This is Beirut

The Freida McFadden Phenomenon Confuses French Literary Critics

This is Beirut, 14:00 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Movie Literature US France Thriller Culture

Why are American author Freida McFadden’s psychological thrillers selling so well in France? French literary critics are trying to understand the craze but remain doubtful about the true merit of her work. The Housemaid was the best-selling book in France in 2024, with over 600,000 copies sold. By the end of February 2025, it had crossed the ...

Armenia PM Pushes Azerbaijan to Sign Peace Agreement

This is Beirut, 15/04 15:40 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Armenia Azerbaijan France Russia

Armenia on Tuesday pushed Azerbaijan to sign a peace treaty, with Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan saying he was ready to simultaneously agree to one of Baku's key demands to get the deal finalized. The two ex-Soviet republics last month agreed the text of a long-awaited peace deal aimed at resolving decades of conflict. But Azerbaijan has ...

LAF Receives French Military Equipment

This is Beirut, 15/04 11:50 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Beirut International Airport Lebanese Army France Donation

The Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) announced on Tuesday the arrival of a new shipment of military equipment donated by France, underscoring continued international backing for Lebanon’s army amid ongoing economic hardship and security threats. In an official statement, the LAF confirmed that a French military aircraft landed at Beirut–Rafic ...

Algerian expulsion of French officials 'will have consequences': French FM

This is Beirut, 15/04 09:55 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

France Barrot Algeria

France's foreign minister on Tuesday slammed Algeria's decision to expel 12 French officials and warned of a riposte, as tensions mounted between Paris and its former North African colony. Jean-Noel Barrot said the move was "regrettable" and warned it "will not be without consequences", adding that if "Algeria chooses escalation, we will respond ...

France-Algeria: Efforts at Reconciliation Undermined by the Amir DZ Case

This is Beirut, 14/04 20:30 - Reading : less than a minute

France Algeria

Barely underway, the diplomatic reset between Paris and Algiers is already under serious strain. At the center of the tensions: the indictment in France of an Algerian consular agent over the alleged abduction of dissident Amir Boukhors, known as Amir DZ. Algeria has condemned what it calls “a serious violation of international law” and, in ...

Mario Vargas Llosa, the Peruvian Novelist Who Became a Writer in France

Madeleine Cadoux, 14/04 13:00 - Reading : 5 minute(s)

Nobel Prize Mario Vargas Llosa literature France Peru

Born in 1936 in Arequipa, Peru, Vargas Llosa left his homeland in the 1950s, believing that true literary ambition could only flourish elsewhere. He arrived in Paris in 1959 at the age of 23 with his first wife, Julia Urquidi, who would later inspire Aunt Julia and the Scriptwriter. He found a city pulsing with intellectual energy—where Sartre ...

Algeria Asks 12 French Officials to Leave in 48 Hours

This is Beirut, 14/04 09:20 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

France Algeria Barrot

Algeria has asked 12 French officials to leave in 48 hours, the French foreign minister said Monday, adding that this was linked to the arrest of three Algerian nationals in France. "I am asking Algerian authorities to abandon these expulsion measures... if the decision to send back our officials is maintained, we will have no other choice but to ...

Israel PM Says Macron 'Gravely Mistaken' In Promoting Palestinian State

This is Beirut, 13/04 22:15 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Benjamin Netanyahu Emmanuel Macron Israrel France Palestine

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday that French President Emmanuel Macron was "gravely mistaken" in advocating for a Palestinian state. "President Macron is gravely mistaken in continuing to promote the idea of a Palestinian state in the heart of our land— a state whose sole aspiration is the destruction of Israel," Netanyahu ...

Macron Calls on Lebanon to Exit ‘Wars of Others’ and Build Lasting Peace

This is Beirut, 13/04 21:30 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Lebanon France Emmanuel Macron Civil war

On the 50th anniversary of the outbreak of the Lebanese Civil War, French President Emmanuel Macron delivered a powerful message on X urging Lebanon to break free from foreign entanglements and focus on building lasting peace. “Fifty years ago, the Lebanese Civil War began. On this solemn anniversary, I pay tribute to all the victims of that ...

April 13, 1975: "A Day Engraved in Our Memory"

Elie Valluy - correspondant à Paris, 13/04 11:28 - Reading : 10 minute(s)

France Lebanon Civil War Expatriates

François Boustani remembers Sunday, April 13, 1975 — the day the Lebanese civil war began — with vivid clarity. “That day is etched in our memory,” recalls the cardiologist, who was in Zahleh, eastern Lebanon, at the time. “The phone rang that afternoon. My parents had friends over for lunch. It was my uncle, calling to warn my father ...

Cartier Exhibition Shines at V&A with Rare Royal Jewels

This is Beirut, 13/04 10:30 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Britain France Cartier Jewellery Exhibition Culture

A spellbinding exhibition of Cartier jewels, many never seen before in public, is opening in London tracing the history of the luxury French design house beloved by the rich and famous, from Queen Elizabeth II to Rihanna. For the first time in three decades, the V&A museum is showing a retrospective of some of Cartier's most iconic ...

Cannes 2025: The Race for the Palme d’Or Begins

This is Beirut, 10/04 19:25 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Cannes 2025 Movies Competition France Culture

Nineteen films were announced Thursday in the main competition at Cannes Film Festival, which kicks off on the French Riviera on May 13. Another handful will be added in the coming weeks, festival director Thierry Fremaux explained during his press conference held this Thursday. Here are the confirmed movies so far: 'A Simple Accident' by Jafar ...

France