Europe

A Power Revolution with No Current

It’s a quietly growing trend. Since Lebanon’s 2021 fuel crisis, the electric vehicle market has been steadily gaining ground. Chinese electric vehicles (EVs), in particular, are spearheading the shift. Their futuristic designs are increasingly becoming common sights on Lebanon’s roads. The numbers are still small but rising. In the absence ...

When Emigrants Pay the Price of Exile

None of the emigrants chose to leave voluntarily. They left either in pursuit of education abroad or to find work that could provide them with economic stability and safety amid the wars in Lebanon. When the electoral law was amended to include expatriates in the actual voting process, enthusiasm soared, and in the last election, a quarter of a ...

Fears for Crops as Drought Hits Northern Europe

Parts of northern Europe have seen their worst drought in decades in recent weeks, with farmers from Scotland to the Netherlands fearing the dry spell will dent harvests if it continues. Water shortages can stunt the growth of crops such as wheat, corn, rapeseed and barley, Nicolas Guilpart, a lecturer in agronomy at the Agro Paris Tech research ...

Shooting in Washington: Two Israeli Diplomats Killed, Suspect in Custody

Shortly after 9 PM, gunfire broke out in front of the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington. The incident resulted in two victims: Yaron Lischinsky, 28, and his partner Sarah Lynn Milgrim, both employees of the Israeli Embassy in the United States.  The assailant was immediately restrained by the museum's security and handed over to the ...

Mullahs Wearing Sombreros: Hezbollah in Latin America

The so-called “tri-border area,” at the junction of Brazil, Argentina and Paraguay, has long attracted tourists, notably thanks to the famous Iguaçu Falls. But behind this idyllic setting lies a much more troubling reality: this region is also a strategic hub for transnational criminal networks, including Hezbollah. Washington, which is ...

UK, EU Hail new Partnership deal, but Questions Remain

Britain has hailed Monday's strategic partnership agreement with the European Union as the start of a new era, but the effects of the deal on defense and trade remain unclear. Will the agreement boost UK economic growth?  That is one of Prime Minister Keir Starmer's key arguments for restoring closer ties with the EU. This deal, along with ...

With Assad Down and Sanctions Lifted, Are Syrian Refugees Finally Being Pressed to Leave?

The startling decision by United States President Donald Trump to lift economic sanctions on Syria, coupled with the collapse of the Assad regime, could fundamentally reshape how the Syrian displaced population in Lebanon is managed – unless their permanent return to Syria remains excluded from the agreement being brokered among the key parties ...

Medical Cannabis: A Booming 'Made in Germany' Industry

In a secret location in Bavaria, a thick steel door hides a booming business in Germany: the production of cannabis-based medicines, fueled by some of the most liberal legislation in Europe. Wearing surgical caps, masks, gowns and blue medical gloves, employees at the start-up Cantourage transform dried cannabis flowers—sourced from more than ...

Ruling Party Tops Portugal Polls Marked by Far-Right Surge

Portugal's incumbent centre-right party won the most seats in the country's third general election in three years on Sunday but again fell short of a parliamentary majority, while support for the far-right Chega rose. The outcome threatens to extend political instability in the NATO and European Union member state as the bloc faces growing global ...

Iran Says Ready to Rebuild 'Mutual Trust' with Europe

Iran's top diplomat said Sunday his country was ready to rebuild trust with European powers considering whether to reimpose UN sanctions on the Islamic republic under a 2015 nuclear deal. "Iran is ready, should it observe genuine will and an independent approach from the European parties, to begin a new chapter in its relations with ...

From Power Ballads to Pyrotechnics: Europe Takes the Stage at Eurovision

In a blaze of laser lights, artists from 26 countries were preparing to rip the roof off at Saturday's Eurovision Song Contest final, the world's biggest live music television event. An estimated 160 million people across Europe and beyond are expected to tune in for the TV extravaganza, where kitsch, drama, pyrotechnics and histrionics take ...