World

Putin and Zelensky Set for Peace Summit After Trump Talks

This is Beirut 01:40 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

United States Ukraine Russia Donald Trump Volodymyr Zelensky Vladimir Putin

Russian and Ukrainian presidents Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelensky looked set for a peace summit after fast-moving talks Monday between Donald Trump and European leaders that focused on the key issue of long-term security guarantees for Kyiv. Hopes of a breakthrough rose after Trump said he had spoken by phone with Russian counterpart Putin ...

Syria Commission Says More Than 300,000 May Have Gone Missing Since 1970s

This is Beirut 18/08 23:35 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Syria Bashar al-Assad Hafez al-Assad Syria Commission for Missing Persons

The head of Syria's commission for missing persons said Monday the number of people who went missing during decades of Assad family rule and the civil war may have exceeded 300,000. Mohammed Reda Jalkhi, head of the commission created in May, said the body's mandate ranged from 1970, the year Hafez al-Assad took power, to the present day and had ...

Trump Floats Ukraine Security Pledges in Talks with Zelensky and Europeans

This is Beirut 18/08 23:22 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

United States Donald Trump Volodymyr Zelensky Ukraine

US President Donald Trump said Monday that Russia would accept security guarantees for Ukraine as part of a peace deal, as he hosted Volodymyr Zelensky and European leaders in an extraordinary show of unity at the White House. Trump expressed optimism over the chances of ending Russia's invasion and said he was ready to hold a three-way ...

Egypt Charges Rights Lawyer with Spreading False News

This is Beirut 18/08 23:15 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Egypt Mahienour El-Massry Gaza Human Rights

Egyptian authorities charged prominent human rights lawyer and activist Mahienour El-Massry with spreading false news in social media posts about Gaza and prison conditions in Egypt, one of her lawyers said Monday. El-Massry, 39, was summoned Monday to the offices of state security prosecutors, where she was questioned for hours before being ...

Trump Targets Mail-in Ballots Ahead of 2026 US Elections

This is Beirut 18/08 21:38 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Donald Trump United States Mail-in Balloting

US President Donald Trump said Monday he would lead a "movement" against mail-in balloting as he sought to eliminate a voting method used by nearly a third of the country ahead of next year's midterm elections. Trump, who has spent years railing against postal ballots, even though they have benefited his Republicans and he has voted by mail, ...

Zelensky and European Leaders Arrive for High-Stakes White House Talks

This is Beirut 18/08 20:20 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Volodymyr Zelensky Donald Trump Emmanuel Macron Europe Ukraine United States

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and European leaders arrived at the White House Monday ahead of high-stakes talks with US President Donald Trump aimed at bridging big differences over a peace deal with Russia. The leaders of Britain, France, Germany, Italy and Finland, as well as NATO chief Mark Rutte and European Commission chief Ursula ...

Hamas Agrees to New Gaza Ceasefire Proposal

This is Beirut 18/08 19:40 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Hamas Palestine Gaza Cairo

Hamas has accepted a new ceasefire proposal for Gaza, a senior member from the group said Monday, after a fresh diplomatic push to end more than 22 months of war. Mediators Egypt and Qatar, backed by the United States, have struggled to secure a lasting truce in the conflict, which has triggered a dire humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip. But ...

Iran Warns War with Israel Could Resume at Any Time

This is Beirut 18/08 19:15 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Iran Israel

A senior Iranian official warned Monday that war with Israel could erupt at any moment, describing the current lull after June's 12-day conflict as only a temporary halt. "We must be prepared at every moment for confrontation; right now, we are not even in a ceasefire (agreement); we are in a cessation of hostilities," said First Vice President ...

Trump-Zelensky: Dialogue Resumes After February Humiliation

Soumia Benmerzoug 18/08 17:10 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Volodymyr Zelensky Donald Trump Emmanuel Macron Europe Ukraine Russia

Last February 28, Zelensky’s visit to Washington ended in fiasco. In what some media dubbed “the ambush office,” Trump and his vice president, JD Vance, berated the Ukrainian leader, accusing him of ingratitude despite tens of billions of dollars in US military aid. The meeting ended abruptly, with Zelensky leaving without a press briefing ...

Zelensky Warns Against 'Rewarding' Russia After Trump Urges Concessions

This is Beirut 18/08 15:39 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Volodymyr Zelensky USA Donald Trump Emmanuel Macron Europe

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said ahead of talks with Donald Trump on Monday that Russia should not be "rewarded" for its invasion, after the US leader pressed Ukraine to make concessions in exchange for peace. The talks, in which European leaders will also take part, follows a Friday summit between Trump and Russian President ...

German Minister says China 'Increasingly Aggressive'

This is Beirut 18/08 10:00 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Japan Germany China

Germany's foreign minister hit out Monday at what he called China's repeated threats to "unilaterally change" borders in the Asia-Pacific region, calling Beijing "increasingly aggressive". "China repeatedly threatens, more or less openly, to unilaterally change the status quo and shift borders in its favor," Johann Wadephul said in Japan, citing ...

Zelensky Returns to Site of Stunning Oval Office Shouting Match

This is Beirut 18/08 09:25 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Volodymyr Zelensky Donald Trump Emmanuel Macron USA European Union

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky returns to the Oval Office on Monday for the first time since a spectacularly tense exchange with Donald Trump saw their talks cut short and question marks raised over future US support. At the February 28 meeting, Trump and Vice President JD Vance berated Zelensky on live television, accusing him of being ...