This is Beirut

Final Attempt to Mend Rift Before Cabinet Session

Philippe Abi-Akl, 09:30 - Reading : 5 minute(s)

UN Security Council United Nations USA Ain el-Tineh Hezbollah Joseph Aoun

In one week, the Cabinet is scheduled to meet — unless delayed — to review an army plan implementing the government’s decision to confine all weapons to state control. The coming days promise significant developments: it includes US Senator Lindsey Graham’s visit to Beirut with envoys Morgan Ortagus and Thomas Barrack, an anticipated ...

Trump says He Wants to Meet North Korea's Kim Again

This is Beirut, 09:25 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Donald Trump USA Kim Jong Un Korea

US President Donald Trump said Monday he hoped to meet again with North Korea's Kim Jong Un, possibly this year, as he held White House talks with South Korea's new leader that got off awkwardly. Hours before President Lee Jae Myung arrived for his long-planned first visit to the White House, Trump took to social media to denounce what he said ...

Trump Threatens Tariffs on Countries Seen Targeting US Tech Firms

This is Beirut, 09:15 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Donald Trump USA European Union United Kingdom Technology

President Donald Trump on Monday threatened further tariffs and export restrictions against countries that he says are targeting US tech firms. "Digital Taxes, Digital Services Legislation, and Digital Markets Regulations are all designed to harm, or discriminate against, American Technology," Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform. His ...

Salam Meets US Congress Members

This is Beirut, 25/08 14:05 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

US Congress Israel Lebanese Army USA Nawaf Salam

Prime Minister Nawaf Salam met with US Congress members Darin LaHood and Steve Cohen at the Grand Serail on Friday, in the presence of US Ambassador to Lebanon Lisa Johnson and the accompanying delegation. During the meeting, LaHood commended the Lebanese government for extending state authority nationwide, centralizing arms under state control ...

US Pushes for Strategic Shift in UNIFIL's Mandate as Tensions Rise over Its Renewal

Amal Chmouny, 25/08 11:30 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

USA Lebanese Army UN Security Council Hezbollah UNIFIL

As the deadline for renewing the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon's (UNIFIL) mandate approaches on August 31, 2025, significant tensions are emerging within the UN Security Council. A scheduled vote has been canceled, and diplomatic efforts are intensifying to address ongoing disagreements, particularly centered on the United States' ...

UN Security Council to Vote on Embattled Lebanon Peacekeepers

This is Beirut, 25/08 09:35 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

UN Security Council Hezbollah Israel USA UNIFIL

While some reports suggested that the UN Security Council would postpone the vote on a draft resolution to extend the mandate of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) until August 29, Agence France-Presse reported that the Council will in fact vote on the text today. The Council will vote on a French-drafted compromise that would ...

SpaceX Delays Starship Megarocket Launch in Latest Setback

This is Beirut, 25/08 09:25 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

USA SpaceX Elon Musk

SpaceX delayed a planned test flight for its Starship megarocket by 24 hours until Monday, saying it needed time to troubleshoot problems, in the latest setback for Elon Musk's behemoth after a series of explosive failures. The recent problems have led some observers to doubt whether the world's biggest and most powerful launch vehicle will be ...

Washington Makes Military Aid Overtures to Sahel Juntas

This is Beirut, 25/08 09:15 - Reading : 5 minute(s)

Washington Donald Trump USA Ukraine United States

Under President Donald Trump the United States has reset relations with West Africa's military leaders on a mutual back-scratching basis, bartering help fighting jihadists for the Sahel region's mining riches, experts say. While Joe Biden was in office the US suspended most of the development and military aid it sent to Burkina Faso, Mali and ...

Row Breaks Out as US Diplomat Criticises France on Antisemitism

This is Beirut, 25/08 09:10 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

USA Emmanuel Macron Benjamin Netanyahu Palestine Charles Kushner

France's foreign ministry said Sunday it would summon the US ambassador after he criticized the government for what he said was its insufficient action against antisemitism in a letter to President Emmanuel Macron. The letter from Charles Kushner, dated August 25 but leaked to the media on Sunday, echoed Israel's criticism of France days earlier, ...

Sharaa: 'Lebanon Must Benefit from Syria’s Revival, or It Will Lose a Lot'

This is Beirut, 24/08 23:45 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Damascus Hezbollah Israel USA

Interim Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa said on Sunday that he seeks “a state-to-state relationship with Lebanon, based on economic solutions, stability and common interest, away from the interventions and policies that harmed both sides in the past.” “The Syria I see today is a major opportunity for Lebanon, and the Lebanese ...

Syria Kurds Say Lawmaker Selection Process Undemocratic

This is Beirut, 24/08 11:10 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Damascus USA Kurds SDF

Syria's Kurds on Sunday criticised the upcoming selection of members of a new transitional parliament as undemocratic, after authorities postponed the process for Kurdish-controlled areas in the north and northeast. After toppling longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad in December, Syria's new authorities dissolved the parliament and adopted a temporary ...

Zaki: Weapons Control Measures Are in Line With League Resolutions

This is Beirut, 23/08 09:55 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Lebanese Army USA Arab league

Deputy Secretary-General of the Arab League, Ambassador Hossam Zaki, said that his visit to Beirut comes within the framework of the Arab League's support for the Lebanese state's efforts to extend its sovereignty over all its territories and place all weapons under its control. During a special interview with a Cairo News correspondent in ...

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