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The Hermes Kelly: Elegance Inspired by Grace Kelly

In the exacting world of luxury leather goods, few pieces have left as profound a mark on collective memory as the Hermes Kelly. No other bag so effortlessly unites French equestrian heritage with international glamour. Originally created in the late 19th century as a “Haut à Courroies” for carrying saddles, it evolved in 1935 into the ...

Fabergé’s Winter Egg Sets New Auction Record at £22.9 Million at Christie’s

Fabergé's The Winter Egg, considered one of his most beautiful creations, sold for nearly £23 million ($30 million) at auction Tuesday in London, smashing the sales record for the legendary jeweler of Imperial Russia. It is the third time the delicate bejeweled egg, which went under the hammer at Christie's auction house, has ...

Aoun Welcomes French Role in Mechanism Committee, Reaffirms Commitment to Diplomacy

President Joseph Aoun told French special envoy Jean-Yves Le Drian on Monday that Lebanon is open to an enhanced French role within the framework of the “Mechanism Committee,” stressing that any such involvement must support the committee’s core negotiation goals. During the meeting at Baabda Palace, Aoun outlined ...

Over 600 Artifacts Stolen From British Empire Collection In Bristol Museum Heist

More than 600 items, including military medals and jewelry from a collection documenting the links between Britain and countries in the former British Empire, were stolen from a UK museum in September, police said Thursday. Avon and Somerset Police have launched an appeal for information about four men captured on security cameras on September ...

Israel’s Power Vacuum Dilemma

On December 2 Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited Israel Defense Forces soldiers wounded in recent fighting in southern Syria. Their injuries followed a November 26 IDF raid on the village of Beit Jinn in southern Syria, an operation that left several Syrians dead and wounded a number of Israeli soldiers. Netanyahu had a ...

'One Battle After Another' Leads Golden Globes Noms With Nine

Paul Thomas Anderson's politically charged "One Battle After Another" leads with nine nominations for the Golden Globes, organizers announced Monday, as the race to the Oscars kicked into high gear. Norwegian family dramedy "Sentimental Value" was second with eight, followed by period horror movie "Sinners" with seven and Shakespeare family drama ...

“Hope:” The Last Lifeline

“Young people of Lebanon, grow strong like the cedars and let the world blossom with hope!” With these words, Pope Leon XIV concluded his address to the 15,000 Lebanese youths gathered around him on December 1 at the patriarchal siege in Bkerke. “Hope”, a word charged with meaning and symbolism, invites us to revisit both its spiritual ...

Lebanon’s Diplomatic Pivot: Understanding Simon Karam’s Role

Wednesday’s meeting of the ceasefire monitoring mechanism in Naqoura carried the weight of history. Lebanon held civilian-led direct talks with Israel for the first time in decades, a development that offered Beirut a rare opportunity to resuscitate the faltering November 27, 2024, ceasefire and begin moving toward substantive political ...

Day Two: Pope Leo XIV Highlights Peace, Unity and Solidarity

On the second day of his visit to Lebanon on Monday, Pope Leo XIV met with bishops, clergy, religious communities, and pastoral workers at the Our Lady of Lebanon Shrine in Harissa, where he delivered an address focused on his trip’s theme: “Blessed are the peacemakers.” The Pope praised the Lebanese Church’s role in sustaining hope amid ...

French Indie Title 'Clair Obscur' Dominates Game Awards

French indie title "Clair Obscur: Expedition 33" dominated the annual Game Awards in Los Angeles, winning a record of nine categories, including best video game of the year. "What a weird timeline for us," Guillaume Broche of video game studio Sandfall Interactive quipped, thanking his team as he accepted the top award. "And also I want to ...

Jaber’s Blunt Truth: The Law that Destroys Banks and Wipe Out Savings

Finance Minister Yassine Jaber did not mince words: “The banks will be the first losers” if the Financial Gap Law is enacted. And if the banks lose, depositors inevitably lose too. The draft law places the full burden of repaying deposits on the banks alone — a move that would inevitably destroy the Lebanese banking sector and wipe out ...

Lebanon Must Answer the Pope’s Call for Peace

From the heart of Lebanon—a biblical land living under Hezbollah’s shadow—Pope Leo XIV issued a clarion call for genuine peace, not merely a ceasefire, between longstanding adversaries. Although he refrained from naming Israel directly, the implication was unmistakable: the pontiff was urging Lebanon to pursue normalization with its southern ...

Netanyahu Submits Pardon Request in Israel Corruption Cases

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, on trial facing corruption charges, announced Sunday he had submitted a pardon request, saying the long-running cases were tearing the country apart. US President Donald Trump wrote to Israeli President Isaac Herzog earlier this month, asking him to pardon Netanyahu, who has repeatedly denied wrongdoing ...

Taekwondo: A Precious Bronze for Jane Abboud at the Sarajevo Grand Prix

Young Lebanese taekwondo athlete Jane Abboud (–37 kg category) claimed an impressive bronze medal at the Grand Prix Finals Sarajevo (Bosnia and Herzegovina) in the 12–14 age division, marking yet another major achievement for Lebanese taekwondo on the international stage. At her age, reaching the podium at such a high-level competition is ...

