Nawaf Salam

Amal Leader Condemns Gunfire in Beirut

Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, leader of Lebanon’s Amal party, voiced support on Friday for national unity, condemning incidents of celebratory gunfire in Beirut last night as the Shia political community navigates its first day of the ceasefire since March 2. Berri said that indiscriminate gunfire in the capital was ...

Trump Announces Temporary Ceasefire in Lebanon

U.S. President Donald Trump announced Thursday that Israel and Lebanon have agreed to a 10-day ceasefire, set to take effect at 5 p.m. EST, following what he described as “excellent conversations” with Lebanese President Joseph Aoun and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. According to Trump, both leaders agreed the temporary ...

Lebanon Charts a Separate Path from Tehran in Israel Talks

Lebanon is set to begin talks with Israel in Washington on Tuesday, the first direct negotiations since 1983, as Beirut seeks to reassert its role in regional affairs and prevent the country from becoming a bargaining chip in broader international negotiations. Political activist and former MP Fares Souaid described the move as a historic break. ...

Amal Boycotts Hezbollah-Backed Protests Amid Rising Tensions in Lebanon

Following a wave of protests by supporters of Hezbollah throughout the week, culminating on Saturday, the Amal Movement announced it would not participate in the demonstrations and urged its supporters to boycott them. In a statement, Amal warned that insults directed at state leadership risk fueling internal unrest, stressing that political ...

Lebanon Says Israel Talks Set for Tuesday in U.S.

Lebanon's presidency said Friday that a meeting would be held with Israel in Washington next week to discuss a ceasefire in the Israel-Hezbollah war and the start of negotiations between the neighbours. Lebanese President Joseph Aoun has repeatedly expressed readiness for direct talks with Israel since Hezbollah drew Lebanon into the Middle ...

Beirut Weapons Ban: Too Late to Restore State Control?

Lebanon’s government on Thursday instructed security forces to restrict weapons in Beirut exclusively to state institutions. The move came one day after Israel launched its most intense and coordinated wave of airstrikes on Lebanon since the start of the war, hitting more than 100 targets across the country. "The army and security forces are ...

Israel Halts Strike on Lebanon-Syria Crossing After U.S. Intervention

Israel paused plans to strike a key Lebanon-Syria border crossing after both countries urged the U.S. to keep the route open, a Lebanese source told Reuters Tuesday. The Israeli military had warned on April 4 that it would target the Masnaa crossing, the main land border crossing between Lebanon and Syria, “in the near future,” alleging that ...

Israeli Ground Invasion Consolidates as Strikes Continue

Israeli rhetoric has intensified on the creation of a buffer zone, including the demolition of border villages, with Defense Minister Israel Katz saying Lebanese civilians won’t be able to return until northern Israel is secure. In recent days, Israeli forces have consolidated a number of axes in the fight, concentrated around the coast south of ...

Iran's Ambassador Won't Leave Lebanon Despite Expulsion: Diplomatic Source

Iran's ambassador will not leave Lebanon despite being declared persona non grata and ordered to leave the country by Sunday, an Iranian diplomatic source told AFP. "The ambassador will not leave Lebanon, in accordance with the wishes of the speaker of parliament Nabih Berri and of Hezbollah," the source said, speaking on condition ...

Iran Claims Aluminium Plant Attacks in Gulf as Houthis Join War

Iran claimed on Sunday attacks on two major aluminium plants in the Gulf, further raising the economic stakes of the Middle East war after Yemen's Iran-backed Houthis joined the conflict. The war that began on February 28 with US-Israeli attacks on Iran has mushroomed throughout the region, sending world energy markets into a tailspin and ...

Lebanon’s Paralysis, Hezbollah’s Impunity, and a War Without Exit

Hopes for a swift end to Israel’s military campaign in Lebanon have all but faded, as Jerusalem signals it is preparing to establish a buffer zone up to the Litani River until Hezbollah is no longer a threat. At the same time, U.S. policymakers privately acknowledge that de-escalation is not possible without a fundamental shift within Lebanon ...

What is Israel’s Invasion Calculus in Lebanon?

Israel appears poised to dramatically expand its invasion in southern Lebanon, with troops pushing deeper into the country as officials increasingly adopt rhetoric about establishing a buffer zone. On Wednesday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told local officials in northern Israel that the military was working to expand a “security ...