World

Gaza: Israel Endorses Ceasefire Agreement With Hamas, Truce Begins On Sunday

This is Beirut 18/01 02:35 - Reading : 5 minute(s)

The Israeli government gave the final green light on Saturday to the ceasefire agreement with Hamas in the Gaza Strip, paving the way for a truce to come into force on Sunday, with the release of the first Israeli hostages in exchange for Palestinian detainees. Announced on Wednesday by Qatar and the United States, the agreement aims to bring ...

Ex-CIA Analyst Guilty of Leaking Documents on Israel Plans to Strike Iran

This is Beirut 17/01 23:13 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Israel Iran CIA US

A former CIA official pleaded guilty Friday to leaking top secret US intelligence documents about Israeli military plans for a retaliatory strike on Iran. Asif Rahman, 34, who worked for the Central Intelligence Agency since 2016 and held a top secret security clearance, was arrested by the FBI in Cambodia in November. Rahman faces up to 20 ...

TikTok's US Future in Limbo after Supreme Court Ruling

This is Beirut 17/01 21:27 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

TikTok US Supreme Court ByteDance China United States

The US Supreme Court on Friday upheld a law that could force TikTok to shut down in the United States, potentially cutting off the app's 170 million users within days. The unanimous ruling, which found the law does not violate free speech rights, dealt a major blow to TikTok and created uncertainty about what will happen when the ban ...

Palestinian President Says Ready to Assume 'Full Responsibility' in Gaza

This is Beirut 17/01 21:25 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Mahmoud Abbas Gaza Israel Hamas Palestinian Authority

Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas said on Friday the Palestinian Authority was ready to assume "full responsibility" in post-war Gaza, in his first statement since a ceasefire deal was announced. "The Palestinian government, under president Abbas' directives, has completed all preparations to assume full responsibility in Gaza," including the ...

Israeli Cabinet Convenes to Vote on Gaza Ceasefire Deal

This is Beirut 17/01 20:50 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Israel Gaza Hamas ceasefire

Israel's cabinet convened on Friday to vote on a Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal that should take effect this weekend, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said. The agreement, which was earlier approved by the security cabinet, would halt fighting and bombardment in Gaza's deadliest-ever war. It would also launch on Sunday the ...

Israel Publishes List of 95 Palestinian Prisoners Eligible for Release Starting Sunday

This is Beirut 17/01 20:00 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Gaza Hamas Israel

The Israeli Ministry of Justice published a list of 95 Palestinian prisoners, the majority women, who are to be freed starting Sunday as part of the first exchange for Israeli captives under a Gaza ceasefire deal. "The release of prisoners is… subject to government approval of the (ceasefire) plan and will not take place before Sunday 16:00 ...

Russia and Iran Harden Military and Trade Ties in New Pact

This is Beirut 17/01 18:55 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Russia Iran Vladimir Putin Masoud Pezeshkian

Russia and Iran signed a new treaty on Friday underpinning their economic and military cooperation, in what both sides cast as a major milestone in their relations. Moscow has looked to the Islamic Republic as a strategic ally since sending troops into Ukraine in February 2022, worrying Western officials who see both as malign actors on the world ...

US President-Elect Trump Holds Phone Talks with Chinese Leader Xi

This is Beirut 17/01 17:55 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Donald Trump Xi Jinping United States China

Chinese President Xi Jinping held phone talks Friday with US president-elect Donald Trump, Chinese state media reported. CCTV said the phone call happened "on the evening of January 17", without providing any immediate further details. Earlier on Friday, China announced Xi would send Vice President Han Zheng to attend Trump's inauguration next ...

ICC Chief Prosecutor Karim Khan Meets Syria's New Leader

This is Beirut 17/01 16:30 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Karim Khan Ahmed al-Sharaa ICC HTS Syria

Chief prosecutor at the International Criminal Court, Karim Khan, met Syria's new leader, Ahmed al-Sharaa, on Friday, state media reported, as last month's ouster of Bashar al-Assad sparks hopes for justice. Sharaa and Syria's foreign minister, Asaad al-Shaibani, met "a delegation from the International Criminal Court, headed" by Khan, state news ...

Israeli Security Cabinet Approves Gaza Ceasefire Deal

This is Beirut 17/01 15:44 - Reading : 5 minute(s)

Ceasefire Donald Trump Benjamin Netanyahu United Nations

Israel's security cabinet approved in a vote on Friday a Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal that should take effect this weekend, the prime minister's office said. The agreement, which must now go to the full cabinet for a final green light, would halt fighting and bombardment in Gaza's deadliest-ever war. It would also launch ...

World Bank Sees Slow and Steady Global Growth

This is Beirut 17/01 12:40 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Banks Covid-19 Europe Middle East World Bank

Global growth should remain stable this year and next, but at recent historic lows, the World Bank said Thursday, expressing particular concern about growth in developing countries. Growth should hit 2.7 percent in 2025 and 2026, in line with the level reached last year, the World Bank announced in a new report, adding that inflation and interest ...

London's FTSE 100 stocks index hits record high

This is Beirut 17/01 12:30 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

United Kingdom

London's benchmark FTSE 100 index reached an all-time high in early trading Friday, lifted by renewed optimism over the global economy. The index jumped 1.0 percent to 8,475.35 points, slightly surpassing a record achieved in May last year. Around 0900 GMT, it stood at 8,472.67 points. British stocks have been boosted in recent days by a drop ...