Middle East

Israel says Shares with France 'Common' Goal of Iran Without Nuclear Weapons

This is Beirut 2025-04-03 12:55 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Israel and France share a "common" goal of preventing Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons, the Israeli foreign minister said in Paris on Thursday. Western countries including the United States have long accused Iran of pursuing a nuclear weapon, which Tehran has denied, insisting its enrichment activities were solely for peaceful purposes. "The ...

Forbes 2025: Lebanese Figures Stand Out Among the World's Billionaires

Christiane Tager 2025-04-03 12:15 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Donald Trump

The latest Forbes Billionaires ranking for 2025 was released in early April, setting new records with a total of $16.1 trillion—$2 trillion more than the previous year. No longer just a compilation of names and figures, it now serves as a map of the global economic elite, where market surges, major acquisitions, and breakthrough innovations ...

Syria Local Govt says Israeli Bombardment kills Nine

This is Beirut 2025-04-03 10:02 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Nawaf Salam Syria Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdogan

Israeli bombardment killed nine people in Syria as troops conducted a raid in the south, the local government and a war monitor said, with the Israeli army saying its forces were responding to fire from militants. The shelling came after an "Israeli incursion", with "the occupation forces advancing for the first time to this ...

Q&AWhat is the 'Qatargate' Scandal Roiling Israel?

This is Beirut 2025-04-03 09:45 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Qatar Israel

Israel has been gripped by allegations linking aides of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to financing from Qatar, which hosts Hamas leaders and helped broker the release of hostages from Gaza. Dubbed "Qatargate" by Israeli media, the reports that sparked the investigation claimed that some of the people closest to Netanyahu had been recruited to ...

SpotlightThe US and Iran's Dangerous Dance

Salam El Zaatari 2025-04-03 09:30 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Iran Middle East USA

The US and Iran are now locked in a decisive showdown—one that will either lead to a historic breakthrough or ignite a conflict that redraws the map of the Middle East. The Pentagon’s recent deployment of additional warplanes to the Middle East, notably the stationing of up to six B-2 stealth bombers at Diego Garcia, is a stark indicator of ...

Israel PM Says 'Dissecting' Gaza to Force Hamas to Free Hostages

This is Beirut 2025-04-03 09:19 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Nawaf Salam Hamas Gaza Benjamin Netanyahu

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Wednesday that the military was "dissecting" the Gaza Strip and seizing territory to pressure Hamas into freeing hostages still held in the enclave. It came as rescuers said 34 people were killed in continued Israeli strikes on the territory, including on a UN building. The military ...

What the world said about Trump's tariffs

This is Beirut 2025-04-03 09:05 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Donald Trump Emmanuel Macron United States European Union

US President Donald Trump on Wednesday announced sweeping new tariffs on imports to the United States from countries right across the globe. Here are international reactions so far from the world's major economies: China Beijing said it "firmly opposes" the new tariffs on its exports, and vowed "countermeasures to safeguard its own rights and ...

Nothing Is Going Well for the Mullahs…

Marc Saikali 2025-04-03 08:30 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Nawaf Salam Iran Donald Trump Nuclear

By playing Russian roulette for too long, one eventually gets shot. This is the situation Iran's leaders are now facing. Since 1979, Khomeini and his successors have tried to export their so-called Islamic Revolution throughout the region. Without any success, but with plenty of blood, wars and tears. First in Iraq, then in Syria, Yemen, Lebanon ...

Fresh Trump Tariffs to Take Effect on April 5 and 9

This is Beirut 2025-04-03 00:17 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

United States Donald Trump Tariffs Trade

President Donald Trump's sweeping new tariffs on US trading partners are set to begin this weekend, said White House officials Wednesday, with a higher rate on "worst offenders" to take effect next week. Declaring that a "national emergency" stemmed from security concerns due to persistent trade deficits, the White House ...

Trump Tells Inner Circle That Elon Musk Will Depart Soon

This is Beirut 2025-04-02 19:35 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Donald Trump United States Elon Musk

President Donald Trump has informed his inner circle, including Cabinet members, that Elon Musk will soon be stepping back from his current role as a governing partner, influential supporter, and Washington operative, according to American media company Politico. Although Trump remains pleased with Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency ...

Military Confrontation 'Almost Inevitable' If Iran Nuclear Talks Fail

This is Beirut 2025-04-02 19:25 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

France Iran Jean-Noel Barrot

France's foreign minister warned Wednesday that a military confrontation with Iran would be "almost inevitable" if talks over Tehran's nuclear program failed. "In the event of failure, a military confrontation would appear to be almost inevitable," Jean-Noel Barrot said in parliament, adding that it would severely destabilize the region. Earlier ...

US Stocks Advance Ahead of Looming Trump Tariffs

This is Beirut 2025-04-02 19:15 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Donald Trump United States Dollar Financial Markets

Wall Street stocks rose ahead of US President Donald Trump's fresh wave of tariffs, while European stocks ended the day lower. The dollar was mostly lower, oil prices wobbled, while gold, viewed as a safe-haven investment, came close to achieving a fresh all-time high. After Tokyo's stock market closed up slightly and Chinese indices steadied, ...