put their names ...

Iraq Says to Start Legal Proceedings against IS Detainees Moved from Syria

Iraq's judiciary said Thursday it would launch legal proceedings against Islamic State group detainees transferred from Syria to Iraq as part of a US operation. "The Iraqi judiciary will begin standard legal proceedings against the defendants who are received and placed in the relevant correctional institutions," the Supreme Judicial Council ...

U.S. Weighs Full Military Withdrawal From Syria

The United States is considering a full military withdrawal from Syria, according to a report by the Wall Street Journal, which said Washington is reassessing its presence amid rapidly changing conditions on the ground. The newspaper reported that internal discussions within the Trump administration are exploring multiple scenarios to reduce, or ...

Israel Prepares to Seek New Security Pact With U.S., Report Says

Israel is preparing to enter talks with the administration of President Donald Trump on a new decade-long security agreement, signaling a strategic shift in how it seeks to secure American support, one that prioritizes joint military projects over direct financial aid, according to a report by the Financial Times on Tuesday.  The discussions, ...

Chevron Signs Agreement with Syria and Qatari Conglomerate for Syrian Energy Exploration

Chevron has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Syrian Petroleum Company and UCC Holding, a Qatari conglomerate, on assessing offshore oil and gas exploration off Syria’s coast, according to a Reuters report on Wednesday.  U.S. Syria envoy Tom Barrack also attended the signing of the agreement, signaling U.S. approval as the ...

Riyadh Will Not Permit Attacks on Iran from Saudi Territory: Foreign Ministry

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman told Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian during a call on Tuesday that the Gulf monarchy would not allow attacks on Iran to be launched from its soil. Prince Mohammed "affirmed during the call the kingdom's position on respecting the sovereignty of the Islamic Republic of Iran, and that the Kingdom ...

Druze Leader: Qassem's Statements are "Irresponsible"

On Tuesday, Former President of the Progressive Socialist Party and Druze leader, Walid Jumblatt, attacked the most recent speech delivered by Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem, describing it as “irresponsible, irresponsible, irresponsible,” according to L’Oreint Today.  Jumblatt said, “I do not know why he wants to drag part of ...

Trump Wants to Create Conditions for ‘Regime Change’ in Iran: U.S. Sources

U.S. President Donald Trump is weighing options against Iran that include targeted strikes on security forces and leaders to inspire protesters and wants to create conditions for “regime change”, multiple U.S. sources familiar with the discussions told The Times of Israel.  To do so, he was looking at options to hit commanders ...

Israel to Partially Reopen Gaza's Rafah Crossing on Sunday

Israel announced it would reopen the crucial Rafah crossing between Gaza and Egypt on Sunday after months of urging from the UN, humanitarian organisations and ordinary Palestinians -- but only for the "limited movement of people". Earlier on Friday, the Islamist movement Hamas had called for the "immediate transition to the second phase" of the ...

Gaza's Rafah Crossing Makes Limited Reopening After Two-Year War

Gaza's key Rafah border crossing was reopened to Palestinians on Monday, an Israeli security official said, but Egyptian state-linked media said only 50 people would be allowed to cross in each direction in the early days. The resumption of operations comes after Israeli forces seized control of the gateway to Egypt in May 2024 during the war ...

The Shia Duo Under Strain: How Iran’s Crisis Is Realigning Amal and Hezbollah

When Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri met with Joseph Aoun on January 23, at the height of Hezbollah’s rhetorical campaign against the president, the gesture spoke volumes. As Hezbollah Secretary General Naim Qassem rejected disarmament and warned of civil war, Berri moved to restore communication channels, differentiating his Amal ...

Trump Warns Iran of Consequences if Diplomacy Fails

The United States and Iran are set to resume nuclear talks on Friday in Turkey, officials from both sides told Reuters, as President Donald Trump warned that “bad things” would likely happen if negotiations fail, with U.S. warships moving closer to Iran amid heightened regional tensions. U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Iranian Foreign ...

Iran President Confirms Talks with US After Trump's Threats

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian confirmed on Tuesday that he had ordered the start of nuclear talks with the United States, after his counterpart Donald Trump threatened "bad things" if no deal is reached. The US leader has talked of military action and sent an aircraft carrier group to the Middle East following anti-government protests in ...

Military Court Sentences Nouh Zeaiter in Limited Rulings, Leaving Broader Case Open

Lebanon’s Permanent Military Court on Tuesday issued its first batch of rulings in the sprawling judicial case of Nouh Zeaiter, convicting him in four security-related cases and sentencing him to one month in prison for each, while acquitting him in three files and dropping prosecution in 33 others due to the statute of limitations. The court ...

U.S. Tanker Approached by Iranian Gunboats in Strait of Hormuz

A US-flagged tanker was approached and challenged on Tuesday by Iranian gunboats in the Strait of Hormuz, before continuing on its way, US Central Command said. CENTCOM spokesman Captain Tim Hawkins said two Iranian boats and a drone approached the US-flagged ship M/V Stena Imperative "at high speeds and threatened to board and seize the ...

U.S. Downs Iranian Drone Flying Toward Aircraft Carrier

A U.S. Navy fighter jet shot down an Iranian drone that was approaching the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln in the Arabian Sea, U.S. Central Command said Tuesday.  The drone “aggressively approached” the aircraft carrier with “unclear intent” and kept flying toward it “despite deescalatory measures taken by ...

Iran Formally Allows Women to Ride Motorcycles

Women in Iran can now formally obtain a license to ride a motorcycle, local media reported Wednesday, ending years of legal ambiguity surrounding two-wheelers. The law previously did not explicitly prohibit women from riding motorbikes and scooters, but in practice authorities refused to issue licenses. Due to the legal grey area, women have ...

US-Iran Talks Expected in Oman, but Scope Under Discussion: Arab Diplomat

Talks between the United States and Iran are expected to take place in Oman, but the scope of the discussions still needs to be agreed, an Arab diplomat told AFP on Wednesday. "A meeting is requested in Oman by the Iranians, and the Americans have approved the location, but the parameters of discussions are still being worked on," the diplomat ...

Daraya Rises Again

Daraya, just seven kilometers from Damascus, was once the city of roses and workshops, a symbol of creativity and spirit. In 2011, its residents greeted soldiers from the Assad regime with flowers during peaceful demonstrations. The response was a massacre, followed by a four-year siege that emptied the city of its 250,000 inhabitants. Destroyed ...