World

Trump’s Middle East Tour: Diplomacy Under the Billion-Dollar Sign

Mario Chartouni 12/05 17:55 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Donald Trump Middle East Gulf Saudi Arabia Qatar UAE

Donald Trump begins the first diplomatic tour of his second term with a strategic visit to Gulf monarchies. This tour — which includes Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates — aims to strengthen already solid economic ties with these hydrocarbon-rich states, with the hope of securing massive trade and investment deals. Riyadh has ...

Edan Alexander's Release: A Diplomatic Turning Point Between Washington and Hamas

Sana Richa Choucair 12/05 17:15 - Reading : 5 minute(s)

Hamas Donald Trump US Gaza Israel Hostages

Edan Alexander, 21, is the only American national still held alive in Gaza. After moving from New Jersey to Israel in 2022, he joined an elite unit of the Israeli army and was taken by Hamas during the October 7, 2023 attack. In a statement released on Sunday, the spokesperson for Hamas’s military wing, the al-Qassam Brigades, said: “The ...

Israel PM Says to Send Gaza Negotiators to Qatar Tuesday

This is Beirut 12/05 17:10 - Reading : less than a minute

Israel Gaza Hamas Benjamin Netanyahu US

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that he would send mediators to Qatar on Tuesday to discuss the release of hostages held in Gaza after Hamas announced the release of US-Israeli Edan Alexander. Following a meeting with US envoy Steve Witkoff and ambassador Mike Huckabee, "the Prime Minister instructed to send a negotiation ...

Germany, Israel Mark 60 Years of Ties as Gaza War Casts Shadow

This is Beirut 12/05 15:15 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Israel Germany

Israeli President Issac Herzog will visit Germany on Monday to mark 60 years of relations with the country that perpetrated the Holocaust, at a time when ties are complicated by the Gaza war. His German counterpart Frank-Walter Steinmeier will then visit Israel with Herzog, to emphasise Germany's historic responsibility as one of its staunchest ...

Pope Leo XIV’s First Speech: Peace, Charity and Compassion to the Most Vulnerable

This is Beirut 12/05 14:30 - Reading : less than a minute

Vatican Pope Leo XIV

In front of tens of thousands of faithful gathered at the Vatican, Leo XIV, the first American pope, delivers his first speech, centered on peace, charity, and compassion to the most vulnerable, affirming his vision of a Church in motion.

Pope Urges Release of Reporters Held for 'Seeking Truth'

This is Beirut 12/05 12:45 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Vatican Pope Leo

Pope Leo XIV called on Monday for the release of journalists jailed "for seeking and reporting the truth" and warned reporters against using their words to fan hatred. The former Robert Francis Prevost, the first US pope, was speaking at an introductory audience with the media after being elected by cardinals in a secret conclave on ...

Drones Hit Ukraine as Zelensky Awaits Putin Reply on Talks

This is Beirut 12/05 12:45 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Volodymyr Zelensky Ukraine Ceasefire

Russia fired more than 100 drones at Ukraine overnight, Kyiv said Monday as it awaits the Kremlin's response to Volodymyr Zelensky's call for a personal meeting with Vladimir Putin this week. Ukraine and its allies urged Moscow to agree to a full and unconditional 30-day ceasefire starting Monday, but Putin came back with a counter-proposal for ...

VideosRiyadh Rolls Out the Red Carpet for Trump

This is Beirut 12/05 12:20 - Reading : less than a minute

Donald Trump Gulf Palestine Saudi Arabia

Donald Trump will begin his Gulf tour in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, where he is set to receive a grand welcome in Riyadh. The visit will focus on boosting investments in defense, energy and artificial intelligence. However, rising tensions with Iran and the ongoing crisis in Gaza loom large over the trip.

Hamas Says will Release US-Israeli Hostage Monday

This is Beirut 12/05 12:09 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Benjamin Netanyahu Ceasefire Hamas Israel

Hamas's armed wing said it would release on Monday a US-Israeli hostage held in Gaza since October 2023, even as Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned of an "intensification" of fighting in the war-ravaged territory. The Palestinian militant group on Sunday said it would release US-Israeli soldier Edan Alexander, ahead of a visit by ...

Kurdish Militant Group PKK says Disbanding, Ending Armed Struggle

This is Beirut 12/05 11:08 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Turkey Ocalan Kurd

The Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) on Monday announced its dissolution, saying it was ending its armed struggle against the Turkish state and drawing a line under its bloody four-decade insurgency. Founded in the late 1970s by Abdullah Ocalan, the PKK carried out attacks aimed at defending Kurdish autonomy in Turkey that cost more than 40,000 ...

Leo XIV Gets Down to Business on First Full week as Pope

This is Beirut 12/05 09:55 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Pope Francis Hamas Israel Ukraine

Pope Leo XIV launches his first full week as leader of the world's Catholics on Monday, with journalists, diplomats and top Vatican officials all set to meet the newly elected pontiff. Pomp and prayer marked the initial days of the pontificate of the former Robert Francis Prevost, the US pope first introduced to the world from the balcony of St ...

Trump Hails Air Force One 'Gift' after Qatari Luxury Jet Reports

This is Beirut 12/05 09:45 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Donald Trump Washington

Donald Trump on Sunday defended plans to receive a new Air Force One as a gift, after reports he will accept a luxury Boeing jet from Qatar despite strict rules on presents for US presidents. Calling the plane a "flying palace," ABC News, which first reported the story, said the Boeing 747-8 jumbo jet gifted from the Qatari royal family would ...