Hezbollah

CCLC Backs New Lebanese Leadership and Urges Reforms

The Lebanese-Canadian Coordination Committee (CCLC) has emphasized the need to end Iranian control of arms as a crucial condition to unlock global support for Lebanon. The CCLC expressed strong support for newly elected President Joseph Aoun and Prime Minister-designate Judge Nawaf Salam, praising their potential to restore sovereignty, combat ...

What Are Illegal Weapons For if They Failed to Protect Lebanon?

While the Lebanese were hopeful for a swift formation of PM-designate Nawaf Salam’s government, unforeseen hurdles and impediments arose, delaying its establishment. However, it is expected that Salam will submit his cabinet lineup to President Joseph Aoun in the coming days. Sources close to the matter attribute the delay to the demands of the ...

A Quiet Morning in Gemmayze

The sunlit skies of Monday morning failed to awaken the usual hustle and bustle in Gemmayze. The vibrant café terraces, normally alive, were eerily quiet, and the familiar honking of cars was absent. “Breakfast hours are typically our busiest time,” shared the manager of a trendy café-restaurant with This is Beirut. But the mood had shifted ...

All Eyes on the Ministry of Finance

The exception is not the rule. This saying does not apply to Lebanon, where for over a decade, well after the signing of the Taif Agreement in 1989, the Amal-Hezbollah duo has persistently claimed—“de facto and de jure,” as they often assert—the Ministry of Finance, one of the most coveted portfolios in the country. The reasons behind ...

Qassem in Pre-Recorded Speech: 'No Extension of Israel’s Withdrawal Deadline'  

A day after the expiry of the 60-day deadline for Israel’s withdrawal from south Lebanon, which was extended until February 18, Hezbollah’s Secretary-General Naim Qassem said in an obviously pre-recorded address, “we will not accept prolongation even for a day.” “Israel must withdraw after the expiry of 60 days, and we do not accept any ...

The Displaced People of Southern Lebanon Bear Continuous Losses

Kfar Kila, Odaisseh, Taybeh, Mays al-Jabal and Wazzani were once renowned for their lush fields filled with fruit trees, their majestic hills and the streams that enlivened the area with their soft murmurs. Life there was simple, with days unfolding peacefully to the rhythm of family rituals and traditions. Then came the war. It was the beginning ...

Southern Lebanon Residents Return Amid Ongoing Israeli Attacks

South Lebanon residents accompanied by the army tried to return to their villages on Monday, a day after Israeli fire killed more than 20 people in the area, even though the Israeli withdrawal deadline was extended until February 18. Dozens of vehicles carrying families headed towards border towns, a day after hundreds tried unsuccessfully ...

Solomonic Decisions

The truce agreement is coming to an end, and nothing has been accomplished on the Lebanese side: delays in disarming, setting demarcation lines, and laying the groundwork for long-term strategic goals. The incendiary rhetoric of Hezbollah and its ideological humbug have returned to the foreground at a time when the newly established authorities ...

A Trip Back in Time

Civilians who headed to the border villages of southern Lebanon on Sunday, seemingly spurred on by Hezbollah, demonstrated remarkable audacity. The standard-bearers of the “resistance” will likely frame this as yet another “victory,” merely because residents sought to return to certain localities despite repeated warnings from the Israeli ...

Armed, Provocative Hezbollah Convoys in Various Regions 

On Sunday evening, Hezbollah organized armed motorized convoys in Saida and Maghdoucheh in southern Lebanon, as well as in various areas of Beirut, including Ain Mraisseh, Sakiet al-Janzeer, Furn el-Chebbak, Burj Hammoud and Gemmayzeh, to celebrate the return of displaced persons to border villages by the deadline for Israel's withdrawal under ...

Macron Urges Netanyahu to 'Withdraw His Forces Still Present in Lebanon'

French President Emmanuel Macron on Sunday called on Israeli Prime Minister to "withdraw his forces still present in Lebanon", his office said in a readout of a phone call between the two leaders. "The President of the Republic stressed to the Prime Minister the importance of ensuring that nothing compromises the efforts of the new Lebanese ...

Death Toll Rises as Displaced Return to Villages on Israeli Withdrawal Deadline

The death toll climbed on Sunday as displaced people attempted to return to their homes in southern Lebanon, despite warnings from the Israeli army not to approach border towns “until further notice.” The day marked the deadline for Israel’s withdrawal under a truce deal that ended its recent conflict with Hezbollah, but violence persisted ...