lebanon

Neemat Aoun Says Rebuilding Lebanon Will Require Time

First Lady Neemat Aoun said on Monday that the country must be given time to recover from collapse. She outlined plans for social projects, including a ban on child marriage and improvements to prison conditions. “The State was collapsed, and we need time to rebuild it,” Aoun said in her first televised interview with MTV Lebanon. “That is ...

Abbas Determined to Withdraw All Palestinian Weapons from Lebanon

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said on Monday that his leadership is determined to withdraw all Palestinian weapons from Lebanon, calling the step essential to the country’s security and sovereignty. In an interview with Al-Arabiya, Abbas confirmed that he had reached an understanding with Lebanese President Joseph Aoun on carrying out the ...

Lebanon, UNIFIL, and the Return of Sovereignty and Peace

There was a real possibility earlier this summer that the United States was going to veto the renewal of the UNIFIL mandate in August. Ultimately, a wiser course prevailed, when the UN Security Council extended UNIFIL's mandate "for a final time" last week until the end of 2026.  This step is a positive one for everyone concerned except ...

U16 Basketball: Lebanon Lets Victory Slip Away, Australia Bounces Back

The FIBA U16 Asia Cup 2025 is in full swing at the M Bank Arena in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. In Group A, Australia, two-time defending champions and heavy favorites for a historic four-peat, cruised through their first two games, crushing India (131-42) after already beating Bahrain. The Australian Crocs, led by an unstoppable Will Hamilton (22 ...

Le Drian in Beirut to Prepare Lebanon Conferences

French presidential envoy and former foreign minister Jean-Yves Le Drian is expected in Beirut within days. He has been tasked by President Emmanuel Macron with following up on Lebanon’s political and economic developments. His mission will center on preparing two international conferences: one aimed at supporting Lebanon’s reconstruction, and ...

UNESCO Chief to Visit Beirut for Cultural and Urban Projects

UNESCO announced on Monday that Director-General Audrey Azoulay will visit Beirut on September 3 and 4 to review the organization’s work in Lebanon and unveil new initiatives for cultural and urban rehabilitation. Over the past five years, UNESCO has mobilized over $45 million, leading one of its largest urban recovery operations in the ...

Raggi: State Monopoly on Arms Is a “Historic Step” Toward Sovereignty

Lebanon has reaffirmed its determination to strengthen ties with Gulf states and fully restore national sovereignty, Foreign Minister Youssef Raggi said in an interview published Monday by the Emirati daily Al-Ittihad. He highlighted the government’s recent decision to grant the state exclusive control over weapons, describing it as a ...

EBML Announces Fee Relief and Installment Plans

The Beirut and Mount Lebanon Water Establishment (EBML) has called on all subscribers to settle their outstanding water fees for 2025 and previous years through authorized collectors, distribution office counters, POS machines, and money transfer centers. In a statement issued Monday, the establishment said online payments via its website are ...

Salloum Warns of Threat from Expired Medicines

Expired medications piled up in pharmacies pose a significant threat to patient safety. This is what Dr. Joe Salloum, head of the Lebanese Pharmacists’ Syndicate, expressed, calling on the Ministries of Health and Environment to ensure that expired drugs are collected and destroyed outside Lebanon. He stressed that the risk they present is ...

Solomonic Judgment

International issues are pending, and nothing seems to move toward negotiated solutions across Ukraine and the wide arc of conflicts extending through the Middle East. None of the actors is interested in peacemaking; on the contrary, these zones of active conflict tend to work in the best interests of countries vying for imperial conquests and ...

Seeking Regional Leaders with Sadat’s Vision

Clothes do not make the man – a saying that fits today’s leaders of Iran’s radical factions, Hezbollah in Lebanon, and Tehran’s proxies in Iraq and Yemen. They issue routine inflammatory statements and adopt media stances that are often exaggerated, sometimes bordering on the absurd. In response to the upheavals sweeping the region, they ...

Budget 2026: Quick Taxes or Deep Reform?

For 2026, the Finance Minister has promised a deficit-free budget, with revenues and expenditures in balance. An attractive prospect, but at what cost to Lebanese households? Tax hikes and new levies could quickly turn that balance into a burden for taxpayers. The draft budget has been submitted to the General Secretariat of the Council of ...