Lebanon

Budget 2026: Balancing Fiscal Discipline and Social Promises in Lebanon

This is Beirut 19/09 20:20 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Lebanon UNIFIL Cabinet Budget Environment

The Council of Ministers resumed discussions on the 2026 draft budget on Friday, under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Nawaf Salam. Ministers who had not yet reviewed the funds allocated to their portfolios presented their remarks, including the Ministers of Environment and Tourism. Debate also centered on several articles left unresolved in ...

Two Killed, 11 Wounded in Israeli Strikes on South Lebanon

This is Beirut 19/09 15:15 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Nawaf Salam Lebanon South Lebanon Tibnine

Two people were killed and eleven others wounded in two Israeli drone strikes in southern Lebanon on Friday. The first strike targeted a car at the entrance of the Tebnine Governmental Hospital, in the Bint Jbeil district, killing Hussein Hassan Ramadan, a native of Taybeh in the Baalbek district. The raid was followed by another strike that ...

Two-Wheelers: The New Hazard on Lebanon’s Roads

Christiane Tager 19/09 14:39 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Lebanon economy roads motorcycles traffic

Lebanon’s economic collapse has pushed many to seek cheaper modes of transport than cars. Motorcycles and mopeds, consuming less fuel and offering greater flexibility, quickly became the go-to solution, spreading chaotically across the country’s roads. Numbers speak for themselves: according to the Vehicle Registration Authority (known ...

Israeli Strikes: UNIFIL Denounces 'Serious Violations' of Resolution 1701

This is Beirut 19/09 12:35 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Nawaf Salam Lebanon Hezbollah Lebanese Army South Lebanon UNIFIL

The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) condemned Thursday night’s Israeli airstrikes on multiple areas in South Lebanon, calling them “violations of Security Council Resolution 1701.” In a statement issued on Friday morning, UNIFIL warned that these attacks “put the fragile stability that has been built since November of ...

Pope Leo XIV in Lebanon at the End of November: What About the Visit’s Program?

This is Beirut 19/09 12:15 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Lebanon Joseph Aoun Pope Francis Turkey

The much-anticipated visit of Pope Leo XIV to Lebanon has reportedly been confirmed by senior church officials, according to the daily Nidaa al-Watan. Although no official announcement has yet been made by the Holy See, preparations—both spiritual and protocolary—are said to already be underway to welcome the head of the Catholic Church. The ...

Of Stones and Rocks

Johnny Kortbawi 19/09 11:10 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Lebanon Hassan Nasrallah Hezbollah Raoucheh

The Raouche Rock crisis has no real bearing on Lebanon’s political life. Yet, it does reveal the deep divide in how political figures are perceived: either as sacred icons or as demons. Hezbollah’s fabricated controversy over projecting the images of Hassan Nasrallah and Hashem Safieddine on the rock to mark their assassination is nothing more ...

US Ambassador Says Lebanese Army’s Efforts Are Strong but Insufficient

This is Beirut 18/09 21:35 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Lebanon Lebanese army Lisa Johnson U.S. Embassy United States

US Ambassador to Lebanon Lisa Johnson highlighted the central role played by the Lebanese Army since the ceasefire agreement, praising its performance as “impressive” but stressing that it is “not enough” to guarantee lasting stability. Speaking in Beirut, Johnson underscored the need for additional measures to strengthen security and ...

Series of Israeli Raids in Southern Lebanon After Warnings Issued by Adraee

This is Beirut 18/09 17:10 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Nawaf Salam Lebanon Strikes South Avichay adraee Hezbollah

A series of Israeli raids targeted several villages in southern Lebanon on Thursday, following evacuation warnings issued to residents by the Israeli army. The towns of Mays al-Jabal, Kfar tebnit and Debbin were targeted late afternoon after the Israeli army issued an urgent warning to residents of several villages in southern Lebanon, cautioning ...

UNIFIL Restarts Demining in South Lebanon After Two-Year Halt

This is Beirut 18/09 16:35 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Lebanon Minefield UNIFIL South peacekeeping

United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) peacekeepers resumed humanitarian demining operations last week in southern Lebanon, nearly two years after they were suspended due to cross-border fire along the Blue Line. At the request of the Government of Lebanon, demining teams from Cambodia and China began clearing two minefields near Blida ...

End-of-Service Benefits: The Only Social Safety Net at Risk Since the Crisis

Liliane Mokbel 18/09 16:20 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Lebanon economy Indemnities National Social Security Fund retirement

There is no doubt that employees remain the most vulnerable group in the struggle to ensure a dignified retirement. Their end-of-service benefits, intended to preserve part of their purchasing power, have been almost completely eroded by the multidimensional crisis that hit the country at the end of 2019. Employers Plead Powerlessness Employers ...

Extradition of Igor Grechushkin: Beirut and Sofia Coordinate Their Efforts

This is Beirut 18/09 13:10 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Lebanon Bulgaria Port Explosion Igor Grechushkin Rhosus

The judicial and diplomatic procedures concerning the extradition request of Igor Grechushkin, the Russian-Cypriot shipowner of the Rhosus, were the subject of a meeting Thursday morning between Lebanese Justice Minister Adel Nassar and the Bulgarian ambassador to Beirut, Iassen Tomov. Welcoming the exemplary cooperation and coordination of the ...

Op-edBuffer Zones and Broken Red Lines: Israel’s New Security Architecture in Syria and Lebanon

Salam El Zaatari 18/09 11:00 - Reading : 6 minute(s)

Nawaf Salam Lebanon Syria Peace United States Donald Trump Hezbollah

For decades, Israel and Lebanon have lived under a paradox: perpetual hostility punctuated by temporary ceasefires. The 1949 Armistice created quiet without peace until the Lebanese state allowed the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) to operate from its south in 1969. That decision transformed southern Lebanon into a launchpad for attacks on ...