This is Beirut

Monitoring Mechanism Meets in Ras Naqoura

This is Beirut, 14:35 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Lebanon Lebanese Army United Nations UNIFIL South Lebanon Israel United States of America France

The Mechanism for Monitoring the Cessation of Hostilities convened on Wednesday in Ras Naqoura, with participation limited to the committee’s core military members. The meeting brought together representatives of the Lebanese Army (LAF) and the Israeli Army, alongside American and French officers and the commander of the United Nations Interim ...

Taylor Swift’s Wine Choice Shines a Spotlight on French Sancerre

This is Beirut, 06/01 17:00 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Music Taylor Swift Us Wine France Culture

A French winemaker has hailed the impact of his Sancerre appearing in Taylor Swift's latest documentary, which looks set to deepen America's love affair with the famed Loire appellation. A bottle of Sancerre by the Terres Blanches Domaine, which sells for around $40 in the United States, is glimpsed briefly by a mixing desk during episode five of ...

French Cinema Icon Brigitte Bardot to Be Buried in Saint-Tropez cemetery

This is Beirut, 2025-12-29 17:10 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Cinema Brigitte Bardot Icon Funeral France

Cinema icon Brigitte Bardot is to be buried in a graveyard in her hometown of Saint-Tropez, an official said Monday, as France wrestles with how to pay tribute to a cultural legend who in later years championed far-right views. Bardot, who died on Sunday aged 91 after decades as an animal rights campaigner, had said she wanted to be laid to rest ...

Paris to Host Conference Supporting LAF in February

This is Beirut, 2025-12-18 16:20 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Lebanese Army Lebanon Hezbollah Saudi Arabia United States France

Paris will host a conference in February in support of the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF), following a quadripartite meeting held in the French capital on Thursday, the French Foreign Ministry confirmed to This is Beirut. The venue of the conference has yet to be announced. The meeting brought together LAF Commander General Rodolphe Haykal, French ...

Decisive Paris Meeting: Can the Lebanese Army Deliver?

Natasha Metni Torbey, 2025-12-17 13:55 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Lebanese Army Lebanon Hezbollah Joseph Aoun France Litani

On Thursday in Paris, one of the most sensitive moments in Lebanon’s current diplomatic timeline will unfold. A closed-door meeting on the Lebanese Armed Forces’ (LAF) needs will bring together the army’s commander-in-chief, General Rodolph Haykal; US Special Envoy Morgan Ortagus; Saudi envoy Prince Yazid bin Farhan; France’s special envoy ...

Louvre Museum Closed as Workers Strike

This is Beirut, 2025-12-15 12:25 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

France Paris Louvre

The Louvre Museum closed its doors to thousands of disappointed visitors on Monday as staff launched a strike to protest working conditions at the Paris landmark, two months after a shocking robbery. Workers are demanding extra staff and measures to tackle overcrowding, adding to the woes of the world's most visited museum just as France is ...

Paris to Host Meeting on Lebanon Next Week

This is Beirut, 2025-12-12 15:25 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Lebanon Hezbollah Israel ceasefire France

A meeting on Lebanon will be held in Paris next week with the commander of the Lebanese army and U.S. officials, as France and the United States push Beirut to speed up Hezbollah’s disarmament process, four sources familiar with the matter told AFP. “Rodolphe Haykal is expected on Wednesday,” one of the sources said. U.S. Middle East envoy ...

Lebanon Sees Push for Foreign Troops in South Litani Region

Bassam Abou Zeid, 2025-12-09 18:05 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Lebanon Hezbollah Israel United States UNIFIL France European Union

Through Jean Yves Le Drian and the French military team in Lebanon, France has informed Lebanon’s political and military leadership that it is ready to take charge of an international force to be stationed south of the Litani River once UNIFIL pulls out at the end of 2026. The message added that Paris is working to rally backing for this ...

Aoun Welcomes French Role in Mechanism Committee, Reaffirms Commitment to Diplomacy

This is Beirut, 2025-12-08 19:30 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Nawaf Salam Emmanuel Macron UN Security Council Lebanon European Union Nabih Berry Jean-Yves Le Drian Le Drian France Israel

President Joseph Aoun told French special envoy Jean-Yves Le Drian on Monday that Lebanon is open to an enhanced French role within the framework of the “Mechanism Committee,” stressing that any such involvement must support the committee’s core negotiation goals. During the meeting at Baabda Palace, Aoun outlined ...

Spanish Star Rosalía Unveils 2026 World Tour for New Album Lux

This is Beirut, 2025-12-05 15:35 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Music Rosalia Tour 2026 France Spain Culture

Spanish star Rosalia on Thursday announced 2026 world tour dates for her critically acclaimed new album, Lux, with shows across Europe, the United States, and Latin America. The 33-year-old, hailed for her genre-defying versatility, revealed the news on Instagram. The trips will begin with a stop in the French city of Lyon on March 16 and finish ...

Asterix in Germany: France’s Irrepressible Gaul to Conquer Neighbor

This is Beirut, 2025-12-02 17:30 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Leisure Cartoon Asterix France Germany Culture

A theme park based on the beloved French comic strip series Asterix is to open in Germany, the first time the adventures of the pugnacious Gaul are to be the focus of an attraction outside France, its operator said on Tuesday. An existing theme park called Belantis outside the east German city of Leipzig is to morph into an Asterix theme park by ...

Historic Pont Neuf Set to Become Artist JR’s Latest Monumental Installation

This is Beirut, 2025-12-02 10:00 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Art Pont Neuf Installation JR street-artist France Culture

French artist JR, who made his way from tagging graffiti on the street to being one of the most recognizable figures on the country's art scene, has told AFP how he plans to turn the oldest bridge in Paris into an "immersive cave" for his latest project. Once hailed as the "French Banksy" after the secretive British street artist, JR has become ...

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