israel

Minister Says Israel 'Here to Stay' in Occupied West Bank

Far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said Israel was "here to stay" during a tour of the occupied West Bank on Tuesday, defending Israeli settlements in the territory despite their illegality under international law. Both Smotrich and Defense Minister Israel Katz, who accompanied him, denounced what they called "illegal" construction by ...

Southern Lebanon Rocket Attacks: Retaliation, Diplomacy and Arrests

After a period of relative calm in Beirut, Israeli airstrikes resumed on the southern suburbs of Beirut. The most recent attack occurred at dawn on Tuesday. The attack targeted Hassan Bdair, a Hezbollah operative in charge of Palestinian affairs. This escalation follows a fresh flare-up in tensions along the Israeli-Lebanese border, triggered by ...

Israel PM Drops security Chief Nominee under Fire from Trump Ally

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said Tuesday he had reversed a decision to appoint former navy commander Vice Admiral Eli Sharvit as security agency chief following criticism, including from a key US senator. Netanyahu had announced Sharvit's appointment on Monday, pushing back against a supreme court decision to freeze ...

Who Was Hassan Bdair, Target of Israel’s Beirut Suburbs Strike?

The Israeli airstrike that rocked the southern suburbs of Beirut at dawn on Tuesday targeted Hassan Bdair, the deputy head of Hezbollah’s Palestinian Affairs unit. What do we know about him, and why was he targeted? According to a source quoted by Agence France-Presse (AFP), Hassan Bdair was at his family home when the strike occurred. He ...

Trump says Could Visit Saudi Arabia as Early as Next Month

US President Donald Trump may visit Saudi Arabia as soon as next month, he told reporters at the White House on Monday, in what could be his first overseas trip since his return to power. "It could be next month, maybe a little bit later. And we're going to Qatar, also, and also we're going to possibly a couple of other countries. UAE is very ...

Rocket Strikes Signal Reaction to Iran's Exclusion from Regional Settlements

Two unsettling and deliberate incidents occurred ahead of four critical milestones for Lebanon. On March 22, shortly before the visit of French President Emmanuel Macron’s special envoy to Lebanon, Jean-Yves Le Drian, rockets were fired from Lebanon into Israel. Hezbollah denied any involvement, but Israel responded with heavy strikes on the ...

Israeli Strike on Southern Suburb: Hassan Bdair, Hezbollah Official, Killed

The Israeli army’s Arabic-speaking spokesperson, confirmed on Tuesday the death of Hassan Ali Mahmoud Bdair. According to Avichay Adraee, “Israeli Air Force fighter jets, under the direction of the Shin Bet, carried out an attack last night in the southern suburbs of Beirut, targeting the terrorist named Hassan Ali Mahmoud Bdair, ...

Top Aide to Israel's Netanyahu Arrested in 'Qatargate' Probe

Israeli police announced on Monday the arrest of two individuals, one of whom was confirmed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's ruling Likud party as a senior aide to the long-serving leader. Israeli media identified the two men as Yonatan Urich and Eli Feldstein, both reportedly aides to the prime minister and allegedly linked to what has ...

Le Pen's French Presidency Bid in Jeopardy after Election Ban

A French court on Monday threw into severe doubt far-right leader Marine Le Pen's 2027 bid for president, handing her a five-year ban on running for office after convicting her over a fake jobs scheme. She was also given a four-year prison term by the Paris court but will not go to jail, with two years of the term suspended and the other two ...

Israeli Army Dismantle Hamas Tunnel and Rocket Workshop

The Israeli army on Monday dismantled a one-kilometer underground tunnel by the elite Yahalom Unit, a tunnel identified as part of Hamas’ network. This comes as part of an intensification of targeted operations in northern and central Gaza.  In addition to neutralizing the tunnel, the troops also discovered and disrupted a workshop dedicated ...

Lebanon Caught Between the Hammer of Hezbollah and the Anvil of Israeli Strikes

Morgan Ortagus, Deputy US Special Envoy for the Middle East, is preparing to visit Lebanon, potentially right after Eid al-Fitr. She has laid the groundwork for this visit through a series of interviews with Arab and Lebanese media, where she emphasized a central message: Hezbollah must be disarmed. This issue is expected to be central to her ...

Kabalan Calls for Full Mobilization in Favor of Hezbollah and Amal for Parliamentary Elections

In his sermon on Monday, marking Eid al-Fitr celebrations, Jaafarite Mufti Sheikh Ahmad Kabalan cautioned against the political and strategic stakes of the upcoming parliamentary elections, scheduled for May 2026. He emphasized that Lebanon’s political and strategic survival depends on full mobilization in favor of Hezbollah and the Amal ...