This is Beirut

Top Turkey Diplomat Spoke to Iran FM Over 'Ways to End the Attacks': Ministry Source

This is Beirut, 28/02 17:00 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Turkey's Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan spoke by phone to his Iranian counterpart and several other regional diplomats Saturday about ways to "end the attacks" triggered by Israel-US strikes on Iran, a ministry source said. During his talks with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, "the latest developments in our region were ...

Gulf Countries Respond to Regional Escalation

This is Beirut, 28/02 15:35 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Gulf Bahrain Israel Kuwait Saudi Arabia

United Arab Emirates In an official statement, the UAE said, “The Iranian attack on our territory is a serious escalation and a cowardly act.” The UAE added that it reserves the right to respond to the missile attack in accordance with international law after Iranian ballistic missiles targeted U.S. military bases in the Gulf. The ...

Revolutionary Guards Conduct Military Drills in Iran's South: State TV

This is Beirut, 24/02 14:10 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Donald Trump Gulf Middle East Tehran Washington Iran NuclearTalks

Iran's Revolutionary Guards, the ideological arm of the military, are carrying out drills on the country's southern shores of the Gulf, state media said Tuesday. "Combined 1404 (2026) exercise of the IRGC Ground Forces has begun," state TV reported, referring to this year in both the Iranian and Gregorian calendars. The war games are focused on ...

Let Lebanon Debate Peace

Hussain Abdul-Hussain, 24/02 12:30 - Reading : 5 minute(s)

Lebanon Donald Trump Gulf Hezbollah Israel

The majority of Lebanese oppose peace with Israel, and elected officials who pursue normalization with the Jewish state risk political suicide. Nevertheless, popular rejection of peace does not justify censoring its proponents. The very purpose of open public debate is to allow minority positions to argue their case, sway doubters, alter ...

Iran's Khamenei Warns U.S. Warship in Gulf Can Be Sunk

This is Beirut, 17/02 13:45 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Gulf Donald Trump United States USA

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei warned Tuesday that a U.S. warship deployed to the Gulf could be sunk, as renewed nuclear negotiations between Tehran and Washington got underway in Geneva. “We constantly hear that they have sent a warship toward Iran. A warship is certainly a dangerous weapon, but even more dangerous is ...

Iran's Revolutionary Guards Begin Military Drills in Strait of Hormuz

This is Beirut, 16/02 13:40 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Iran IRGC USA Gulf NuclearTalks

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps on Monday began a series of military exercises in the Strait of Hormuz, state media reported on the eve of talks with the United States. The war games, the duration of which was not specified, aim to prepare the Guards for "potential security and military threats" in the strait, state TV ...

Iran Rejects Military Pressure as Nuclear Talks Resume Under Shadow of U.S. Naval Buildup

This is Beirut, 12/02 15:25 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Gulf Israel Tehran United States Trump NuclearTalks

Jalal Dehqani Firouzabadi, secretary of Iran’s Strategic Council on Foreign Relations, said Thursday there is “no military solution” to Iran’s nuclear file, arguing that recent history has already proven the limits of force. Speaking to Iran’s ISNA news agency, Firouzabadi said the current talks differ fundamentally ...

Turkey Says Washington and Tehran Showing New Flexibility as Nuclear Talks Resume

This is Beirut, 12/02 14:10 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Tehran Turkey Washington Donald Trump Gulf USIran NuclearTalks

Turkey’s foreign minister said the United States and Iran are displaying rare signs of pragmatism in efforts to revive negotiations over Tehran’s nuclear program, suggesting Washington may now be prepared to tolerate limited uranium enrichment under strict conditions. In an interview with the Financial Times published Thursday, Hakan ...

Iran FM: U.S.-Iran Talks Held In a “Very Positive Atmosphere”

This is Beirut, 06/02 16:00 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

USA Donald Trump Gulf Israel Middle East Abbas Araghchi Iran Tehran Oman

Iran and the United States held indirect, high-level talks in Oman on Friday over Tehran’s nuclear program, in their first such encounter since the June Israel-Iran war, amid sharp disagreements over the agenda and growing fears of a wider regional conflict. Iran Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said the talks were held in a “very ...

Iran Guards Seize Two Foreign-Crewed Tankers in Gulf: News Agency

This is Beirut, 05/02 13:50 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Tehran Iran IRGC Gulf

Iran's Revolutionary Guards have seized two oil tankers with their foreign crews in Gulf waters for "smuggling fuel," the Tasnim news agency reported Thursday. It was not immediately clear what flags the tankers were carrying nor the nationalities of the crew. The seizures took place amid heightened tension after Washington dispatched a naval ...

Turkey's Erdogan Visits Saudi as Ties Between Former Rivals Warm

This is Beirut, 04/02 09:10 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Turkey Gulf Israel Palestine Saudi Arabia

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan visited Riyadh on Tuesday in his first visit in more than two years, as ties warm between Saudi Arabia and its rival-turned-ally. Ankara hopes to "finalise negotiations towards a free trade agreement between Turkey and the member of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC)", the Turkish presidency said. "The two ...

The End of the Middle East’s Oil Bonanza

Hussain Abdul-Hussain, 03/02 09:10 - Reading : 5 minute(s)

Middle East Lebanon Bahrain Damascus Gulf

The Middle East has finally arrived at the grim reckoning long barreling toward it: a ruinous collapse of oil revenues that renders government deficits utterly unsustainable. Among the wealthy Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states, four are running persistent annual budget deficits that are eroding their sovereign wealth reserves and plunging ...

Gulf