Soumia Benmerzoug, 31/03 21:20 - Reading : 4 minute(s)
Five years of ineligibility with immediate effect and four years in prison, two of which are to be served, in the fake jobs scandal at the European Parliament. This ruling, handed down today by the Paris Criminal Court, may well wipe out Marine Le Pen’s chances of running in the 2027 presidential election. It’s nothing less than a major ...
This is Beirut, 31/03 18:18 - Reading : 4 minute(s)
Emmanuel Macron European Union Israel Marine Le Pen
A French court on Monday threw into severe doubt far-right leader Marine Le Pen's 2027 bid for president, handing her a five-year ban on running for office after convicting her over a fake jobs scheme. She was also given a four-year prison term by the Paris court but will not go to jail, with two years of the term suspended and the other two ...
This is Beirut, 31/03 09:55 - Reading : 2 minute(s)
United Kingdom European Union Europe Gulf United States
In a shake-up of long-standing travel rules, European nationals heading to the UK will from Wednesday need a mandatory entry permit, which the British government says will strengthen border security. The Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) can be bought online in the next few days for £10 (12 euros), but the price is rising swiftly from April ...
This is Beirut, 28/03 18:10 - Reading : 2 minute(s)
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Friday urged all parties in South Sudan to "put down the weapons" amid warnings that the impoverished African country may be headed back into civil war. "South Sudan may have fallen off the world’s radar, but we cannot let the situation fall over the abyss," Guterres told reporters. The country's ...
This is Beirut, 28/03 14:15 - Reading : 2 minute(s)
European Union Volodymyr Zelensky Banks Kyiv Turkey
The Kremlin said Friday that the EU's refusal to ease sanctions on Russia shows the bloc does not want peace in Ukraine. Moscow is demanding the West remove sanctions on Rosselkhozbank -- the Russian Agricultural Bank -- as a precondition to restoring a deal on the safe passage of Ukrainian cargo in the Black Sea. "An integral part of the Black ...
This is Beirut, 27/03 11:30 - Reading : 3 minute(s)
Ukraine European Union France China
France's Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot urged Beijing on Thursday to help bring Russia to talks over ending its war in Ukraine as he met Chinese counterpart Wang Yi. France and China have sought to boost ties in recent years, but Paris has also pressed Beijing on its relations with Moscow, which have strengthened since the invasion of ...
This is Beirut, 26/03 15:20 - Reading : 2 minute(s)
Minister of Foreign Affairs Youssef Rajji announced on Wednesday an additional €2.5 million donation from Ireland, aimed at funding the United Nations Humanitarian Fund in Lebanon. The announcement was made during a meeting held at the ministry, in the presence of Irish Deputy Prime Minister Simon Harris and the Irish delegation, which included ...
This is Beirut, 26/03 12:55 - Reading : 3 minute(s)
Armenia's parliament passed a bill Wednesday launching Yerevan's bid for European Union membership, as the historically Russia-allied country drifts further away from Moscow's orbit. The landlocked Caucasus nation has grown increasingly close to the West, frustrated by what it says was Moscow's failure to protect it from arch-foe ...
Malo Pinatel, 26/03 10:00 - Reading : 6 minute(s)
Turkey European Union Donald Trump Europe Middle East
While the world’s attention was fixed on the March 12 summit between Ukraine and the United States in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, another important meeting was taking place in the region – in Ankara. It brought together Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, with the aim of strengthening ties between the ...
Paul Guillot, 25/03 18:35 - Reading : 5 minute(s)
Damascus European Union Middle East Turkey United States
The arrest of Ekrem İmamoğlu, the mayor of Istanbul and Erdoğan’s main political rival, has triggered an unprecedented wave of protests across Turkey. Accused of corruption, İmamoğlu denounces what he describes as a politically motivated attempt to sideline him ahead of the 2028 presidential election. Since his detention, tens of thousands ...
This is Beirut, 25/03 10:20 - Reading : 2 minute(s)
European sales of Tesla electric cars dropped 49 percent in January-February compared with the same period a year earlier, the ACEA manufacturers' association said Tuesday. Ageing models are one factor behind the plunge so far this year, but e-vehicle clients may also be refusing to buy in protest of Tesla's billionaire owner Elon Musk since he ...
This is Beirut, 24/03 13:15 - Reading : 2 minute(s)
European Union Israel Benjamin Netanyahu Damascus Lebanon
EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas warned on Monday during a visit to Jerusalem that Israeli strikes on Syria and Lebanon threatened to worsen the situation. The most intense escalation since a November ceasefire, which ended the war between Israel and the Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah in Lebanon, occurred on Saturday. Lebanon's health ...