Natasha Metni Torbey, 29/07 14:25 - Reading : 4 minute(s)
Geopolitical instability in the region does not end at the water’s edge – it extends below the surface, into Lebanon’s territorial waters. Maritime border disputes, particularly with Israel around Block 9 in the south, involve more than contested gas fields; they also threaten the preservation of invaluable cultural heritage. Any discovery ...
Natasha Metni Torbey, 29/07 14:20 - Reading : 6 minute(s)
An entire city, named Saidoun, emerged from the depths: monumental walls, sacred chambers, freshwater wells, marble slabs and massive stone blocks dating back to around 1370 BCE, nearly 4,000 years ago. To this day, this excavation remains one of the most significant breakthroughs in the underwater exploration of southern Lebanon. Yet, since then, ...
This is Beirut, 29/07 12:25 - Reading : 1 minute(s)
Palestine Ceasefire Europe Hamas Israel
Israel's foreign minister rejected on Tuesday what he called a "distorted campaign" of international pressure for a ceasefire in the Gaza war and recognition of a Palestinian state. Gideon Saar told reporters that if Israel was to halt the conflict while Hamas is still in power in Gaza and still holding hostages it would be a "tragedy for both ...
This is Beirut, 29/07 12:20 - Reading : 2 minute(s)
Hezbollah Israel United Nations Lebanon UNIFIL
The military court sentenced a man to death in absentia for killing an Irish United Nations peacekeeper, a judicial official said Tuesday, after Hezbollah members were accused of involvement in the 2022 incident. Private Sean Rooney, 23, was killed and three others were wounded after a UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) convoy came under fire ...
This is Beirut, 29/07 11:30 - Reading : 1 minute(s)
Israel Netherlands Ben Gvir Smotrich
The Netherlands has declared two hardline Israeli ministers, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, as persona non grata, the government said. "They repeatedly incited settler violence against Palestinians, promoted illegal settlement expansion, and called for ethnic cleansing in Gaza," Dutch Foreign ...
This is Beirut, 29/07 10:45 - Reading : 1 minute(s)
Palestine Benjamin Netanyahu Hamas Israel United Nations
Gaza's civil defense agency said Tuesday that Israeli air strikes killed at least 30 Palestinians, including women and children, in the central Nuseirat district. Civil defense spokesman Mahmud Bassal said the strikes were carried out overnight and into the morning and "targeted a number of citizens' homes" in the Nuseirat refugee camp. The ...
This is Beirut, 29/07 09:55 - Reading : 3 minute(s)
United Nations Israel Donald Trump Emmanuel Macron Palestine
There is no alternative to a two-state solution between Israelis and the Palestinians, France told a UN conference co-chaired with Saudi Arabia Monday that was boycotted by Israel and branded a stunt by Washington. "Only a political, two-state solution will help respond to the legitimate aspirations of Israelis and Palestinians to live in peace ...
Natasha Metni Torbey, 29/07 09:30 - Reading : 5 minute(s)
Hezbollah Israel Joseph Aoun Saudi Arabia Lebanon Tom Barrack
Listening to Thomas Barrack, one might think Lebanon is close to redemption or on the edge of a cliff, perhaps both at once. For months now, the American special envoy has issued statements that are sometimes hopeful, sometimes threatening, often confusing, and always repetitive. With every tweet and announcement, the same message comes through: ...
Hussain Abdul-Hussain, 29/07 09:00 - Reading : 4 minute(s)
Syria Turkey United States Israel Iran
The Syrian revolution was not an uprising for liberty, freedom, or democracy. It was a manifestation of Sunni Islamists, backed by Turkey and Qatar, venting their rage against the rule of Assad, supported by Shia Islamist Iran. Syria’s Sunni Islamists did not care that Assad was a brutal dictator; they sought to replace him with their own ...
Philippe Abi-Akl, 29/07 08:30 - Reading : 5 minute(s)
United Nations Israel UNIFIL USA France
One month separates Lebanon from a critical juncture, one of the most sensitive in its modern history. At the end of August, the United Nations Security Council will decide whether to renew the mandate of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) for another year. The decision could either reaffirm the mission’s role or mark its ...
This is Beirut, 28/07 21:10 - Reading : less than a minute
An Israeli drone strike killed one person and injured four others on Monday in the al-Baraka area of Bint Jbeil, southern Lebanon, after targeting a motorcycle with two missiles. The victim was identified as Haitham Muhammed Idris. Earlier in the day, local sources reported the presence of an Israeli reconnaissance drone flying at low altitude ...
This is Beirut, 28/07 21:06 - Reading : 4 minute(s)
France Palestinian Statehood Two-State Solution Israel United Nations Saudi Arabia
The United States on Monday dismissed a French-Saudi-sponsored conference at the United Nations on promoting a two-state solution to the conflict between Palestinians and Israelis as a "stunt." The US State Department labeled the three-day event "unproductive and ill-timed," as well as a "publicity stunt" that would ...