This is Beirut

Joumblatt Calls for Calm in Sweida Under Government Authority

This is Beirut, 14/07 15:35 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Walid Joumblatt Sweida Druze Syria violence de-escalation

As deadly clashes continue in Syria’s Druze-majority province of Sweida between Bedouin militias and armed Druze groups, former Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Joumblatt called on Monday for a political de-escalation under the authority of the Syrian government. In a statement to An-Nahar newspaper, Joumblatt expressed hope for “the ...

Syrian Prisoners and Islamist Detainees in Lebanon: A Ticking Time Bomb

Badih Karhani, 14/07 11:15 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Lebanon Syria Islamist Hezbollah

The issue of Syrian prisoners in Lebanon has resurfaced, alongside that of Islamist detainees, many of whom have been held for years without trial or clear charges. This tragic reality highlights a blatant pattern of ongoing political and judicial injustice, where hundreds of individuals are denied their most basic legal and human rights under ...

The Unfinished Wars

Charles Chartouni, 14/07 10:40 - Reading : 5 minute(s)

Iran Israel Lebanon Syria Iraq United States

The regional political scene is quite treacherous, as it conveys misleading signals regarding the outcomes of the ongoing wars in the greater Middle East. American diplomacy remains evasive regarding these wars and their prospects. This uncertainty complicates international relations and makes it challenging for global powers to formulate coherent ...

The Syrian Bogeyman: A Cover for Hezbollah’s Weapons

Bassam Abou Zeid, 13/07 19:05 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Hezbollah lebanon Syria Tom Barrack

As part of its ongoing campaign to justify keeping its weapons outside state authority, Hezbollah has been circulating claims of Syrian troop build-ups along Lebanon’s eastern border and alleged infiltrations of extremist fighters into Lebanese territory. On multiple occasions, the Lebanese Army has swiftly and unequivocally denied these reports ...

Syria says Wildfires Contained After 10 Days

This is Beirut, 13/07 14:26 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

United Nations Syria UN

Syria's civil defence agency on Sunday said wildfires in the country's west, which have burned vast tracts of forest and farmland and forced evacuations, had been brought under control after 10 days. In a statement on Facebook, the agency said that "with the spread of the fires halted and the fire hotspots brought under control on all fronts" on ...

Barrack Warns Lebanon Faces “Existential Threat” if Hezbollah Issue Left Unresolved

This is Beirut, 12/07 12:10 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Tom Barrack lebanon Syria Israel Hezbollah

US Special Envoy Tom Barrack warned that Lebanon faces an "existential threat" if it fails to address the issue of Hezbollah’s weapons in an interview with the Emirati media outlet The National published Friday. He called on Lebanese leaders to take urgent action or risk the country falling back under regional influence. After ...

Syrian-Israeli Relations: The Emergence of Complex Dialogue

Amal Chmouny, 12/07 10:00 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

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A significant shift is unfolding in the Middle East's diplomatic landscape as dialogue between Syria and Israel begins to take shape. This budding interaction has garnered substantial international attention, particularly as the United States and the United Arab Emirates assume pivotal roles as facilitators. Tom Barrack, the US Ambassador to ...

The Dual Peril Facing Eastern Christians

Fady Noun, 12/07 09:00 - Reading : 6 minute(s)

Pope Francis Damascus Christians Lebanon Massabki brothers Syria

On June 22, a deadly bombing inside Damascus’s Greek Orthodox Church of Saint Elijah during Mass claimed 25 lives and left around 50 injured. In response, the Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch, Youhanna X, rightly declared that the victims deserve to be honored as martyrs of the faith, just as those who perished in past tragedies in Lebanon, ...

Damascus Denies Threatening Escalation Against Lebanon

This is Beirut, 11/07 13:15 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Damascus Syria lebanon Beirut

Reports that Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa was preparing a series of diplomatic and economic measures against Lebanon in response to Beirut’s alleged neglect of the file of Syrian detainees were denied, al-Arabiya said, quoting a Syrian government source. “There is no truth to the reports being circulated about the ...

How Lebanon Missed Its Future While Syria Negotiates Its Own

Salam El Zaatari, 10/07 08:00 - Reading : 9 minute(s)

Lebanon Syria United States Tom Barrack Iran Hezbollah

I have always believed that geography makes history. But in the Middle East, history tends to repeat itself with a sectarian accent and a militia soundtrack. And this is tragically evident in Lebanon, a country that once had everything, and today, has nothing but memory and myth. While the world watches US envoy Tom Barrack shuttle between ...

Thousands of Syrian Refugees to Return from Lebanon

This is Beirut, 09/07 16:55 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Turkey United Nations Syria lebanon UNHCR

Thousands of Syrian refugees are set to return from Lebanon this week as part of the first United Nations-backed plan that offers financial incentives for repatriation, Reuters reported on Wednesday. The initiative comes as Syria’s new Islamist-led government, which replaced President Bashar al-Assad in December, says all citizens are welcome ...

Tripoli of the Levant and the Challenges of Regional Maps

Johnny Kortbawi, 08/07 11:00 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Tripoli Syria Lebanon Levant

Israel is keenly aware that the Middle East’s numerous religious minorities harbor deep-rooted anxieties. As for the religious majority—namely, the Sunni community—its historical perspective is shaped less by the framework of modern nation-states and more through the prism of empire, inherited from the Ottoman era and substantially ...

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