This is Beirut

London Based Persian TV to Air 'Truth' About Iran Protests Despite Threats

This is Beirut, 27/01 09:40 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

United Kingdom IranProtests HumanRights Journalism Iran

Journalists at the Persian-language TV station Iran International in London have been working flat out, vowing to "show the truth" about the protests in Iran, despite threats against them and their families. The private broadcaster, housed in a heavily secured building in west London, was labeled a "terrorist" organization by Tehran in 2022, ...

UAE Rules Out Use of Its Territory as Region Braces for Possible Attacks on Iran

This is Beirut, 26/01 20:25 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

United Arab Emirates Iran Gulf

The Emirati Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement asserting the United Arab Emirates’ position on a U.S.-Iran conflict on Monday, stressing that it will not allow its territory to be used for any attacks on Iran. The release states: “The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) has reaffirmed the United Arab Emirates’ ...

Qassem Warns Hezbollah May Intervene If Iran Is Attacked

This is Beirut, 26/01 19:05 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Lebanon Hezbollah Naim Qassem Iran

Naim Qassem, Hezbollah’s Secretary-General, delivered a speech amid rising tensions between the U.S. and Iran on Monday, stating that any attack on Iran would also target his group, and warned that any new war on the Islamic Republic would ignite the region. On the question of Hezbollah’s engagement in a conflict scenario, Qassem left ...

Rubio Praises Iraq’s Detention of ISIS Members, Warns Against Iranian Influence

This is Beirut, 26/01 11:00 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

US Secretary of State Middle East USA Washington Marco Rubio Mohammed Shiaa al-Sudani Iraq Iran ISIS

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Monday praised the Iraqi government’s “initiative and leadership” in accelerating the transfer and detention of ISIS terrorists to secure facilities inside Iraq. According to a U.S. Department of State press release, Rubio held talks with Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shiaa al-Sudani in light of recent ...

U.S. Launches Regional Air Readiness Drill in the Middle East

This is Beirut, 26/01 10:55 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

USA Middle East Donald Trump USMilitary USNavy Iran

The United States will conduct a multi-day air readiness exercise across the Middle East, aimed at demonstrating the ability to deploy, distribute, and sustain combat air capabilities throughout the region, according to a statement issued Sunday by U.S. Central Command, as the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln arrived in the region ...

Iran May Have Slaughtered 30,000 Protesters in Intense Crackdown - TIME

This is Beirut, 25/01 13:00 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Tehran United Nations protests Iran Death toll

As many as 30,000 people may have been killed across Iran during a two-day crackdown on January 8 and 9, TIME reported on Sunday, citing two senior Health Ministry officials and a separate compilation of hospital data shared with the publication. The figures have not been independently verified and far exceed numbers publicly cited by ...

2026 NDS: America First Ushers in a New Era of Selective Engagement in the Middle East

Amal Chmouny, 24/01 19:40 - Reading : 7 minute(s)

United States Middle East Iran

The newly released 2026 National Defense Strategy (NDS) marks a dramatic pivot in American foreign policy, embracing what officials call “pragmatic realism” while fundamentally redefining U.S. engagement in the Middle East. Under an “America First” framework, the strategy moves away from large-scale military interventions in favor of ...

U.S. to Sanction Iran’s Shadow Fleet as Details of Protest Crackdown Surface

This is Beirut, 23/01 20:05 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

United States Iran Sanctions Protests

On Friday, the U.S. announced that it had imposed sanctions on nine vessels and eight entities that are part of Iran’s shadow fleet, according to a press statement from State Department Principal Deputy Spokesperson Tommy Pigott. The imposition of sanctions on Iranian shadow fleet vessels is a move of U.S. escalation against the Iranian ...

UN Rights Chief Urges Iran to 'End Brutal Repression'

This is Beirut, 23/01 15:40 - Reading : less than a minute

Iran UN IranProtests MiddleEast Human Rights Repression

The United Nations rights chief decried Friday that "thousands" of people, including children, had died in Iran's crackdown on nationwide protests and urged the authorities to "end their brutal repression." Speaking at the start of a UN Human Rights Council urgent meeting on the situation in Iran, Volker Turk urged the authorities in Tehran "to ...

Trump Says U.S. Still Watching Iran, Fleet Sailing to Region

This is Beirut, 23/01 09:30 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Donald Trump USA Iran USNavy IranProtests

President Donald Trump said Thursday a US naval "armada" was heading toward the Gulf, maintaining pressure on Iran, although he has recently downplayed the prospect of imminent military action. Last week, Trump pulled back from a threat to strike Iran over its deadly crackdown on anti-government protests after the White House said Tehran had ...

Trump Open to Dialogue with Iran as Aftermath of Protests Comes into Focus

This is Beirut, 22/01 19:15 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Iran United States Trump Protests

President Donald Trump signaled a willingness to engage in dialogue with Iran in remarks at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland on Thursday, while reiterating his opposition to Iran’s nuclear program. These comments came as Trump was speaking about the Gaza ‘Board of Peace,’ as he highlighted the U.S. strikes against ...

Trump Warns of “Overwhelming Force” if Iran Carries Out Assassination Threats

This is Beirut, 21/01 21:45 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Trump United States Iran

President Trump escalated his rhetoric against Iran on Wednesday, vowing to respond with crippling force in the event that assassination attempts are carried out against him or other U.S. officials. Speaking to the press, Trump stated that “if anything happens, the whole country is going to blow up. I will hit them so hard, and I have given ...

iran