This is Beirut, 13/12 10:01 - Reading : 2 minute(s)
Antony Blinken Middle East USA Syria
Mr. Blinken started his meeting with Mr. Fidan at 9:40 a.m. (6:40 GMT) on Friday, according to a U.S. official. He arrived in the Turkish capital on Thursday evening and held talks with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in a lounge at Ankara's airport. "Turkey will never show weakness in the fight against ISIS," President Erdogan told ...
This is Beirut, 12/12 22:40 - Reading : less than a minute
Turkey has named a new chief-of-mission to its long-closed embassy in Damascus, which it has pledged to reopen following the overthrow of strongman Bashar al-Assad, the Anadolou news agency said Thursday. Burhan Koroglu was named as Turkey's temporary charge d'affaires at its embassy, Anadolou said, quoting foreign ministry sources who did not ...
This is Beirut, 12/12 22:10 - Reading : 1 minute(s)
Israel United Nations Syria Guterres
UN chief Antonio Guterres is "deeply concerned" over "extensive violations" of Syrian sovereignty, and by Israeli strikes on the country, his spokesman said Thursday. Guterres "is deeply concerned by the recent and extensive violations of Syria's sovereignty and territorial integrity. The Secretary-General is particularly concerned over the ...
Elie Ziadé, 12/12 20:19 - Reading : less than a minute
Damascus Economy Syria Businesses
Commercial activity is picking up vigorously in the central markets of Damascus, where shops have reopened and are once again attracting customers. However, the recovery remains more hesitant in Christian neighborhoods like Bab Touma. Political uncertainty and a fragile economic situation are holding back merchants, who are still reluctant to ...
This is Beirut, 12/12 19:55 - Reading : 4 minute(s)
Damascus HTS Baath Syria Bashar al-Assad
Maher Semsmieh turned in his rifle on Thursday at an office of Syria's Baath party, more than 60 years after its oppressive rule in Syria began, and days after it ended. "We are no longer Baathists," Semsmieh, 43, said with a smile of relief, four days after Islamist-led rebels toppled the Baathist government of president Bashar al-Assad. "We ...
Paul Guillot, 12/12 19:04 - Reading : 6 minute(s)
Bashar el-Assad Syria Chemical weapons Israel
More than a decade after the start of the Syrian conflict, concerns about chemical weapons remain. Despite Damascus officially joining the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) in 2013 and efforts to destroy its arsenal, multiple indicators suggest the presence of undeclared residual stockpiles. Recent developments — including Israeli airstrikes, ...
This is Beirut, 12/12 16:00 - Reading : 1 minute(s)
Syria Kurds flag Bachar al-Assad
The semi-autonomous Kurdish administration that holds swathes of Syria's northeast said Thursday it will adopt the three-starred independence flag used by the opposition, after rebels toppled longtime president Bashar al-Assad. The Kurdish authority said in a statement it has "decided to raise the Syrian (independence) flag on all councils, ...
This is Beirut, 12/12 10:40 - Reading : less than a minute
Israeli airstrikes targeted military installations in Syria, belonging to the army of the former Syrian president Bashar al-Assad, an NGO said on Wednesday. Among the "military sites" targeted were "the port of Latakia" and warehouses in Tartous. "Israeli fighter jets continue to destroy what remains of Syria's military arsenal, for the fourth ...
Salam Zaatari, 12/12 09:00 - Reading : 6 minute(s)
Lebanon Syria Michel Aoun Hezbollah
In the tragic annals of Lebanese history, Michel Aoun’s presidency stands out not merely as a disappointment but as a catastrophe of Shakespearean proportions. The man who once promised to rid Lebanon of Syrian influence and champion sovereignty ended his career as the very embodiment of everything he claimed to oppose. To understand how ...
Marc Saikali, 12/12 07:30 - Reading : 4 minute(s)
Damascus Bachar el-Assad Democracy Morocco Iraq syria
The Assad family, more accurately known by the name "Al-Wahesh" (the savage), has surpassed all limits of hatred and brutality. After the dictator and his cronies fled, the world, horrified, discovered the full extent of the crimes against humanity that had been the norm in a country left in ruins. In Lebanon, we have long known, through our own ...
Rayan Chami, 12/12 00:30 - Reading : less than a minute
Lebanon Syria Prisons Detainees Kidnapped
Souheil Hamawi recounts his 32-year ordeal in Syrian prisons, a journey of unimaginable suffering, resilience, and eventual liberation. From his abduction in 1992 to his emotional return in 2024, his story sheds light on the horrors he endured and the hope he ultimately reclaimed.
This is Beirut, 11/12 20:50 - Reading : 3 minute(s)
Syria's new prime minister said the Islamist-led alliance that ousted president Bashar al-Assad will guarantee the rights of all religious groups and called on the millions who fled the war to return home. Assad fled Syria after a lightning offensive spearheaded by the Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) group and its allies, which brought to a ...