This is Beirut

Israeli-Iranian Conflict: The Strait of Hormuz as a Pressure Tactic

Liliane Mokbel, 2024-10-17 10:00 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Europe Gulf Kuwait Middle East Saudi Arabia Tehran Ukraine United States

Iran may have to resort to a strategic tool: control of the Strait of Hormuz. According to several analyses, this tactic could be as devastating as a nuclear weapon. However, unlike a nuclear weapon, whose use would bring catastrophic consequences for Iran itself, the threat of closing the Strait of Hormuz serves as a form of "asymmetric ...

Iran's Quds Force Commander Attends Funeral of Slain General

This is Beirut, 2024-10-15 10:45 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Hamas Hassan Nasrallah Tehran

Iranian commander Esmail Qaani appeared in public on Tuesday after weeks of absence to attend the funeral ceremony for general Abbas Nilforoushan, who was killed last month in Lebanon. Nilforoushan, a general in Iran's Revolutionary Guards, was killed in an Israeli strike on Beirut alongside Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah. The funeral ...

Iranian Foreign Minister Meets Senior Houthi in Oman

This is Beirut, 2024-10-14 12:52 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Hamas Houthi Palestine Tehran Oman

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi met in Muscat on Monday with Mohammed Abdelsalam, a senior official from Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi movement, according to his office. The foreign ministry released pictures of their talks during Araghchi's visit to the Omani capital, the latest in a series of diplomatic trips in the region following ...

Iran Bans Pagers, Walkie-Talkies on Flights After Lebanon Attack

This is Beirut, 2024-10-12 18:55 - Reading : less than a minute

Tehran Lebanon Iran

Iran has banned pagers and walkie-talkies on all flights, local media reported on Saturday, weeks after deadly sabotage attacks in Lebanon which were blamed on Israel. "The entry of any electronic communication device, except mobile phones, in flight cabins or in non-accompanied cargo, has been banned," the ISNA news agency reported, citing the ...

US Expands Sanctions Against Iran’s Oil Industry Over Israel Strikes

This is Beirut, 2024-10-11 22:00 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Middle East Tehran USA

The United States hit Iran's oil and petrochemicals sectors with fresh sanctions on Friday in response to Tehran's October 1 attack against Israel, designating dozens of new companies and firms. In a statement on Friday, the Treasury Department said it was going after Iran's so-called "shadow fleet" of ships involved in selling Iranian oil in ...

The World’s Three Biggest Nuclear Hotspots

This is Beirut, 2024-10-11 21:10 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Tehran Ukraine USA Vladimir Putin nuclear

After Japan's anti-nuclear group Nihon Hidankyo won the Nobel Peace Prize on Friday, here is an overview of today's biggest nuclear hotspots. Israel-Iran trade warnings Israel regards Iran's nuclear facilities as an existential threat and has promised a "deadly, precise and surprising" response after Iran launched its second-ever direct strike ...

Japanese Atomic Bomb Survivor Group Wins Nobel Peace Prize

This is Beirut, 2024-10-11 21:00 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Middle East Tehran Ukraine United Nations Japan

The Nobel Peace Prize was awarded on Friday to Japan's Nihon Hidankyo, a grassroots movement of Hiroshima and Nagasaki survivors pushing for a nuclear weapons ban, as states like Russia threaten to use them. The group, also known as Hibakusha and founded in 1956, received the honor "for its efforts to achieve a world free of nuclear weapons and ...

Fear, Indifference in Iran Over Threat of Israeli Attack

This is Beirut, 2024-10-11 18:30 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Tehran USA Iran

With Israel threatening retaliation against Iran's missile attack, many on the streets of the Iranian capital appeared unfazed, while some expressed worries for their safety. All around Tehran, streets remained choked with the usual traffic as families took leisurely strolls through parks at the start of the weekend. Chatter poured onto the ...

Russia and Iran Hail ‘Close’ World Views

This is Beirut, 2024-10-11 16:26 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Middle East Tehran Ukraine Vladimir Putin

Vladimir Putin and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Friday hailed their "close" views on world affairs, with the Russian leader saying ties with Tehran were a "priority" for Moscow. The pair held a meeting in Turkmenistan, one of the world's most secretive states, amid soaring tensions in the Middle East, with Israeli air strikes on Beirut ...

Israel-Hezb: Between Moralistic Stance and Strategic Challenge

Michel Touma, 2024-10-11 14:06 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

South Lebanon Tehran UN Security Council

It could simply be media posturing, but the reality is that news outlets and social media networks continue to circulate reports of proposed truces or ceasefires. A halt to hostilities, or at least a pause in the ongoing military escalation, would certainly be timely — especially when considering the humanitarian crisis triggered by ...

Iranian Foreign Minister in Qatar, After Saudi, as Israel Threatens Retaliation

This is Beirut, 2024-10-10 13:54 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Hamas Palestine Saudi Arabia Tehran

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi met his Qatari counterpart in Doha on Thursday, his spokesman said, after Israel warned it would retaliate against his country for last week's missile attack. Qatar has played a key role in efforts to secure an elusive ceasefire in Gaza and has called for a truce in Lebanon, where Israel has escalated last ...

Electing a President Is Necessary Before Achieving a Ceasefire

Rami Rayess, 2024-10-09 10:00 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Ceasefire Hassan Nasrallah Tehran United States

Some may argue that electing a new president before achieving a ceasefire and ending the Israeli war on Hezbollah is illogical, because it contradicts the natural course of events. How can MPs head to the Parliament and cast their votes under the pressure of Israeli airstrikes, even if those strikes are on the outskirts of the capital and not in ...

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