Israel

Israeli Airstrike Kills Journalist in South Lebanon

An Israeli airstrike killed a Lebanese journalist and wounded another on Wednesday while they were working near the border with Israel, according to their employer and rescuers. The civil defence agency's press office said rescuers were "able to recover the body of martyred journalist Amal Khalil, who was killed as a result of a hostile ...

Beyond Mediation: How Washington Is Recasting Lebanon–Israel Negotiations

The U.S. is set to mediate a second round of direct talks between Lebanese and Israeli officials on Thursday as part of the first such series of direct negotiations between the two sides since 1993. These diplomatic engagements come nearly a year and a half after the previous Lebanon-Israel ceasefire framework. In November 2024 under the Biden ...

Iran Hangs Former Nuclear Employee on Spying Charges: NGOs

Iran hanged a man on Wednesday convicted of links to Israel's Mossad spy agency, the judiciary said, with two NGOs based outside the country saying he worked for the Iranian atomic energy organization. The execution of Mehdi Farid was the latest in a number of hangings of high-profile convicts in an accelerating trend that has alarmed rights ...

Israel President Says He Dreams of ‘Driving Straight to Beirut’

Israeli President Isaac Herzog said Wednesday he hopes Israelis will one day be able to travel freely to Beirut, speaking to foreign diplomats in Jerusalem ahead of direct talks between Israel and Lebanon. Speaking to a gathering that included envoys from the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, Herzog said Israel was “eager” to help shape a ...

Israel FM Calls on Lebanon to 'Work Together' with Israel Against Hezbollah

Israel's foreign minister on Wednesday urged Beirut to make joint efforts with Israel to counter Hezbollah on the eve of talks between the two countries set to resume in Washington. It will be the second preparatory meeting paving the way for direct negotiations. "Tomorrow the direct talks between Israel and Lebanon will resume in Washington, DC. ...

Syrian Hezbollah Fighter Surrenders to Israeli Army

A Syrian Hezbollah fighter surrendered himself on Wednesday to the Israeli Defense Forces following an attempt to seek refuge in the Christian village of Rmaych, a Lebanese border town currently inside Israel’s 5-10 kilometer forward defense line, a local official told This Is Beirut. The fighter, Syrian-national Abdullah Ahmad El Obed, ...

Israeli Strike on Lebanon's Bekaa Kills One

An Israeli strike on Lebanon's Bekaa region killed one person and wounded two others on Wednesday, Lebanese state media reported, despite an ongoing truce between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah. "One person was killed and two others were wounded as a result of an attack carried out by an enemy drone at dawn on the outskirts of Al-Jabur in West ...

Sarit Zehavi: We Need a Lasting Peace Agreement, Not Just Ceasefire

In an exclusive interview with This Is Beirut, Sarit Zehavi, president of the Alma Research and Education Center, said Israel’s actions against Hezbollah are driven by security concerns. She emphasized the need to establish a peace agreement rather than repeated ceasefires, arguing that lasting stability depends on building Lebanese state ...

IDF Delivers Aid to Christian Border Towns in South Lebanon

Humitarian supplies were deposited by the Israeli Army near several Christian southern Lebanese border towns on Saturday, including Rmeish, Ain Ebel, and Debel, in a cross-border arrangement organized to avoid direct contact with Lebanese citizens, local officials told This Is Beirut. Ayoub Khreish, mayor of Ain Ebel, a border town currently on ...

Israel Says Applying Diplomatic, Military Pressure to Disarm Hezbollah

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said Tuesday that his country's campaign in Lebanon relied on both military and diplomatic pressure to disarm Iran-allied Hezbollah. "The overarching goal of the campaign in Lebanon is to disarm Hezbollah and remove the threat to the northern communities (of Israel), through a combination of military and ...

Lebanese President Says Aiming to End Hostilities With Israel Talks

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said Monday that planned talks with Israel aim to end hostilities and the occupation in southern Lebanon, even as Hezbollah and its supporters rejected the negotiations. Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah has sharply criticised the Lebanese government's negotiations with Israel, which are set to enter a second ...

U.S., Iran Warn Ready for War as Talks in Limbo

The United States and Iran each warned they were ready for war as the clock ticked down Tuesday on a ceasefire, with uncertainty on talks that President Donald Trump had announced would resume in Pakistan. The White House said Vice President JD Vance was ready to fly back to the Pakistani capital Islamabad, which was preparing for a second round ...