Lebanon’s F&B Boom Masks Illicit-Economy Risks

Lebanon finds itself in a paradox. While its broader economy is collapsing, the food-and-beverage (F&B) sector is showing surprising vitality. It may look like a feel-good tale of resilience, but in fact it reveals one of the greatest structural threats to Lebanon’s recovery: a cash-based economy that undermines transparency, fuels illicit ...

Doctor Jailed for Supplying Ketamine to ‘Friends’ Star Matthew Perry

A doctor who supplied Friends star Matthew Perry with ketamine in the months before he fatally overdosed, musing to a fellow physician over "how much this moron will pay" for the drug, was jailed in California on Wednesday. Salvador Plasencia, 44, is the first of five people to face justice over Perry's 2023 death in the hot tub of his Los ...

Hollywood Awards Race Heats up With Golden Globes Nominations

Hollywood's awards season shifts into high gear Monday when nominations for the Golden Globes are unveiled, with hit musical "Wicked: For Good," Shakespeare family tragedy "Hamnet" and period horror movie "Sinners" leading the charge. Paul Thomas Anderson's politically charged "One Battle After Another," starring Leonardo DiCaprio, and ...

Kurds at a Crossroads as Middle East Shifts

Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) commander Mazloum Abdi’s November 19 trip to the autonomous Kurdistan region of northern Iraq was an important moment, underscoring that Kurdish leaders now appear to understand the importance of cooperation amid sweeping changes in the region. Abdi—a close partner of the US military in Syria who spent ...

J. Aoun Announces a Five-Point Plan to Reassert State Authority and Open the Path to Peace

On the occasion of the 82nd anniversary of Lebanon’s Independence, President Joseph Aoun delivered a speech Friday evening from South Lebanon, focusing on sovereignty, the state’s exclusive control over arms, and the need to turn the page on “mini-states.” The head of state unveiled a five-point plan aimed at fully restoring state ...

Pressures and Calculations on Lebanon's Southern Border

Israeli defense officials increasingly fear that the relative quiet along the northern border may mask conditions for a rapid escalation. According to Ynet and Yedioth Ahronoth, on Monday, senior Israeli army officers say Hezbollah has continued to reinforce its military infrastructure in Lebanese villages deeper inside the country, despite almost ...

After Call for Christian Unity, Pope Leaves Turkey for Lebanon

Pope Leo XIV headed to Lebanon on Sunday with a message of peace for the crisis-hit nation after wrapping up a four-day trip to Turkey's tiny Christian community that focused on unity within the Church. Ending the first part of his maiden overseas tour since being elected leader of the world's 1.4 billion Catholics, Leo boarded the papal ...

Triathlon: Mia Sahioun Rises to the Top of West Asia

At just 15 years old, triathlete Mia Sahioun is already collecting national titles and international medals. From Kfarchima to Abu Dhabi, passing through Jounieh, Bahrain, and Fujeirah, Lebanon’s “golden girl” of triathlon has climbed to the very top of the West Asian rankings… with Asia, Dakar, and perhaps one day the Olympic Games now in ...

Washington Sends Warning with Cancellation of LAF Chief’s Trip

Washington's abrupt cancellation of Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) chief General Rodolphe Haykal's planned visit earlier this week signals deepening U.S. dissatisfaction with both Lebanon's approach to Hezbollah's disarmament and the LAF’s public stances on ongoing Israeli border incursions. Haykal, appointed to his post in March, was poised for ...

US Presses Ukraine to Cede Land as Russian Strikes Kill 26

A new US peace proposal would see Kyiv ceding land and more than halving its army, a source told AFP Wednesday, as a Russian strike in the west of Ukraine killed 26 people, including three children. The proposal appears to repeat Russia's maximalist terms to end the war -- demands consistently rejected by Ukraine as tantamount to ...

Papal Visit Funding: Where Does Lebanon Stand?

With less than two weeks to go before Pope Leo XIV’s visit to Lebanon at the end of the month, preparations have entered their final stage. Roger Zaccar, head of the visit’s financial committee, told This is Beirut that nearly 80% of the required funds have already been secured, with the remaining 20% are still needed to complete the ...

Speedy by Louis Vuitton: Audrey Hepburn’s Nomadic Elegance

Within the world of luxury leather goods, few pieces have endured with the same grace and universal appeal as the Speedy. It has graced the arms of both everyday sophisticates and Hollywood legends. But behind its clean, understated silhouette lies a surprisingly rich story. At once a reflection of its era and a catalyst for change, the Speedy has ...

Quarries in Lebanon: An Out-of-Control Industry with Devastating Costs

Item 27 on the agenda of the Council of Ministers, which is scheduled to meet Thursday afternoon, has reignited long-standing anger in Koura. The request by the National Cement Company for a permit to “operate and rehabilitate” its quarries in Kfarhazir and Bedbahon immediately brought back to residents the memory of a two-decade-long ...