This is Beirut - Lebanon

Writing Off Banks’ Capital Wipes Out Deposits

This is Beirut, 18:20 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Lebanon Central Bank Karim Souhaid Yassine Jaber Economy Banks

The Governor of the Central Bank of Lebanon, Karim Souhaid, clarified the situation by declaring that Lebanon’s crisis is not purely a financial one but rather a systemic crisis in which the banking sector has become a victim. This is what Souhaid stated clearly during the parliamentary session dedicated to discussing the 2025 budget draft, ...

New U.S. Sanctions Target Hezbollah Financial Intermediaries

This is Beirut, 18:10 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Hezbollah United States Washington sanctions Iran Lebanon

The U.S. Department of the Treasury announced on Thursday new sanctions against several individuals accused of transferring tens of millions of dollars from Iran to Hezbollah in 2025 through Lebanese money exchange houses. According to the Treasury, these networks exploit Lebanon’s largely cash-based and informal financial system to fund the ...

Israel Launches Series of Raids in South Lebanon Following Warnings

This is Beirut, 17:50 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

South Lebanon Lebanese Army Hezbollah Israel lebanon

Tensions rose sharply in southern Lebanon on Thursday as the Israeli army launched a series of air raids hitting alleged Hezbollah targets in several villages. In the late afternoon, the town of Kfardunin (Bint Jbeil) was targeted after the Israeli army issued a warning to residents located near the building that was hit, located about ten meters ...

Closed Again: Jeita Grotto, a Victim of a Failing State

Natasha Metni Torbey, 16:50 - Reading : 6 minute(s)

Jeita Grotto Lebanon tourism Laura Lahoud Lebanese Speleo Club

Jeita Grotto is temporarily closed. This was confirmed Thursday morning by Tourism Minister Laura Lahoud. Lebanon’s iconic karstic wonder is shutting its doors for the second time in less than a year. The first closure came after the death of Mapas-Lebanon CEO Nabil Haddad in November 2024, leaving the site without an official manager for eight ...

Lebanon Faces ‘Environmental Disaster’ From Syrian Refugee Camps

Hala Abdallah, 14:20 - Reading : 5 minute(s)

Lebanon Syrian refugees Syrian camps environment

Lebanon launched the eighth wave of voluntary returns of displaced Syrians on Thursday morning, with 448 refugees departing from the Rachid Karami International Fair in Tripoli toward the Al-Abbudieh border crossing in Akkar. The returnees were transported in five groups aboard 14 buses and 14 trucks, as part of an organized repatriation program ...

The IMF and Lebanon: Debts? Which Debts?

Marc Saikali, 08:00 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

International Monetary Fund Lebanon Banks

When it comes to the IMF, one thing stands out above all: a consistent pattern of bad advice. Governments change, wars erupt, and yet this venerable institution remains glued to its Excel spreadsheets, always heeded by Lebanese ministers, especially the finance minister. The International Monetary Fund, the self-proclaimed savior of struggling ...

Where Were You, Samir Hammoud?

This is Beirut, 05/11 16:35 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Lebanon Banks Economy

High-level banking sources were surprised by comments made by the senior adviser to the Minister of Finance, Yassine Jaber, to the “Al-Markaziya” outlet regarding depositors’ accounts. According to Samir Hammoud’s statement, “If there are irregularities in depositors’ accounts, there are also irregularities in banks’ ...

Lebanon Pressed Again to Hunt Down Assad Officials

Natasha Metni Torbey, 05/11 14:45 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

lebanon Syria France Jamil Hassan Ali Mamlouk Abdel Salam Mahmoud Bashar Assad

Lebanon has once again found itself at the center of a sensitive international investigation tied to the post-Assad era. One year after the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime on December 8, 2024, Beirut is being asked to cooperate with international judicial authorities to locate senior Syrian security officials accused of war crimes and crimes ...

Marathon: Ehrabi Nael, the Fourth Lebanese to Join the Six Majors Club

Makram Haddad, 05/11 12:30 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Beirut Marathon Ehrabi Nael Sports Lebanon

The finish line in Central Park carried a sense of accomplishment. With his 3:29:20 performance in New York, Nael—the Beirut Marathon’s race director—sealed his sixth Major: Tokyo, Boston, London, Berlin, Chicago, and New York—six temples of road running where marathon legends are made. He now joins the very select circle of Lebanese ...

U17 – Asia: the Broken Dream, a Cruel Ending for Lebanon

Makram Haddad, 05/11 12:30 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Football Lebanon Asia U17 Saudi Arabia

Mission (almost) accomplished. In the final of the 12th West Asian Football Federation tournament, Lebanon U17 led deep into the home straight before being pegged back and then falling in the shootout. Adnan Madi had shown the way in the 73rd minute, punishing a Saudi goalkeeper error with a clever strike. But in stoppage time, Saudi Arabia ...

Aoun’s Push for Talks with Israel Must Overcome Hezbollah’s Ploys

Hussain Abdul-Hussain, 04/11 18:30 - Reading : 6 minute(s)

Lebanon Israel Peace

President Joseph Aoun said Lebanon has no choice but to enter into talks with Israel to break the cycle of war, a step that media reports suggest he had agreed on with Hezbollah’s ally, Speaker Nabih Berri. Aoun’s position is commendable, but Hezbollah will use such talks as cover to rearm and prepare for another round of fighting, rather than ...

South Lebanon: Hezbollah and Christian Villages in Quiet Coexistence

Natasha Metni Torbey, 04/11 16:10 - Reading : 5 minute(s)

Hezbollah South Lebanon Free Patriotic Movement Lebanon Christians Shia

In some regions of southern Lebanon, particularly in Jezzine, Marjayoun, and Rmeish, predominantly Christian areas directly border localities where Hezbollah holds significant influence. These areas, where municipal networks, social structures, and political actors intertwine, reflect a deeply rooted sociopolitical reality shaped by geography, ...

Lebanon