This is Beirut

Hezbollah’s Qassem Admits Security Failures, Promises Accountability

This is Beirut, 09/03 21:50 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Hezbollah’s Secretary-General, Sheikh Naim Qassem, acknowledged security lapses within the group while claiming again its continued strength despite the heavy blows it suffered in its recent war with Israel, during an interview on Sunday with al-Manar TV, affiliated with the pro-Iran formation. Qassem stated that an internal investigation is ...

Partition of Syria, the 'David Corridor'… What’s Really at Stake?

Élie-Joe Kamel, 04/03 17:10 - Reading : 5 minute(s)

Benjamin Netanyahu Banks Damascus Gulf Hezbollah

Since the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime, Israel has ramped up its operations in Syria, seemingly seeking to assert itself as the dominant player against Turkey, which is trying to fill the vacuum left by Iran’s retreat. It has carried out strikes on military positions of the former regime and pro-Iranian militias, expanded its presence in ...

Saudi Aramco Profits Drop 12%

This is Beirut, 04/03 13:05 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Donald Trump Gulf Middle East Saudi Arabia Ukraine

Oil giant Saudi Aramco posted a drop in annual profits on Tuesday as lower prices and volumes hit the linchpin of the Kingdom's ambitious economic reform plans. The world's biggest crude exporter said profits were down more than 12% to $106.25 billion in 2024, the second annual drop following a surge in oil prices in 2022. Expected dividends for ...

The Role of the US, EU and Arab Countries in Syria’s Economic Future

Liliane Mokbel, 26/02 15:20 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

European Union USA Europe Gulf Saudi Arabia

The Partial Lifting of European Sanctions Is Insufficient The partial lifting of European sanctions on Syria is a positive step that could help accelerate economic recovery. However, this measure remains inadequate given the urgent need for support. While some Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, notably Qatar and Saudi Arabia, are willing ...

14 Billion Dollars: The Devastating Losses of the Hezbollah-Israel Conflict

Christiane Tager, 21/02 22:05 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Nawaf Salam Hezbollah European Union Gulf Damage War

$14 billion! That is the historic and no less colossal amount of damage caused by the conflict between Hezbollah and Israel. This sum includes both material damage and economic losses. The reconstruction costs are estimated at around $12 billion. For Nassib Ghobril, chief economist at Byblos Bank, economic losses amount to at least $3 ...

Tourism Chief Warns Against Instability

This is Beirut, 19/02 16:05 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

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The President of the Federation of Tourist Unions and the Hoteliers’ Union, Pierre Achkar, has raised concerns over recent street violence and road blockades, particularly those disrupting access to Beirut’s International Airport (BIA). He cautioned that such unrest could jeopardize the tourism sector’s recent momentum, which had ...

US top diplomat visits UAE on final leg of Mideast tour

This is Beirut, 19/02 09:35 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

United Arab Emirates USA Gulf

US top diplomat Marco Rubio visited the United Arab Emirates on Wednesday for the final leg of his first Middle East tour, after breakthrough talks with Russian officials in Riyadh. After arriving in Abu Dhabi in the morning, the US secretary of state was set to meet with UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and Foreign Minister Abdullah ...

Iran mulls moving capital to 'lost paradise' on southern coast

This is Beirut, 18/02 16:00 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Gulf Tehran

Faced with myriad problems including gridlocked traffic and a sinking earth surface in its current capital, Iran is considering a drastic solution -- moving it to an altogether different location on the Gulf of Oman. Though the idea of moving the capital has cropped up on various occasions since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, the proposals were ...

The Aftermath of the War: Hezbollah’s Role and Responsibility

Bassam Abou Zeid, 17/02 11:00 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Nawaf Salam Hezbollah Hassan Nasrallah Gulf

It is becoming increasingly clear that the Islamic Republic of Iran and Hezbollah have yet to come to terms with the end of Hezbollah’s military and security role as the armed wing of the Islamic Revolution. Therefore, they are attempting by all means to maintain a foothold that would allow Hezbollah to reassert itself. However, the prevailing ...

FM: A Once-Dominant Lebanese Political Force in Transition

This is Beirut, 14/02 13:50 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Lebanon Gulf Hezbollah Saudi Arabia Rafic Hariri Future Movement

The Future Movement (FM) is a Lebanese political party founded in the 1990s by Rafic Hariri, a prominent businessman and former Prime Minister of Lebanon. After Hariri’s assassination in 2005, his son, Saad Hariri, assumed leadership of the party, maintaining its role as a key political force representing Lebanon’s Sunni Muslim community. The ...

France says EU working toward 'rapid' easing of Syria sanctions

This is Beirut, 13/02 19:25 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

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France's Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said Thursday that the European Union was working toward swiftly easing Syria sanctions as Paris hosted a conference on the transition in the war-torn country after president Bashar al-Assad's fall. Islamist-led rebels toppled Assad in December after a lightning offensive. The new authorities, headed by ...

Saudi Arabia to invest $5 bn in AI data centre

This is Beirut, 12/02 17:30 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Gulf Saudi Arabia AI NEOM

A Saudi company will invest $5 billion to build an artificial intelligence data centre in the futuristic city of NEOM, state media reported. The agreement, signed between DataVolt and NEOM, would fund the creation of a fully sustainable AI data centre with a 1.5 gigawatt capacity, the official SPA news agency said. The project will be located in ...

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