This is Beirut

Iran's Ambassador Won't Leave Lebanon Despite Expulsion: Diplomatic Source

This is Beirut, 29/03 19:05 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Lebanon Nawaf Salam Amal Hezbollah Israel

Iran's ambassador will not leave Lebanon despite being declared persona non grata and ordered to leave the country by Sunday, an Iranian diplomatic source told AFP. "The ambassador will not leave Lebanon, in accordance with the wishes of the speaker of parliament Nabih Berri and of Hezbollah," the source said, speaking on condition ...

Hezbollah Boycotts Cabinet Session Over Iran Ambassador Expulsion

This is Beirut, 26/03 17:45 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Hezbollah USA Lebanon Amal Israel

Ministers from Hezbollah and its ally Amal boycotted Lebanon's cabinet session on Thursday in protest after the government declared the Iranian ambassador persona non grata, a Lebanese official told AFP. The two Shia parties have a combined four ministers, while one independent Shia minister was instead present at the meeting, the official said, ...

Shiite-Majority Region Rejects Amal, Hezbollah Aid Role

This is Beirut, 19/03 13:05 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Amal Baalbeck Hezbollah Hermel Aid Council of the South

The Union of Associations of Baalbek-Hermel, along with several NGOs assisting displaced people, has voiced opposition to transferring displacement aid to the Council for the South, citing concerns over corruption. In a statement, the union pointed to what it described as the council’s poor track record over the past two decades, arguing that ...

Lebanon’s Last Chance: A Turning Point or the Point of No Return?

Amal Chmouny, 19/03 12:55 - Reading : 7 minute(s)

Lebanon Amal Lebanese Army Hezbollah Israel

Caught in the escalating conflict between Hezbollah and Israel, Lebanon faces a critical turning point. The Lebanese state can no longer claim sovereignty while tolerating an armed militia that unilaterally dictates war and peace. President Joseph Aoun’s assertion that Hezbollah seeks the “collapse of the Lebanese state” and the ...

Israel Pounds South Beirut as Hezbollah Launches New Rocket Attack

This is Beirut, 12/03 06:50 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Hezbollah Israel Lebanon Amal Baalbeck

Israel pounded Beirut's southern suburbs late Wednesday night, while militant group Hezbollah fired rockets and missiles at northern Israel in a new operation, as the death toll in Lebanon climbed past 630. Earlier on Wednesday, Israel had struck the heart of the capital for a second time since the country became a front in the wider conflict ...

Hezbollah Readies Its Electoral Machine After War Losses

Marwan El Amine, 19/02 16:25 - Reading : 6 minute(s)

Hezbollah Hassan Nasrallah Lebanon Amal Israel

Whether Lebanon’s parliamentary elections are held on time in May or postponed, Hezbollah’s electoral machine appears to be in a state of full readiness. While the party commands the largest popular base within the Shia community, maintaining a wide lead over its closest ally, the Amal Movement, this electoral advantage has not bred ...

U.S. Rep. LaHood to This Is Beirut: “No Progress, No Support,” Lebanon Must Act Now

Amal Chmouny, 10/02 18:00 - Reading : 6 minute(s)

Lebanon Lebanese Army Amal Donald Trump Hezbollah

When Lebanese Army Commander Gen. Rodolphe Haykal arrived in the U.S. capital during the first week of February, he entered a fundamentally transformed strategic landscape. The meetings that unfolded—from tense political exchanges to a dramatic walkout by Sen. Lindsey Graham—crystallized a stark reality: Lebanon’s decades-long balancing act ...

Will Hezbollah Turn to Political Assassinations Again?

Iftah Burman, 10/02 13:00 - Reading : 10 minute(s)

Hezbollah Lebanon Amal Hassan Nasrallah UN Security Council

As Hezbollah faces mounting pressure, the risk is growing that the group could once again turn to assassinations to preserve its fragile military, political, and financial positions. In December 2025, fresh revelations about the activities of Hezbollah’s assassination squad, Unit 121, brought the group’s use of political violence back ...

The Council of the South: Hezbollah and Amal’s Tool for Clientelism

Marwan El Amine, 06/02 12:15 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Amal Hezbollah Lebanon Israel

The Council of the South was intended to be one of the Lebanese state’s key mechanisms for addressing the damage from wars with Israel, but it effectively became a partisan tool serving the Amal Movement and Hezbollah. It was established in 1970 primarily to help residents of southern Lebanon repair their homes and rebuild what had been ...

Lebanon's Oldest Lock on Power Is the Speaker's Chair

Salam El Zaatari, 06/02 09:25 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Lebanon Amal Hezbollah Berri

Fortunate countries see their leaders come and go; in hapless ones, time ravages everything but their rulers. Lebanon is trapped in the latter camp, with one politician freezing his grip on power and the country’s chance for reform. The country’s banks collapsed and its currency crashed, the port exploded, half the youth emigrated, and whole ...

U.S. Lawmakers Introduce Bill to Sanction Election Interference in Lebanon

This is Beirut, 04/02 10:00 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Lebanon Hezbollah Amal Elections Sanctions

U.S. lawmakers introduced legislation on February 2 that would authorize President Trump to impose sanctions on foreign individuals or entities accused of interfering in Lebanon’s electoral process, including efforts to obstruct voting by Lebanese citizens living abroad. The legislation would allow the president, in consultation with senior ...

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

Amal Chmouny , 02/02 14:00 - Reading : 8 minute(s)

Amal Hezbollah Hassan Nasrallah Lebanon Joseph Aoun

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 ...

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