This is Beirut, 16/12 12:05 - Reading : 1 minute(s)
Damascus Israel Turkey Golan Syria
Turkey on Monday denounced an Israeli plan to double the population living in the occupied and annexed Golan Heights as a bid to "expand its borders". "This decision is a new stage in Israel's goal of expanding its borders through occupation," the foreign ministry said in a statement condemning the move. Israel's government on Sunday approved a ...
Vanessa Kallas, 16/12 11:10 - Reading : 3 minute(s)
Hezbollah Middle East Captagon Syria
The Assad regime has fallen, leaving behind the largest Captagon empire in the world. For years, the regime relied on the multibillion-dollar Captagon market to finance its war efforts, support allied militias like Hezbollah and circumvent international sanctions. Recent seizures of Captagon factories and pills in former regime strongholds ...
Michel Touma, 16/12 11:00 - Reading : 4 minute(s)
Israel Middle East Benjamin Netanyahu Syria Bashar al-Assad
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had anticipated it well before Bashar al-Assad's downfall, pointing to the emergence of a new Middle East. Likewise, President-elect Donald Trump had set the tone during his campaign, emphasizing his commitment to forging peace in a region beset by over seven decades of armed conflict and largely ...
This is Beirut, 16/12 10:40 - Reading : 2 minute(s)
Damascus European Union Syria HTS
EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said Monday the bloc's envoy to Syria was going to Damascus to talk to the new Islamist-led rulers, as Western powers stepped up engagement after the ouster of Bashar al-Assad. The outreach from Brussels comes after the United States and Britain said they had made contact with the new authorities in Damascus, ...
Charles Chartouni, 16/12 09:00 - Reading : 4 minute(s)
Syria’s political plight is at the crossroads between potential disintegration, renewed civil instabilities and eventual reconciliation, which helps overcome the bitter legacy of a long-haul civil war. The downfall of the Assad regime is of good omen since it sets an end to the excruciating travails bequeathed by a bloody dictatorship and its ...
This is Beirut, 15/12 22:35 - Reading : 2 minute(s)
Qatar's embassy to Syria is to resume operations on Tuesday, the Gulf emirate announced on Sunday as its diplomats visited the country and met with its transitional government following the ouster of President Bashar al-Assad. "Qatar announces the resumption of the work of its embassy in the sisterly Syrian Arab Republic starting the day after ...
This is Beirut, 15/12 21:20 - Reading : 2 minute(s)
Residents of Qusayr in central Syria are finally returning home after the departure of Hezbollah fighters, who helped Bashar al-Assad's forces seize the city a decade ago and left with his fall. Many of the houses are now in ruins, after years under the control of the Lebanese armed group, a key Assad ally which had set up a military base and ...
This is Beirut, 15/12 20:20 - Reading : 2 minute(s)
The Israeli government on Sunday approved a plan to double the population of the occupied and annexed Golan Heights, following the fall of Bashar al-Assad in Syria, the prime minister's office said. The government had "unanimously approved" the 40 million shekel ($11 million) "plan for the demographic development of the Golan... in light of the ...
This is Beirut, 15/12 20:15 - Reading : 1 minute(s)
Russia's foreign ministry said it has evacuated some of its diplomatic staff from Syria Sunday, a week after the fall of Bashar al-Assad. "On December 15, the withdrawal of part of the personnel of the Russian (diplomatic) representation in Damascus was carried out by a special flight of the Russian Air Force from the Hmeimim airbase" in Syria, ...
This is Beirut, 15/12 19:20 - Reading : 1 minute(s)
UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy confirmed that the British government has had “diplomatic contact” with Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the Syrian rebel group that played a key role in toppling the Assad regime. While Lammy emphasized that HTS remains a proscribed terrorist organization, he noted that diplomatic contact is still possible. ...
This is Beirut, 15/12 16:25 - Reading : 2 minute(s)
"We need to see justice and accountability for crimes, and it must go through a credible justice system. We must ensure that no acts of revenge take place," Geir Pedersen said upon his arrival in Damascus. Assad fled Syria last weekend following an 11-day rebel offensive led by the Islamist militant group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), marking the ...
Elie Ziadé, 15/12 15:30 - Reading : 6 minute(s)
Turkey HTS Bashar al-Assad Syria
The fall of Bashar al-Assad took everyone by surprise, almost no one saw it coming. Yet, it was met with joy. Scenes of celebration across Syria, as well as in countries hosting millions of Syrian nationals and refugees, along with the shared joy of other populations — notably in Lebanon — reflect the harsh rule that the Assad dynasty had ...