This is Beirut

Why Normalization with Israel Will Revive Saudi Arabia

Hussain Abdul-Hussain, 18/11 10:25 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Saudi Arabia Israel United States MBS Donald Trump Qatar LAF

Saudi Arabia is rapidly losing regional relevance, with Sunni rivals Qatar and Turkey encroaching on its traditional leadership roles. The Kingdom’s economy remains mired in second gear, unable to transition from oil dependency to a knowledge-based model. Riyadh’s repeated promises of financial windfalls to the U.S. now appear to be ...

UNIFIL Begins Withdrawal as Europe Weighs Replacement Force

Bassam Abou Zeid, 18/11 10:00 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Europe Lebanon Hezbollah Israel Palestine UNIFIL

No one can predict what southern Lebanon will look like after UNIFIL withdraws at the end of 2026. Will Lebanon have succeeded in disarming Hezbollah? Will it be able to fully control the south, particularly the area south of the Litani River? And what role will the international presence play in the region? UNIFIL has already begun reducing its ...

Red Carpet and Big Deals: Trump Welcomes MBS to Washington

This is Beirut, 18/11 09:00 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Donald Trump Gulf Israel Middle East Palestine MBS

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman will receive a lavish welcome from US President Donald Trump on Tuesday, signing defense and nuclear deals during his first visit to the United States since the 2018 murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. Trump is expected to roll out the red carpet for the prince with a fly-by, cannon fire, and a gala dinner ...

UN Security Council Votes for International Force for Gaza

This is Beirut, 18/11 08:55 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

UN Security Council Palestine Donald Trump Hamas Israel

The UN Security Council voted Monday in favor of a US-drafted resolution bolstering Donald Trump's Gaza peace plan that includes the deployment of an international force and a path to a future Palestinian state. There were 13 votes in favor of the text, which US President Trump said would lead to "further Peace all over the World," with only ...

Naim Kassem Criticizes the State and “American Financial Tutelage”

This is Beirut, 17/11 18:05 - Reading : less than a minute

Lebanon Banks Hezbollah Israel

Hezbollah Secretary General Naim Kassem continued his comments on the Lebanese government, urging it to adopt a firmer stance toward Israel. During the first commemoration of the assassination of Mohammad Afif and his companions, he once again took it upon himself to remind the Lebanese state of its “responsibility” to put in place a “plan ...

Germany to Lift Curbs on Arms Exports to Israel

This is Beirut, 17/11 13:15 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Israel Palestine Germany Arms

Germany is to remove restrictions it placed in August on arms exports to Israel which could be used in the Gaza Strip, the government announced Monday. "The restrictions on arms exports to Israel... will be lifted," government spokesman Sebastian Hille told reporters, adding that the decision "will take effect on 24 ...

Israel Warns Lebanon of an Imminent Strike on Aitaroun

This is Beirut, 17/11 12:05 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Lebanon Israel Lebanese Army United Nations Hezbollah

In a first since the cease-fire agreement of November 27, 2024, Israel on Monday reportedly warned the Lebanese Army – through the established monitoring mechanism – of a potential strike on Aitaroun, in the Bint Jbeil district, as tensions continue to escalate along the country’s southern border. The Lebanese military promptly informed the ...

UN Security Council Set to Vote on International Force for Gaza

This is Beirut, 17/11 09:00 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

United Nations Palestine Donald Trump Hamas Israël

The UN Security Council is set to vote Monday on a US-drafted resolution bolstering Donald Trump's Gaza peace plan, especially the deployment of an international force, as Washington warns that a failure to act could lead to renewed fighting. The draft, which has been revised several times as a result of high-stakes negotiations, "endorses" the ...

UNIFIL: “We urge the Israeli army to halt any aggressive actions targeting our forces”

This is Beirut, 16/11 15:44 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

United Nations Lebanon Israel south strike

The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) issued a statement saying that, this morning, an Israeli army Merkava tank opened fire on UNIFIL peacekeepers near a site that Israel has established inside Lebanese territory. According to the statement, heavy machine-gun fire struck near the peacekeepers, landing about five meters away, as ...

Defense and Israel at the Heart of MBS’s Washington Visit

This is Beirut, 16/11 14:05 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Israel Washington Donald Trump Bahrain Saudi Arabia USA

The Saudi crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman (MBS), is expected in Washington on Tuesday November 18 for a meeting with United States President Donald Trump. The visit is seen as crucial for the US administration and is meant to revive and broaden the Abraham Accords while strengthening strategic and economic ties between Washington and ...

Aoun calls for Urgent UN Complaint Against Israel

This is Beirut, 15/11 18:55 - Reading : less than a minute

United Nations Israel Lebanon Joseph Aoun south

President Joseph Aoun has asked the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Emigrants, Youssef Raji, to instruct Lebanon’s permanent mission to the United Nations to file an urgent complaint with the Security Council against Israel, which has begun building a concrete wall along Lebanon’s southern border that extends beyond the Blue Line drawn after ...

UN Security Council to Vote Monday on Trump Gaza Plan

This is Beirut, 15/11 14:40 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

United Nations UN Security Council Gaza Donald Trump Israel

The UN Security Council will vote Monday on a resolution endorsing US President Donald Trump's Gaza peace plan, diplomats said. Last week the Americans officially launched negotiations within the 15-member Security Council on a text that would follow up on a ceasefire in the two-year war between Israel and Hamas and endorse Trump's plan. A draft ...

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