Ici Beyrouth

UN Chief 'Concerned' over 'Extensive Violations' of Syria Sovereignty, Israeli Strikes

This is Beirut, 12/12 22:10 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

UN chief Antonio Guterres is "deeply concerned" over "extensive violations" of Syrian sovereignty, and by Israeli strikes on the country, his spokesman said Thursday. Guterres "is deeply concerned by the recent and extensive violations of Syria's sovereignty and territorial integrity. The Secretary-General is particularly concerned over the ...

Exclusive: Shops Reopen in Damascus, Revival After the Fall of the Regime

Elie Ziadé, 12/12 20:19 - Reading : less than a minute

Damascus Economy Syria Businesses

Commercial activity is picking up vigorously in the central markets of Damascus, where shops have reopened and are once again attracting customers. However, the recovery remains more hesitant in Christian neighborhoods like Bab Touma. Political uncertainty and a fragile economic situation are holding back merchants, who are still reluctant to ...

Loyal no more: Syrians Turn from Once-Omnipotent Baath Party

This is Beirut, 12/12 19:55 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Damascus HTS Baath Syria Bashar al-Assad

Maher Semsmieh turned in his rifle on Thursday at an office of Syria's Baath party, more than 60 years after its oppressive rule in Syria began, and days after it ended. "We are no longer Baathists," Semsmieh, 43, said with a smile of relief, four days after Islamist-led rebels toppled the Baathist government of president Bashar al-Assad. "We ...

The Deadly Legacy of the Assad Regime

Paul Guillot, 12/12 19:04 - Reading : 6 minute(s)

Bashar el-Assad Syria Chemical weapons Israel

More than a decade after the start of the Syrian conflict, concerns about chemical weapons remain. Despite Damascus officially joining the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) in 2013 and efforts to destroy its arsenal, multiple indicators suggest the presence of undeclared residual stockpiles. Recent developments — including Israeli airstrikes, ...

Kurdish Administration Says Adopts Syria's Independence Flag

This is Beirut, 12/12 16:00 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Syria Kurds flag Bachar al-Assad

The semi-autonomous Kurdish administration that holds swathes of Syria's northeast said Thursday it will adopt the three-starred independence flag used by the opposition, after rebels toppled longtime president Bashar al-Assad. The Kurdish authority said in a statement it has "decided to raise the Syrian (independence) flag on all councils, ...

Syria: Israeli Strikes Hit Latakia and Tartous

This is Beirut, 12/12 10:40 - Reading : less than a minute

Israel Syria

Israeli airstrikes targeted military installations in Syria, belonging to the army of the former Syrian president Bashar al-Assad, an NGO said on Wednesday. Among the "military sites" targeted were "the port of Latakia" and warehouses in Tartous. "Israeli fighter jets continue to destroy what remains of Syria's military arsenal, for the fourth ...

Michel Aoun: Lebanon’s Worst President?

Salam Zaatari, 12/12 09:00 - Reading : 6 minute(s)

Lebanon Syria Michel Aoun Hezbollah

In the tragic annals of Lebanese history, Michel Aoun’s presidency stands out not merely as a disappointment but as a catastrophe of Shakespearean proportions. The man who once promised to rid Lebanon of Syrian influence and champion sovereignty ended his career as the very embodiment of everything he claimed to oppose. To understand how ...

Is Democracy Possible in the Arab World?

Marc Saikali, 12/12 07:30 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Damascus Bachar el-Assad Democracy Morocco Iraq syria

The Assad family, more accurately known by the name "Al-Wahesh" (the savage), has surpassed all limits of hatred and brutality. After the dictator and his cronies fled, the world, horrified, discovered the full extent of the crimes against humanity that had been the norm in a country left in ruins. In Lebanon, we have long known, through our own ...

33 Years Later: Souhail Hamawi's Return to Life

Rayan Chami, 12/12 00:30 - Reading : less than a minute

Lebanon Syria Prisons Detainees Kidnapped

Souheil Hamawi recounts his 32-year ordeal in Syrian prisons, a journey of unimaginable suffering, resilience, and eventual liberation. From his abduction in 1992 to his emotional return in 2024, his story sheds light on the horrors he endured and the hope he ultimately reclaimed.

Syria's New Leaders Pledge Justice and Inclusivity After Assad's Fall

This is Beirut, 11/12 20:50 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Damascus United Nations Syria

Syria's new prime minister said the Islamist-led alliance that ousted president Bashar al-Assad will guarantee the rights of all religious groups and called on the millions who fled the war to return home. Assad fled Syria after a lightning offensive spearheaded by the Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) group and its allies, which brought to a ...

Damascus Airport Set to Reopen in the Coming Days

This is Beirut, 11/12 19:35 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Damascus Syria

Damascus airport, closed since rebel forces overran the Syrian capital at the weekend, is to reopen "in the next few days", its director Anis Fallouh told AFP on Wednesday. "God willing, the airport will reopen as quickly as possible because we are going to work flat out," Fallouh said. Pushed to give a timeframe for the ...

Rebels Set Fire to Hafez al-Assad's Tomb in Syria

This is Beirut, 11/12 18:25 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Damascus Syria rebels

The tomb of ousted Syrian president Bashar al-Assad's father Hafez was torched in his hometown of Qardaha, AFP footage taken Wednesday showed, with rebel fighters in fatigues and young men watching it burn. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights war monitor told AFP the rebels had set fire to the mausoleum, located in the Latakia heartland of ...

Syria