lebanon

Araqchi Expresses "Surprise" after Raggi’s Decision to Decline Tehran Visit

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi issued a response to his Lebanese counterpart, Youssef Raggi, after the latter declined an official invitation to visit Tehran, citing “unsuitable conditions” at the present time. Araqchi expressed surprise at Raggi’s decision, noting that countries maintaining “brotherly relations ...

Beirut Sports Festival: Karim Andari Invests 4 Billion LBP to Support 80 Students Through “Loubnaniyoun”

Sports are stepping into the classroom. At the Qubic Center in Horch Tabet, the president of the Beirut Sports Festival, Karim Andari, and the president of the association “Loubnaniyoun,” Nadine Daher, formalized an unprecedented partnership: 4 billion Lebanese pounds granted to the NGO to cover school fees for 80 students from various regions ...

Lebanon’s Collective Trauma Needs Peace

There was an unmistakable irony on Monday as Lebanon’s “Sunni street” marked the first anniversary of the fall of the Bashar al Assad regime. The same community that has condemned its Shia counterparts for venerating Iran’s rulers now engages in the same political canonization, this time for Syria’s new leaders. The motorbike convoys ...

No More Free Passes: U.S. Ties Security Aid to Lebanese Action

The U.S. Congress has sent a clear, stern message to Beirut that Washington’s support for the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) is no longer a blank check. The latest version of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), up for a vote in the House of Representatives, imposes new conditions and restrictions on U.S. aid to the Lebanese army, ...

Israel’s Power Vacuum Dilemma

On December 2 Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited Israel Defense Forces soldiers wounded in recent fighting in southern Syria. Their injuries followed a November 26 IDF raid on the village of Beit Jinn in southern Syria, an operation that left several Syrians dead and wounded a number of Israeli soldiers. Netanyahu had a ...

Barrack's Glaring Error on Syria and Lebanon

U.S. envoy Tom Barrack keeps warning that Lebanon will be “reabsorbed” into Syria unless Hezbollah is disarmed, a historically unfounded threat from someone who derides the Sykes-Picot boundaries as colonial nonsense yet treats Syria’s borders as sacrosanct. His selective anti-colonialism spares Syria, disregards Kurdish and Druze ...

Al-Qard al-Hassan’s Gold: Hezbollah’s New Financial Scheme

After introducing ATMs, easy-access loans, and clandestine counters scattered throughout the alleys of Beirut’s southern suburbs, al-Qard al-Hassan (AQAH), Hezbollah’s financial arm, has taken its operations a step further: direct gold trading. Gold bars, coins, and jewelry are reportedly now being offered to the Shiite community, turning gold ...

Raggi Declines Tehran Visit, Proposes Meeting in Neutral Country

Lebanese Foreign Minister Youssef Raggi has announced that he will not be able to accept an invitation from his Iranian counterpart, Abbas Araghchi, to visit Tehran at this time. He clarified that this decision does not signal a refusal to engage in dialogue with Iran, but rather reflects the absence of a conducive environment for such a ...

US Ambassador: Israel Differentiates Between Lebanon Talks and Hezbollah Conflict

Israel makes a clear distinction between its negotiations with the Lebanese government and its ongoing conflict with Hezbollah, U.S. Ambassador to Lebanon Michel Issa said following a meeting with Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri on Wednesday. The meeting was also attended by Edward Gabriel, chairman of the American Task Force for Lebanon ...

Lebanon and Oman Reaffirm Strategic Partnership During Presidential Visit

Following a two-day official visit to the Sultanate of Oman, President Joseph Aoun and Sultan Haitham bin Tariq issued a joint statement underscoring the strength of relations between their countries and their shared commitment to enhancing bilateral cooperation. The leaders highlighted the historical ties and fraternal bonds between the peoples ...

Israeli Airstrikes on December 8 Expose Hezbollah’s Extensive Tunnel Network in Southern Lebanon

On the night of December 8, the Israeli military carried out airstrikes in the Iqlim al-Tuffah area, north of the Litani River, in a region located north of Nabatiyeh and southwest of Jezzine. The strikes targeted multiple sites, including a training compound belonging to Hezbollah’s Radwan Unit and several rocket-launch locations. A report ...