This is Beirut - Washington

Iraq Announces Complete Withdrawal of U.S.-Led Coalition From Federal Territory

This is Beirut, 19/01 09:45 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

UN Security Council United Nations United States USA Washington

Iraq said on Sunday US-led coalition forces had finished withdrawing from bases within the country's federal territory, which excludes the autonomous northern Kurdistan region. "We announce today... the completion of the evacuation of all military bases and leadership headquarters in the official federal areas of Iraq of advisers" of the US-led ...

U.S. Evacuating Forces From Key Bases in Middle East

This is Beirut, 14/01 14:35 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Donald Trump Middle East Tehran Washington

The United States is evacuating forces from several of its key military bases across the Middle East, amid preparations for a possible strike on Iran, an official American source told Reuters news agency. A number of personnel have been told to depart the United States' Al Udeid military base in Qatar "in response to the current regional ...

Trump Announces 25% Tariff on Countries Doing Business With Iran

This is Beirut, 13/01 09:25 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Donald Trump Tehran United Arab Emirates USA Washington

U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday announced fresh tariffs on Iran's trading partners in an apparent response to the rising number of people killed during recent protests. In a post on Truth Social, President Trump wrote that any country "doing business with the Islamic Republic of Iran" will pay a 25% tariff "effective ...

U.S. Says Iran Deployed Foreign Militias to Quell Protests

This is Beirut, 10/01 14:25 - Reading : less than a minute

Hezbollah United States USA Washington Iran Demonstration

The United States said on Saturday it was concerned by reports that the Iranian regime had resorted to foreign fighters to suppress peaceful protests inside the country. In a message published in Persian on X, the U.S. State Department said that members of Hezbollah and Iraqi militias had allegedly been deployed against demonstrators. Washington ...

Israeli Media: Trump Gives Netanyahu ‘Green Light’ for War Against Hezbollah

This is Beirut, 07/01 21:40 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Israel Hezbollah Lebanon Washington

Israel’s public broadcaster reported Wednesday that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told senior ministers he had received an American “green light” to carry out a military operation in Lebanon, amid a sharp uptick in Israeli strikes and renewed diplomatic pressure on Beirut to accelerate steps aimed at curbing Hezbollah’s ...

Iran Protests: 35 Dead, Over 1,200 Arrested

This is Beirut, 06/01 10:30 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Donald Trump Tehran Washington

About 35 people have been killed since the start of the protests against the regime in Iran, including four children, and law enforcement authorities in the country have arrested more than 1,200 protesters, according to the Human Rights Activists News Agency. The protests in the country are showing no signs of stopping, and they have spread to ...

Iran Markets Advanced Weapons Systems for Crypto - FT

This is Beirut, 02/01 09:20 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Tehran Washington

Iran’s official defense export agency is offering to sell ballistic missiles, drones, and other advanced weapons systems to foreign governments in exchange for cryptocurrency and barter, Financial Times reported on Thursday. The Ministry of Defense Export Center (Mindex) is the export arm of Iran’s defense ministry. The site offers ...

Ahead of 2026, Washington's Tougher Terms for Lebanon

Amal Chmouny, 2025-12-31 17:10 - Reading : 6 minute(s)

Lebanon Washington Donald Trump Lebanese Army Amal

Heading into 2026, U.S. engagement in Lebanon has become explicitly conditioned on measurable progress toward Hezbollah’s disarmament, marking a clear break from the strategic ambiguity that long defined Washington’s approach. The aftermath of the 2024 Israel–Hezbollah conflict, alongside Lebanon’s deepening economic and political crises, ...

De-Radicalizing Hezbollah's Base: A Realist Framework

Salam El Zaatari, 2025-12-29 13:15 - Reading : 8 minute(s)

Lebanon Hezbollah Lebanese Army Washington

Any serious discussion about de-radicalizing Hezbollah supporters must begin by discarding comforting illusions about the organization. It is not a fringe extremist group operating on the margins of Lebanese society but a heavily armed political-military organization embedded in parliament, municipalities, unions, border economies, and a regional ...

Syria Says Killed Senior IS Leader

This is Beirut, 2025-12-25 10:25 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Damascus USA Washington

Syrian authorities on Thursday said they killed a senior leader in the Islamic State group in coordination with the US-led coalition, hours after the arrest near Damascus of another leader. Syrian security and intelligence forces, working in coordination with the international coalition, conducted what the interior ministry described as a ...

Why was Sharaa Invited to Washington, but not Aoun?

Hussain Abdul-Hussain, 2025-12-23 10:00 - Reading : 5 minute(s)

Washington Lebanon Lebanese Army Syria Joseph Aoun Ahmad al-Sharaa

Until late 2024, Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa was a U.S.-designated terrorist with a $10 million bounty on his head for leading the al-Qaeda-linked Hayat Tahrir al-Sham. By contrast, Lebanese President Joseph Aoun, who served as commander of the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) until his election in January 2025, was widely regarded as one of ...

Who Really Defeated ISIS in Syria?

Mario Chartouni, 2025-12-09 20:30 - Reading : 5 minute(s)

Damascus European Union Washington Russia Syria ISIS

In the narrative promoted by Moscow and Damascus, Russia and Bashar al-Assad’s regime are credited with delivering the decisive blow against ISIS in Syria. This account frames Russia’s military intervention, which began in September 2015, as the turning point in the fight against the terrorist group. Yet, a closer look at the data paints a ...

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