This is Beirut

Arab, Islamic Blocs Condemn U.S. Ambassador's Remarks on Israel's Right to Mideast Land

This is Beirut, 16:15 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Israel Saudi Arabia United Arab Emirates USA

Arab and Islamic states condemned on Sunday remarks by US ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee, after he suggested Israel would be justified in controlling vast tracts of Middle Eastern land on biblical grounds. A joint statement led by the United Arab Emirates and backed by Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, Qatar, Indonesia, Pakistan and others ...

Hamas Official Says Group in Final Stage of Choosing New Chief

This is Beirut, 16:15 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Hamas Banks Israel Kuwait Palestine

A senior Hamas official told AFP on Sunday that the Palestinian Islamist movement was in the final phase of selecting a new leader, with two prominent figures competing for the position. Hamas recently completed the formation of a new Shura Council, a consultative body largely composed of religious scholars, as well as a new political ...

Hezbollah MP Urges Lebanese State to Rethink Security Approach After Deadly Israeli Strikes

This is Beirut, 21/02 12:15 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Lebanon Hezbollah Israel IDF RegionalWar

Lebanon’s fragile security situation came back into sharp focus Saturday after Israeli air and naval strikes killed at least 14 people and wounded dozens of others in eastern Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley, prompting renewed condemnation and government criticism from Hezbollah MPs. Rami Abu Hamdan, a member of parliament affiliated with Hezbollah, ...

Israel Army Says on 'Defensive Alert' Regarding Iran but no Change to Public Guidelines

This is Beirut, 20/02 20:05 - Reading : less than a minute

Israel Iran

The Israeli army said it was on "defensive alert" as the United States threatens potential military action against Iran, but insisted there were no changes in its guidelines for the public. "We are closely monitoring regional developments and are aware of the public discourse concerning Iran. The (Israeli military) is on defensive ...

Israel Strikes Sites Across Lebanon Linked to Hamas and Hezbollah

This is Beirut, 20/02 17:05 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Israel Lebanon Hamas Strikes

Israel struck sites across Lebanon on Friday near Sidon and in the Bekaa Valley, targeting operatives and command centers linked to Hamas and Hezbollah. A preliminary toll states that 17 have been killed across Lebanon. Ain al-Hilweh Strikes Israeli missiles have struck a site in the Ain al-Hilweh area of Sidon on Friday where the Israeli ...

Lebanon’s Justice Minister Questions 1955 Anti-Israel Law, Signals Shift in Official Discourse

This is Beirut, 20/02 11:55 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Lebanon Israel Middle East

Justice Minister Adel Nassar has opened the door to a sensitive national debate by questioning the legacy and application of Lebanon’s 1955 law banning contacts with Israel—legislation long treated as untouchable. Speaking about the controversial statute, Nassar acknowledged that in past decades it had operated in a political climate ...

Trump Gives Iran 15 Days to Make a Deal or Face Action

This is Beirut, 20/02 09:35 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Donald Trump Benjamin Netanyahu Israel Middle East Tehran

President Donald Trump said Thursday that Iran had at most 15 days to make a deal on concerns starting with its nuclear program, suggesting the United States would attack if it did not. “We’re either going to get a deal or it’s going to be unfortunate for them,” Trump told reporters on Air Force One. Asked about his ...

Israeli Druze Leader Says Syrian Community 'Besieged' Months After Clashes

This is Beirut, 20/02 09:10 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Lebanon Damascus Israel Middle East United Nations

Seven months after deadly clashes between Syria's Druze minority and government‑backed forces, the spiritual leader of Druze in neighbouring Israel said members of the community across the border remained in peril. "They're still besieged -- completely encircled. They aren't allowed to bring in any humanitarian aid, including the aid we're ...

Israel's Netanyahu Says No Reconstruction of Gaza Before Demilitarisation

This is Beirut, 19/02 17:25 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Israel Gaza Benjamin Netanyahu

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday there would be no reconstruction of war-shattered Gaza before the disarmament of Hamas, as the "Board of Peace" convened for its inaugural meeting in Washington. Around two dozen world leaders and senior officials met for the first meeting of the board, which was set up after ...

Iran Will Face Response it 'Cannot Imagine' if it Attacks Israel: Netanyahu

This is Beirut, 19/02 16:35 - Reading : less than a minute

Israel Iran

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned Thursday that Israel would retaliate forcefully against Iran if it launched an attack, after U.S. President Donald Trump again hinted at possible military action against Tehran. "If the ayatollahs make a mistake and attack us, they will receive a response they cannot even imagine," ...

Hezbollah Readies Its Electoral Machine After War Losses

Marwan El Amine, 19/02 16:25 - Reading : 6 minute(s)

Hezbollah Hassan Nasrallah Lebanon Amal Israel

Whether Lebanon’s parliamentary elections are held on time in May or postponed, Hezbollah’s electoral machine appears to be in a state of full readiness. While the party commands the largest popular base within the Shia community, maintaining a wide lead over its closest ally, the Amal Movement, this electoral advantage has not bred ...

Praise or Pressure: What CENTCOM's Commendation for the LAF Tells Lebanon

Amal Chmouny, 19/02 15:35 - Reading : 7 minute(s)

Lebanese Army Lebanon Hezbollah Israel Saudi Arabia

U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) chief Brad Cooper’s praise of the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) for uncovering a "massive underground tunnel" near the southern border represents far more than routine diplomatic protocol. While his February 9 statement commended the LAF, it implicitly contested the Lebanese army’s announcement the previous month ...

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