This is Beirut

WhatsApp 'Concerned' Services to be Blocked After Iran Calls to Delete App

This is Beirut, 18/06 12:55 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

WhatsApp said it was "concerned" that its services would be blocked in Iran after a state broadcaster urged the public to delete the messaging app, saying it was sharing data with arch-rival Israel. State television IRIB appealed to Iranians on Tuesday to delete WhatsApp from their phones, alleging that the app collected users' personal data and ...

Is Trump's Posture in the Israel-Iran Conflict a Calculated Gambit?

Amal Chmouny, 18/06 10:35 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Iran Israel United States Donald Trump Middle East

As tensions escalate in the Middle East, a significant shift in US foreign policy under President Trump appears to be underway. Amid the growing tensions between Israel and Iran, particularly following Israel's aggressive military campaign against its adversary, President Trump faces a complex decision: to engage militarily in an already volatile ...

New Israeli Strikes on Tehran

This is Beirut, 18/06 06:05 - Reading : less than a minute

Israël Iran

Israeli airstrikes pounded Iran’s capital early Wednesday, just a day after U.S. President Donald Trump called for Iran’s “unconditional surrender.” A powerful explosion echoed through Tehran around 5 a.m., following a series of blasts that shook the city during the early hours before dawn. One of the strikes appeared to ...

Israel-Iran Conflict: Latest Developments

This is Beirut, 17/06 23:15 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Iran Israel United States

Israel and Iran exchanged fire again on Tuesday, the fifth day of strikes in their most intense confrontation in history, fueling fears of a drawn-out conflict that could engulf the Middle East. The adversaries have for years waged a shadow war through proxies and covert operations, with Israel fighting Iranian-backed groups such as Hamas since ...

Trump Considers Striking the Fordow Nuclear Facility to Cripple Iran's Nuclear Program

This is Beirut, 17/06 23:15 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

United States Iran Israel Donald Trump

US President Donald Trump is considering the possibility of the United States joining the Israeli military operation against Iran and launching attacks on Iranian nuclear facilities, according to a report published by Axios. The website quoted sources as saying, "US officials reported that Trump is seriously considering entering the war and ...

Jean-Pierre Lacroix to Discuss UNIFIL Mandate in Beirut Visit

This is Beirut, 17/06 21:40 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Beirut UNIFIL Lebanon Security Council Iran Israel

United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Peace Operations Jean-Pierre Lacroix is expected in Beirut on Wednesday for a multi-day visit focused on the renewal of the UNIFIL (United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon) mandate, two months ahead of the UN Security Council’s scheduled session. According to informed sources, the visit could pave the ...

Iran Armed Forces Urge Evacuation of Residents in Major Israeli Cities

This is Beirut, 17/06 21:30 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Iran Israel

Iran's armed forces chief of staff Abdolrahim Mousavi, urged on Tuesday residents of the major Israeli cities of Haifa and Tel Aviv to evacuate, warning of imminent "punitive" attacks. "Punitive operations will be carried out soon," Mousavi said in a video statement carried by state TV on the fifth day of the deadly confrontation triggered by an ...

Trump Says Won't Kill Iran's Khamenei 'for Now' as Israel Presses Campaign

This is Beirut, 17/06 21:10 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Donald Trump United States Iran

President Donald Trump said the United States would not kill Iran's supreme leader "for now" and appeared to demand Tehran's surrender, as US ally Israel traded fire with its archfoe for a fifth day on Tuesday. The comments marked a dramatic escalation in Trump's rhetoric against Iran and its leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, ...

Four Heavy US Bombers Stationed at Key Indian Ocean Base

This is Beirut, 17/06 20:48 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

United States B-52H Israel Iran

Four US Stratofortress bombers are currently stationed at the Diego Garcia base in the Indian Ocean, according to an AFP analysis of satellite imagery, as the conflict between Israel and Iran extended to its fifth straight day. The base, leased to the United States by Britain, is one of its key military facilities in the Asia-Pacific region, and ...

G7 Leaders Weigh Options as Trump Stays Cautious on Iran

This is Beirut, 17/06 19:05 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Iran Israel Donald Trump Keir Starmer

At the G7 summit in Canada on Tuesday, leaders weighed in on options regarding growing tensions between Israel and Iran, with President Donald Trump refraining from signaling any immediate U.S. involvement. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Tuesday that President Donald Trump had given no sign at a G7 summit that the United States would ...

Qatar Says Monitoring Radiation as Israel Hits Iran Nuclear Sites

This is Beirut, 17/06 17:35 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Qatar Radiation Iran Nuclear Program Iran Israel

Qatar has been monitoring radiation levels in the Gulf as Israeli airstrikes pound Iranian nuclear facilities, a foreign ministry spokesman said on Tuesday. "We are monitoring this on a daily basis," foreign ministry spokesman Majed al-Ansari told a news conference. "We have nothing to be concerned about right now, but obviously prolonged ...

Lebanon at a Crossroads: Chaos or a Place in the New Regional Order

Bassam Abou Zeid, 17/06 13:00 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Amal Hezbollah Israel Middle East Iran

Lebanon is closely monitoring the unfolding Iranian-Israeli war - a conflict it has kept at arm’s length, but whose fallout is certain to reach its borders. The real test is whether the government will be able to leverage the outcome to its advantage. Hezbollah resents being forced to remain on the sidelines of a war it sees as a sacred duty, ...

Iran