Middle East

Iran-Lebanon Trade Surges as Hezbollah Adapts Smuggling Networks Under Pressure
Iran-Lebanon Trade Surges as Hezbollah Adapts Smuggling Networks Under Pressure

Despite mounting pressure on Hezbollah’s smuggling networks and Iran’s deepening financial crisis, trade flows between Tehran and Beirut surged in 2025, suggesting the two are adapting illicit channels to sustain Hezbollah’s parallel economy. Hezbollah's position has weakened since 2024 and Iran's financial crisis has ...

U.S. Completes Transfer of IS Detainees From Syria to Iraq: CENTCOM
U.S. Completes Transfer of IS Detainees From Syria to Iraq: CENTCOM

The United States Central Command said on Friday it had completed the transfer of thousands of detained Islamic State group suspects held in Syria to Iraq. The detainees had been held in Syria for years in camps overseen by Kurdish-led forces, but the recapture of surrounding territory by Damascus prompted Washington to step in. CENTCOM said it ...

Report: Trump to Unveil Multi-Billion Dollar Gaza Reconstruction Plan
Report: Trump to Unveil Multi-Billion Dollar Gaza Reconstruction Plan

President Donald Trump is set to launch a multi-billion-dollar initiative to rebuild Gaza and deploy a U.N.-authorized stabilization force, according to a report by Reuters citing senior U.S. officials. The announcement will take place at the inaugural meeting of Trump’s Board of Peace next week. The officials said the fund for Gaza will ...

Iran Announces Enquiry Team to Investigate Deadly Protests
Iran Announces Enquiry Team to Investigate Deadly Protests

The Iranian government announced on Friday the establishment of a commission of enquiry to look into protests against the high cost of living that turned into anti-government rallies that left thousands dead. "A fact-finding committee has been formed with representatives from relevant institutions and is collecting documents and hearing ...

Netanyahu Prepares ‘Plan B’ as U.S.-Iran Talks Hang in the Balance
Netanyahu Prepares ‘Plan B’ as U.S.-Iran Talks Hang in the Balance

Despite U.S. President Donald Trump’s push to keep negotiations with Iran alive in hopes of securing a deal, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is reportedly preparing a contingency “Plan B” should the talks collapse. Israeli sources reported that the Israeli army has prepared offensive plans in anticipation of a ...

Iran Releases on Bail Two Reformists Arrested After Protests: Local Media
Iran Releases on Bail Two Reformists Arrested After Protests: Local Media

Iranian authorities released the leader of the country's reformist coalition on bail Friday, days after she was arrested following anti-government protests, local media reported. Azar Mansouri, head of the Reformist Front, "was released from prison a few minutes ago after posting bail", her lawyer Hojjat Kermani told the ISNA news ...

White House Official to TIB: ‘Redeployment of U.S. Troops From Al-Tanf…Following a Comprehensive Operational Reassessment’
White House Official to TIB: ‘Redeployment of U.S. Troops From Al-Tanf…Following a Comprehensive Operational Reassessment’

In an exclusive statement given to This is Beirut, a senior official in the White House elaborated on their transfer of troops from al-Tanf in Syria to Jordan. The official said, “the redeployment of U.S. troops from the al-Tanf position in Syria to Jordan was carried out following a comprehensive operational ...

IDF Targets Hezbollah Operative in Al-Tayri
IDF Targets Hezbollah Operative in Al-Tayri

The IDF carried out an airstrike targeting a Hezbollah operative near al-Tayri in southern Lebanon on Thursday evening, the Israeli army’s Arabic spokesperson Avichay Adraee announced on X.  The attack hit a car with three missiles and killed one person.  This strike follows a series of attacks along the Lebanon-Israel border ...

Lebanese Army Cracks Down on Illegal Crossings as Syria Temporarily Eases Truck Restrictions
Lebanese Army Cracks Down on Illegal Crossings as Syria Temporarily Eases Truck Restrictions

The Lebanese army has stated it will crack down on illegal border crossings along its boundary with Syria on Thursday, as the two countries work towards addressing their porous border and the illicit networks operating across it. Crossings in the northern Beqaa Valley are a primary focus of the army’s efforts to increase monitoring of the ...

U.S. Covertly Delivers Starlink Devices Into Iran as Regime Escalates Arrests
U.S. Covertly Delivers Starlink Devices Into Iran as Regime Escalates Arrests

The U.S. purchased and smuggled over 6,000 Starlink satellite internet devices into Iran, U.S. officials revealed on Thursday, as the regime ramps up its repression against opposition figures. The devices were sent with the goal of providing anti-regime activists alternative ways to connect to the internet, despite the fact that Starlink ...

Iran Fortifies Natanz Nuclear Site as U.S. Weighs Expanded Military Posture
Iran Fortifies Natanz Nuclear Site as U.S. Weighs Expanded Military Posture

Despite both the U.S. and Iran stating their preference for diplomacy over escalation, both sides are preparing for the possibility of violent escalation. Iran has reportedly been rapidly fortifying their underground mountain complex at the Natanz nuclear site as seen in satellite imagery, according to the Jerusalem Post. According to the ...