World

Hariri-Chirac: Friendship and Political Support

Elie Valluy - Paris correspondent 14/02 12:00 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Jacques Chirac Rafic Hariri Lebanon France

February 16, 2005. Jacques Chirac arrived at Beirut airport with his wife, Bernadette, to pay tribute to former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafic Hariri, who had been killed in a massive bombing two days earlier. As he stepped off the plane and delivered a speech on the airport tarmac, Chirac condemned the “abominable crime, one that seemed like it ...

TikTok Returns to Apple and Google App Stores in the US

This is Beirut 14/02 09:20 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Tiktok Donald Trump USA China Ban

TikTok has returned to Apple and Google app stores nearly a month after a new security law forced its removal, AFP journalists confirmed on Thursday. The Chinese-owned social media platform faces being banned in the United States over national security concerns about the data it gathers on users. The popular video-sharing app briefly went dark ...

Q&AWhat Are Trump's Reciprocal Tariffs and Who May Be Hit?

This is Beirut 14/02 09:00 - Reading : 5 minute(s)

Donald Trump USA Tarrifs

President Donald Trump's plan for "reciprocal tariffs" on US trading partners is set to spark a flurry of negotiations that could reduce levies. But analysts warn that it also risks painful retaliation. "This is every country, and essentially, when they treat us fairly, we treat them fairly," Trump told reporters. What ...

Zelensky Warns West of Putin Real Intentions

This is Beirut 14/02 05:40 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Volodymyr Zelensky Ukraine Vladimir Putin Russia United States

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky warned Westerners on Thursday of Vladimir Putin's real intentions and called for Russia to be “stopped” before anything else, despite Donald Trump's assurances that the Russian president “wants peace”. The Europeans, shocked by the announcement of a first telephone ...

Trump Offers Trade Deal to Modi in Full 'Bromance' Mode

This is Beirut 14/02 04:55 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Donald Trump US Supreme Court Europe Israel United States

US President Donald Trump on Thursday offered to sell state-of-the-art fighter jets to India as he and Prime Minister Narendra Modi vowed to ramp up trade, rekindling a bond that defies the new US administration's punitive approach to much of the world. Modi, only the fourth world leader to visit the White House since Trump's return, ...

Washington Plans to Impose Reciprocal Tariffs on Trade Partners

This is Beirut 13/02 23:05 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Washington Donald Trump European Union United States White House

U.S. President Donald Trump announced on Thursday a proposal for reciprocal tariffs targeting countries that impose duties on U.S. imports, according to Reuters. This measure, which could take effect in the coming weeks, is part of his administration's protectionist policy aimed at strengthening economic and national security. "Today is a great ...

"Make NATO Great Again": US Pressures Allies on Defence Spending

This is Beirut 13/02 19:55 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

USA Donald Trump Europe Kyiv Ukraine

US defence chief Pete Hegseth issued a call Thursday to "make NATO great again" -- urging European countries to spend more on defence with a twist on Donald Trump's trademark slogan. Meeting NATO partners the day after Trump revealed plans to start peace talks with Russia's Vladimir Putin, the Pentagon head said Washington remained committed to ...

Musk Freezes the National Endowment for Democracy's Funding, Causing a Crisis

This is Beirut 13/02 18:20 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Republicans Donald Trump US Congress

Elon Musk is targeting the National Endowment for Democracy (NED), an organization funded by the U.S. Congress since 1983 to support democracy abroad. He accuses the organization of corruption and calls for its dissolution. Since these statements, the NED has been unable to access its U.S. Treasury funds, putting many beneficiary organizations at ...

Israel Threatens to Resume War If Three Hostages Are Not Released by Saturday

This is Beirut 13/02 17:00 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Hamas Israel Donald Trump Benjamin Netanyahu

Hamas must release three living hostages on Saturday under the terms of the ongoing Gaza truce deal or Israel will return to war in the Palestinian territory, an Israeli government spokesman said Thursday. The ceasefire "framework makes clear that three live hostages must be released by Hamas terrorists on Saturday", spokesman David Mencer told ...

Afghan Held after Suspected Ramming attack Injures 28 in Germany

This is Beirut 13/02 15:26 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Munich Germany

An Afghan asylum seeker was arrested after a suspected car ramming attack injured at least 28 people in the southern German city of Munich on Thursday, police said. The incident comes on the eve of a high-profile international conference in Munich and amid an election campaign in which immigration and security have been key issues after a spate ...

UK Plans to Ease Syria Sanctions after Assad Fall

This is Beirut 13/02 14:20 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

United Kingdom Syria

The UK plans to ease sanctions on Syria following the fall of Bashar al-Assad, under a new plan announced by the government on Thursday. Still weighed down by heavy international sanctions, the new Syrian government is aiming to persuade Western capitals that the jihadist origins of the rebels that toppled Assad, after 14 years in charge, are ...

Russians Cautiously Upbeat after Putin-Trump Call

This is Beirut 13/02 14:15 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Donald Trump Kyiv Ukraine Vladimir Putin

Russians were cautiously upbeat after Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump spoke by phone Wednesday, praising it as a "first step" towards repairing ruptured ties between the two nuclear-armed superpowers. In the first presidential contact between Moscow and Washington in three years, Trump said the pair agreed to "immediately" kick off talks on ...