This is Beirut

Ahead of Trump Meeting, Israeli Minister Demands Army Keep "Operational Freedom" in Gaza

This is Beirut, 14:55 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

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Israel's far-right finance minister on Monday insisted the military maintain "full operational freedom" in Gaza, ahead of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's White House meeting with US President Donald Trump. Trump is expected to press Netanyahu to agree to his 21-point peace plan, proposed after nearly two years of ...

Palestinian Statehood and the Unanswered Questions

Charles Chartouni, 09:00 - Reading : 5 minute(s)

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Political observers' harrowing concern is to consider how timely this political undertaking is under the current circumstances and whether it positively impacts the future of the conflict. It’s not enough to make political statements with no questions about their opportunity and feasibility. Otherwise, the proponents are adding to the problem ...

What Does the US 21-Point Plan for Gaza Include?

This is Beirut, 28/09 17:40 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

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At the UN General Assembly, the United States shared a 21-point proposal with a small group of Arab and Muslim countries aimed at ending the war in Gaza. According to Axios, the US proposals draw on various ideas discussed over the past six months, as well as concepts developed by Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner and former British Prime ...

Trump Says Gaza Peace Deal in "Final Stages"

This is Beirut, 28/09 17:15 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Donald Trump United States Benjamin Netanyahu Gaza Israel Hamas

United States President Donald Trump told Axios in an interview Sunday that negotiations over his plan to end the war in Gaza are "at their final stages" and contended a deal could open the way for wider peace in the Middle East. Earlier in the day, Trump had announced “something special, a first” in Middle East peace negotiations on the eve ...

Netanyahu at UN: Conditional Peace with Lebanon, a New Middle East

This is Beirut, 26/09 17:10 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

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In an address to the United Nations General Assembly on Friday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reopened the door to peace with Lebanon. He declared that “peace between Israel and Lebanon is possible,” contingent on the disarmament of Hezbollah. “If Lebanon takes action to disarm Hezbollah, I’m confident peace will follow,” he ...

At UN, Abbas Defends Palestinian Cause, Rejects Hamas

This is Beirut, 25/09 18:00 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Hamas Palestine Israel UN Mahmud Abbas

Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas on Thursday rejected any future role for Hamas and condemned antisemitism, as he appealed for full global support for a state in the face of Israeli annexation threats. Days after France led a special summit and several Western powers recognized a state of Palestine, the veteran 89-year-old leader was forced to ...

Israel Army Says 700,000 Palestinians Fled South from Gaza City

This is Beirut, 25/09 16:15 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

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The Israeli military said Thursday that 700,000 Palestinians have fled Gaza City to the south since late August, as it presses an air and ground assault on the urban center. When asked by AFP, the military said that "700,000 Palestinians have evacuated" from Gaza City to the south of the Gaza Strip. The UN's humanitarian agency, OCHA, on ...

Beyond Hamas: Gaza’s Emerging Tribal Militias

Mario Chartouni, 23/09 19:30 - Reading : 5 minute(s)

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In a landscape ravaged by nearly two years of war between Israel and Hamas, local figures are stepping in to fill the void left by the weakening of the Palestinian movement in Gaza. In Kizan al-Najjar, a depopulated village south of Khan Younes in the southern enclave, Hossam al-Astal, a former Palestinian Authority officer, has announced the ...

Hamas Releases Video of Israeli-German Hostage Seen Alive

This is Beirut, 22/09 19:30 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

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Hamas' armed wing released a video on Monday showing an Israeli-German hostage alive, the second such footage of him shared by the militants this month. The Israeli campaign group Hostages and Missing Families Forum and the captive's family identified him as Alon Ohel, who was abducted by Palestinian militants during their October 7, 2023 attack ...

Israel Army Says Intercepts Projectile from Gaza City

This is Beirut, 22/09 17:33 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

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The Israeli military said it intercepted a projectile fired on Monday from Gaza City, where troops are currently pressing a major ground offensive to capture the territory's largest urban center. It had earlier said the projectile was launched toward the area of Nahal Oz, a community near the Gaza border. "A projectile that crossed from ...

New Revelations About Nasrallah's Assassination

This is Beirut, 22/09 13:20 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Hassan Nasrallah Benjamin Netanyahu Hamas Hezbollah Yedioth Ahronot Israel lebanon

On the first anniversary of Hassan Nasrallah’s assassination, Israeli daily Yedioth Ahronoth published new details about the operation which it described as “worthy of a science-fiction movie.” The mission took place in September 2024, while Israeli fighter jets were heavily bombing Hezbollah strongholds in the southern suburbs of ...

Apocalypticism and War Ending

Charles Chartouni, 22/09 09:00 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

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The paradoxes of the Islamic summit are blatant and quite equivocal. One wonders what elicited this mobilization after two years of apathy and diplomatic inaction. An early summit could have spared Gaza and its population the tragedies brought about by the apocalyptic vision of Hamas, the cynicism of its handlers and leaders and their ruinous ...

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