World

Israel Ratifies U.S.-Brokered Ceasefire and Hostage Deal and Begins Pullback from Gaza

This is Beirut 11:10 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Israel Ceasefire Donald Trump Benjamin Netanyahu Gaza

The Israeli government has officially approved a U.S.-brokered ceasefire and hostage release deal with Hamas, marking a potential turning point in the nearly two-year-long war in Gaza. The agreement, mediated with support from Egypt and Qatar, was ratified by Israel’s cabinet early Friday morning, triggering a 24-hour window for the Israeli army ...

'Massive Attack' Cuts Power in Ukrainian Capital

This is Beirut 09:35 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Volodymyr Zelensky Donald Trump Kyiv Ukraine United States

The Ukrainian capital was plunged into darkness early Friday by what the air force called a "massive attack", as Russia pummeled Kyiv's infrastructure, cutting off water and energy supplies. The Kremlin has escalated aerial attacks on Ukrainian energy facilities and rail systems over recent weeks, mirroring similar campaigns launched over the ...

New York Attorney General Letitia James Indicted on Federal Charges

This is Beirut 09:30 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Donald Trump New York US Congress Attorney General Letitia James

New York Attorney General Letitia James was indicted on Thursday. James, 66, a Democrat, was indicted by a grand jury in Alexandria, Virginia, on one count of bank fraud and a second one of making false statements to a financial institution. The charges against James were brought one day after former FBI director James Comey, pleaded not guilty ...

France's Macron to Name PM to End Political Crisis

This is Beirut 09:25 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Emmanuel Macron France Lecornu Prime Minister Government

France's Emmanuel Macron was on Friday due to pick a head of government tasked with pulling the country out of a political gridlock, in a move that staves off fresh elections for now. French politics have been deadlocked ever since Macron took the gamble last year of snap polls that he hoped would consolidate power -- but ended instead in a hung ...

Team of 200 US Troops to 'Oversee' Gaza Truce

This is Beirut 09:15 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

USA Donald Trump Hamas Israel Centcom

A US military team of 200 people will be deployed in the Middle East to "oversee" the Gaza ceasefire between Israel and Hamas after a peace deal brokered by President Donald Trump, senior US officials said Thursday. Admiral Brad Cooper, the head of the US military's Central Command, "will initially have 200 people on the ground. His role will be ...

Israel Government Approves Gaza Hostage Release Deal

This is Beirut 09:10 - Reading : 5 minute(s)

Israel Palestine Donald Trump Benjamin Netanyahu USA

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said on Friday that the government had "approved the framework" of a hostage release deal with Hamas, as both sides edged closer to ending more than two years of hostilities in Gaza. Israel previously said "all parties" had signed the first phase of a ceasefire ...

7.4 Magnitude Quake Strikes off Southern Philippines

This is Beirut 05:50 - Reading : less than a minute

Philippines Earthquake Tsunami

A powerful magnitude-7.4 earthquake struck off the southern Philippines on Friday, triggering warnings of a "destructive tsunami" on the country's Pacific coast within hours. The quake struck about 20 kilometres (12 miles away) from Manay in the Mindanao region at 9:43 am (0143 GMT), the United States Geological Survey (USGS) ...

Washington Targets Iraqi Firm and Olympic Chief With Sanctions Over Iran Links

This is Beirut 09/10 22:20 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Sanctions United States Iran Iraq

The US Treasury on Thursday ramped up its Iran-related sanctions, targeting a firm with ties to Iran-backed militia groups in Iraq and the president of Iraq's Olympic Committee. In a statement, the Treasury Department accused these militias of helping "the Iranian regime in evading U.S. sanctions, smuggling weapons, and engaging in widespread ...

VideosRobert Badinter Enters the Pantheon as France Honors the Champion of Human Rights

This is Beirut 09/10 22:05 - Reading : 7 minute(s)

Robert Badinter Pantheon France

Robert Badinter, the justice minister who ended the death penalty in France in 1981, entered the country's Pantheon mausoleum of outstanding historical figures on Thursday, just hours after his grave was vandalized. Badinter, a lawyer who campaigned for an end to capital punishment after one of his clients was beheaded with a guillotine in the ...

How a Whisper and a Note Led to Trump’s Gaza Deal

This is Beirut 09/10 21:20 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Donald Trump Marco Rubio Gaza Israel

It began with a hastily written note and a whisper. It ended with a Gaza deal long sought by Donald Trump. Something was obviously going on when US Secretary of State Marco Rubio made an unexpected appearance during a roundtable at the White House on the left-wing Antifa movement on Wednesday. "By the way, we have Marco Rubio. Marco, come on up ...

Trump to Visit Egypt for Gaza Ceasefire Celebration

This is Beirut 09/10 20:30 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Donald Trump Gaza Egypt Israel

US envoy Steve Witkoff said President Donald Trump is set to travel to Egypt next week, after Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi extended an invitation to attend celebrations over a Gaza ceasefire deal. "The President is really excited to come to Egypt, and that is the plan, that he comes next week," Witkoff said in a meeting with Sisi, a ...

Hamas Rejects Trump’s Proposed Peace Committee for Gaza

This is Beirut 09/10 20:25 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Hamas Gaza Israel Donald Trump

Senior Hamas official Osama Hamdan on Thursday told Qatar-based broadcaster Al Araby the Palestinian militant group rejects Donald Trump's proposal for an interim "Board of Peace" to oversee Gaza's administration, headed by the US president himself. Israel and Hamas on Thursday agreed to a ceasefire deal to free hostages held in Gaza in exchange ...