This is Beirut

Al-Hassan: Flights of Some Airlines Resume to Beirut

This is Beirut, 2024-12-04 22:50 - Reading : less than a minute

On Wednesday, Fadi al-Hassan, the director of Rafic Hariri International Airport (BIA) in Beirut, revealed that several airlines have started operating flights to the city again. He clarified in an interview with LBCI that it was challenging to quickly resume flights to Beirut because the majority of the airlines that had halted their service had ...

Trump Nominates Private Astronaut Jared Isaacman to Lead NASA

This is Beirut, 2024-12-04 19:35 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

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US President-elect Donald Trump on Wednesday nominated Jared Isaacman, the online payments billionaire and the first private astronaut to ever perform a spacewalk, as the next head of NASA. The nod could spark questions about potential conflicts of interest, given Isaacman's extensive financial ties to Elon Musk, who is set to co-chair a ...

South Korean President Accused of Major Constitutional Violations in Impeachment Motion

This is Beirut, 2024-12-04 16:07 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

USA Martial Law South Korea Impeachement

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol violated the constitution by declaring martial law in a move aimed at evading criminal investigations, according to an impeachment motion seen by AFP. Yoon "gravely and extensively violated the Constitution and the law", the motion filed by opposition parties earlier Wednesday says. It also said his ...

René Kaës: It Is Through Crisis That Man Fully Becomes a Man

David Sahyoun, 2024-12-04 11:05 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

USA

If we consider Lebanon to be in a post-war period, despite a fragile ceasefire, the crisis — described by René Kaës as a foundational experience — opens a transformative space between rupture and suture. “It is through crisis that a man creates himself as a man, and history moves between crisis and resolution, ...

Netanyahu Asserts Ceasefire with Hezbollah Is Not the End of the War

This is Beirut, 2024-12-03 17:20 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu emphasized on Tuesday that while a ceasefire with Hezbollah is currently in place along the Lebanese border, it does not mark the conclusion of hostilities. Speaking during a press briefing, Netanyahu stressed that Israel remains vigilant and prepared to act against any breach of the truce. “We are ...

Army Appoints Gen. Edgard Lawandos on Ceasefire Monitoring Committee

This is Beirut, 2024-12-03 17:00 - Reading : less than a minute

Ceasefire Israel United Nations United States USA

The Army has appointed General Edgard Lawandos, commander of the southern Litani sector, to represent Lebanon on the international truce monitoring committee set up under the ceasefire agreement with Israel, according to LBCI TV. The committee is made up of representatives from the USA, France, the UN, Lebanon and Israel. The United States will ...

Who Are Syria's Hay'at Tahrir Al-Sham?

This is Beirut, 2024-12-03 10:35 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

European Union United States USA Syria HTS

The Syrian rebel group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), which seized Aleppo in a shock offensive over the weekend, is an Islamist movement that has long ruled swathes of the country's northwest. The group has sought to moderate its image in recent years, including by cutting ties with its one-time sponsor Al-Qaeda, but it faces an uphill battle ...

As Ceasefire Falters, Lebanon Urges Quick Action on Monitoring Committee

Bassam Abou Zeid, 2024-12-02 20:10 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Hezbollah Israel Lebanon Ceasefire USA

The ceasefire in southern Lebanon is faltering, raising concerns among local, regional, and international key players about its potential collapse. In response, many of these parties rushed to initiate a series of contacts aimed at stabilizing the situation. However, their efforts have so far proven unsuccessful. Hezbollah retaliated against what ...

Armed Factions in Syria: Identity, Affiliations, and Strategic Positioning

Natasha Metni Torbey, 2024-12-02 20:00 - Reading : 7 minute(s)

Syria Iran USA Turkey Aleppo

Over thirteen years since the beginning of the war, Syria remains a stage for complex conflicts, with numerous factions vying for control over different zones of influence. Last Wednesday, following the establishment of a ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon, Syrian opposition forces led by Hay’at Tahrir al-Cham launched an offensive from their ...

Hochstein Warns Israel Over Alleged Ceasefire Breaches in Lebanon

This is Beirut, 2024-12-02 14:10 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Amos Hochstein Ceasefire Hezbollah Israel USA

US special envoy Amos Hochstein reportedly informed Israel in a letter, delivered on Monday, of alleged violations of the ceasefire agreement with Lebanon, according to Israeli media reports. Sources cited by Ynet revealed that Hochstein highlighted "Israeli violations of the cease-fire agreement, mainly the visible and audible return of Israeli ...

Embattled Assad Seeks Support Amid Aleppo Setback

This is Beirut, 2024-12-02 12:44 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Tehran Turkey United Nations USA Syria

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad sought to shore up support from his allies Sunday, after a monitor said a shock rebel offensive saw government forces lose control of Aleppo for the first time since the start of the country's civil war. The Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) group and allied factions now "control Aleppo city, except the ...

Denial and an 'Ultra-Divine Victory'

Michel Touma, 2024-12-02 11:00 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Hamas Hezbollah Israel UN Security Council USA

In psychology, denial is a well-known defense mechanism used to cope with failures and setbacks. It is therefore not surprising that Hezbollah’s Secretary-General, Sheikh Naim Qassem, confidently asserts — along with his party’s leadership and supporters — that the two-month-long conflict with Israel brought about a victory “greater” ...

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