Middle East

Israeli Forces to Expand Past ‘Yellow Line’ As Operations in Lebanon Intensify

This is Beirut 26/05 19:45 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

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The Israeli Army has started to operate on the ground past the “Yellow Line” in southern Lebanon on Tuesday as Israeli officials express their intent to intensify operations against Hezbollah amid persistent threats. According to AFP, citing an Israeli military official, the Israeli Army began to expand its operations in southern ...

AnalysisBehind Netanyahu’s Calculus on Lebanon Escalation Amid Potential U.S.-Iran Deal

Claudia Groeling 26/05 19:00 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

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Israel launched a widespread wave of overnight strikes across southern Lebanon and the Bekaa Valley, targeting more than 100 Hezbollah sites, according to the Israeli military. The IDF said the strikes hit weapons storage facilities, command centers, observation posts, and infrastructure allegedly used by Hezbollah militants to coordinate attacks ...

Trump to Meet Cabinet at Camp David on Iran

This is Beirut 26/05 18:00 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

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U.S. President Donald Trump is set to hold a rare cabinet meeting at the Camp David presidential retreat on Wednesday as Iran talks near a critical point, a White House official told AFP. The choice of the secluded retreat in the Maryland mountains -- which Trump hardly ever visits, in a break with previous presidents -- reflects the sensitive ...

Iran Media Says Negotiators Seek $24bn Asset Release in U.S. Deal

This is Beirut 26/05 14:25 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

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Iranian media said Tuesday that Tehran's negotiators were seeking the release of around $24 billion in frozen assets abroad as part of a process aimed at ending the war with the United States. The report by Tasnim news agency came as a top Iranian delegation was in Qatar and after Tehran said it was finalizing a 14-point framework for a deal on ...

Iran Executes Man Over Cooperation with Israeli Spy Agency

This is Beirut 26/05 13:50 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

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Iranian authorities on Tuesday executed a man after convicting him of cooperation with and espionage for Israel's Mossad spy agency, the judiciary said. "Gholamreza Khani Shakarab was executed on charges of intelligence cooperation and espionage in favor of the Zionist regime," the judiciary's Mizan Online website reported, adding that his ...

Rubio Says Iran Deal Still Days Away as U.S. Balances Diplomacy and Military Pressure

This is Beirut 26/05 11:35 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

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U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Tuesday that reaching an agreement with Iran may still require “a few days.” His remarks came one day after U.S. forces carried out what Washington described as defensive operations in southern Iran. According to Rubio, the strikes targeted missile launch sites as well as vessels allegedly ...

Iran Supreme Leader Says Region Will 'No Longer Serve as Shields' for U.S. Bases

This is Beirut 26/05 11:25 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

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Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, said on Tuesday that regional countries would no longer be shields for U.S. bases in a written statement carried by state television. "What is certain in this regard is that the hands of time will not turn backwards, and the nations and lands of the region will no longer serve as shields for ...

Netanyahu Orders Escalation Against Hezbollah as Strikes Intensify Across Lebanon

This is Beirut 26/05 10:55 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced Monday that he had ordered the Israeli military to intensify operations against Hezbollah, as Israeli airstrikes expanded across southern and eastern Lebanon amid a sharp rise in Hezbollah drone attacks targeting northern Israel. “We are at war with Hezbollah,” Netanyahu declared in ...

Op-edSaudi Arabia’s Voodoo Diplomacy Is Sabotaging Middle East Peace

Hussain Abdul-Hussain 26/05 09:25 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

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While Iran has strangled Kuwait and Qatar’s ability to export energy and fund repairs for costly damage inflicted by Iranian attacks, Saudi Arabia has done nothing to challenge Tehran. Instead, Riyadh—the self-anointed leader of the Gulf—prioritized denouncing the opening of a Somaliland embassy in Jerusalem. Saudi foreign ...

Qassem Escalates Against Lebanese State as Hezbollah Faces Growing Pressure Over Weapons and Negotiations

Kaline Antoun 25/05 20:40 - Reading : 5 minute(s)

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Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem sharply escalated his rhetoric against the Lebanese government on Sunday, openly rejecting direct negotiations with Israel, defending the group’s weapons, and warning that “the people have the right to overthrow the government if authorities fail to protect Lebanon’s sovereignty.” The speech, ...

Iranian Officials in Qatar for Peace Talks, Frozen Funds

This is Beirut 25/05 17:00 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

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A high-level Iranian delegation that includes the country's top negotiator and central bank chief were in Doha on Monday to discuss an agreement with the U.S. and the release of frozen funds, a source briefed on the matter told AFP. "Iran's Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi arrived in Doha earlier ...

Trump Pushes for Expanded Abraham Accords Amid Iran Negotiations

This is Beirut 25/05 16:05 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

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U.S. President Donald Trump has called for a major expansion of the Abraham Accords, urging several Middle Eastern and Muslim-majority countries to join the framework normalizing relations with Israel as part of a broader regional settlement linked to ongoing negotiations with Iran. In a lengthy statement published on Truth Social, Trump said he ...