This is Beirut

From Rockets to Reels: Iran and Hezbollah’s Fight for Survival through Propaganda

Salam El Zaatari, 17/12 18:40 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Hezbollah Hassan Nasrallah Lebanon Israel Palestine Iran

After the 2024 Israel–Hezbollah war, Iran and its main regional proxy faced a grim reality. Hezbollah survived the war, but its top leadership had been assassinated, much of its arsenal destroyed, thousands of its fighters killed, and it was forced to retreat from south of the Litani. In response, Iran and Hezbollah have shifted from kinetic ...

Iran Refusing to Allow Independent Medical Examination of Nobel Winner

This is Beirut, 16/12 18:10 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Narges Mohammadi Iran

Iranian authorities are refusing to allow an independent medical examination of Nobel Peace Prize winner Narges Mohammadi after she was beaten during her arrest last week, her family said on Tuesday. Her brother Hamid Reza Mohammadi, who lives in Norway, told reporters in Paris via video link that she had informed her other brother in Iran in a ...

White House: U.S. Backs Israel Against Hezbollah, Warns of Military Action

This is Beirut, 15/12 22:00 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Iran Hezbollah Lebanon White House Disarmament

The U.S. administration supports Israel’s military efforts to eliminate the threat posed by Hamas and Hezbollah, arguing that diplomacy has failed to disarm Hezbollah in Lebanon. “The United States backs Israel’s efforts to eliminate the threat posed by Hamas and Hezbollah, as diplomacy has failed to disarm Hezbollah in Lebanon,” a ...

Iran’s Female Bikers Push Limits

This is Beirut, 15/12 19:55 - Reading : less than a minute

Tehran Iran Women Motorcycles

Once riding at night to avoid scrutiny, Maryam Ghelich now teaches motorcycle riding to hundreds of Iranian women. Despite legal and social barriers, female motorcyclists are becoming increasingly visible on the streets of Tehran.

Lebanon Must Pick the Abraham Accords over the Muslim Brotherhood

Hussain Abdul-Hussain, 15/12 14:25 - Reading : 8 minute(s)

Lebanon Hezbollah Abraham Accords Israel Iran Turkey

Lebanon must pick a side in the regional map of alliances. One seeks peace, prosperity and higher standards of living for all and consists of the United Arab Emirates, Israel, Bahrain, and Morocco, enshrined by the Abraham Accords. The rival alliance—Qatar, its ATM, and Turkey, its NATO muscle, as well as Syria, Algeria, and Tunisia—dismisses ...

Khamenei Adviser Affirms Iran Will 'Resolutely Support' Hezbollah

This is Beirut, 14/12 18:50 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Iran Ali Khamenei Lebanon Hezbollah

A senior adviser to Iran's supreme leader said Sunday that the country would "resolutely support" Hezbollah in the group's efforts to confront Tehran's regional foe, Israel. The remarks by Ali Akbar Velayati came as Lebanon faces pressure from the United States and Israel to disarm Hezbollah, which engaged in more than a ...

Finance Committee Allocates $90M to Amal-Linked Council

This is Beirut, 13/12 18:35 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Amal Hezbollah Iran Lebanon Reconstruction Banks

Lebanon’s parliamentary finance committee on Thursday approved the transfer of roughly $90 million USD in reserve funding for the Council of the South as part of the 2026 budget process to support reconstruction in areas damaged by Israeli bombardment in last year’s Israel-Hezbollah war. According to parliamentary sources ...

Araghchi "Surprised" by Raggi’s Decision to Decline Tehran Visit

This is Beirut, 11/12 22:05 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Lebanon Tehran Abbas Araqchi Youssef Raggi Iran Iran

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi voiced surpirse after his Lebanese counterpart, Youssef Raggi, declined an official invitation to visit Tehran, citing “unsuitable conditions” at the present time. Araghchi noted that countries maintaining “brotherly relations and full diplomatic ties” should not require neutral ...

Iran Filmmaker Panahi to Return Home Despite Prison Sentence

This is Beirut, 05/12 19:15 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Cinema Jafar Panahi Justice Iran Culture

Dissident Iranian filmmaker Jafar Panahi has said he plans to return to Iran despite being sentenced to a year in prison and a travel ban earlier this week, a report said Thursday. The 65-year-old is currently touring to promote his latest Oscar-nominated film, It Was Just an Accident, which won top prize at the Cannes Film Festival this ...

LAF Refutes Hezbollah Infiltration Claim

This is Beirut, 04/12 16:20 - Reading : less than a minute

Hezbollah Lebanese Army Iran Ali Khamenei Lebanon

The Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) on Thursday firmly rejected claims published in Iranian media alleging that a substantial share of its personnel are affiliated with Hezbollah. In an official statement, LAF stressed that all its members operate “strictly under a unified military doctrine” and pledge loyalty solely to the army institution and ...

Iran: Tehran dams reach critical levels

This is Beirut, 03/12 09:35 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Iran Climate change Drought Tehran

The water level in Tehran’s dams and those in its surrounding areas is less than half of what it was last year due to a historic drought, according to state media, as Iranian authorities warn of the risk of shortages. Iran is facing its worst drought in six decades this year, and in Tehran, the capital, the low level of rainfall is “almost ...

Iranian Filmmaker Jafar Panahi Sentenced in Absentia Amid Cannes Triumph

This is Beirut, 02/12 13:00 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Film Jafar Panahi Justice Iran Culture

Iran has sentenced Palme d'Or-winning filmmaker Jafar Panahi in absentia to one year in prison and a travel ban over "propaganda activities" against the country, his lawyer told AFP on Monday. The sentence includes a two-year travel ban and prohibition of Panahi from membership in any political or social groups, lawyer Mostafa Nili told AFP, ...

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