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Four US Strikes Against Houthis in Yemen's Al-Kathib Region

This is Beirut, 20/03 19:50 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

USA Donald Trump Houthi Middle East Iran Yemen

US warplanes carried out four strikes on Thursday evening against Houthi positions in the Al-Kathib region, in the Al-Minaa district of the Yemeni province of Al-Hodeida. These strikes come just hours after the Israeli army announced that it had intercepted a missile fired from Yemen early on Thursday morning, against a backdrop of intensifying ...

Ukrainian and US officials to Meet in Saudi Monday

This is Beirut, 20/03 17:25 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Volodymyr Zelensky USA Donald Trump Kyiv Saudi Arabia

President Volodymyr Zelensky said Thursday that Ukrainian and US officials would meet in Saudi Arabia next Monday to make progress on a proposed halt in Russian and Ukrainian strikes on energy facilities. His announcement came shortly after the Kremlin confirmed that Russian officials would also hold talks with the United States in Saudi Arabia ...

Stock Markets Retreat on Revised US Economic Outlook

This is Beirut, 20/03 13:00 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

USA Donald Trump Banks Europe

Major European and Asian stock markets retreated Thursday following a weaker-than-forecast US economic outlook and despite the Federal Reserve trying to calm fears over President Donald Trump's tariffs. Fed boss Jerome Powell on Wednesday suggested that any increase to consumer prices caused by tariffs would likely be short-lived, even as the ...

Next US-Russia Talks to Take Place Sunday or Early Next Week: Kremlin

This is Beirut, 20/03 12:35 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

USA Volodymyr Zelensky Donald Trump Kyiv Saudi Arabia

The Kremlin said Thursday that the next US-Russia talks could take place on Sunday or early next week, as Washington is also due to hold talks with Kyiv in Saudi Arabia in the coming days. US President Donald Trump spoke to both Russia's Vladimir Putin and Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelensky earlier this week. "It may not be Sunday itself, the nuances ...

Pressure from Washington: Lebanon on Edge

Salam El Zaatari, 20/03 09:00 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

USA Steve Witkoff Donald Trump Middle East Lebanon

When a US envoy speaks this bluntly, the game has changed. Steve Witkoff, the US special envoy to the Middle East, did not hide his frustration with Lebanese officials’ handling of Hezbollah. He went even further, emphasizing that Washington no longer accepts Lebanon’s strategy of maneuvering and political jockeying, arguing that it ...

US Fed Holds Rates Again and Flags Increased Economic Uncertainty

This is Beirut, 19/03 20:30 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Donald Trump USA White House

The US Federal Reserve paused interest rate cuts again on Wednesday and noted an increase in economic uncertainty, as it navigates an economy unnerved by President Donald Trump's stop-start tariff rollout. Policymakers voted to hold the US central bank's key lending rate at between 4.25 percent and 4.50 percent, the Fed announced in a ...

Making Sense of Trump 2.0 and The Middle East

David Hale , 19/03 17:15 - Reading : 5 minute(s)

Donald Trump USA United States Middle East

Elections matter. Only a few months ago, the Biden Administration struggled to assert its relevance amidst dramatic events in the Middle East. It had plenty to say, much of it contradictory, as it attempted to deal with the Democratic Party's split personality on Israel and the Palestinians while losing an election. The fragile ceasefires that ...

Houthis Claim fourth Attack Against US Warships

This is Beirut, 19/03 09:10 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

USA Gulf Hamas Israel Houthis

Houthis claimed on Wednesday to have carried out a fourth attack in 72 hours on an American fleet in the Red Sea, as the US military said its campaign against the Iran-backed rebels was ongoing. The Houthis' military spokesperson said cruise missiles and drones targeted the USS Harry S. Truman carrier group in an attack that was "the fourth ...

OECD Lowers Global Growth Projections Over 'Trade Barriers' and 'Uncertainty'

This is Beirut, 17/03 13:45 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Donald Trump European Union United States USA Vladimir Putin

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development on Monday lowered its projections for global growth in 2025 due to "trade barriers" and "uncertainty". Trade tensions that have erupted since US President Donald Trump returned to the White House are in part responsible for the dampened growth perspectives, the OECD said. The OECD ...

US Raids on the Houthis: A Militia Seeking a Crushing Blow

Michel Touma, 17/03 09:30 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

USA Donald Trump Gulf Hezbollah Houthi

There are times when one must confront reality and acknowledge the truth, however harsh it may be. In certain parts of the MENA region and the Gulf, specific politico-sociological factions — shaped by a distinct mindset — remain entrenched in rigid denial. The well-known “ostrich policy,” in other words. This is particularly evident in the ...

Yemen's Huthis claim attacks on carrier group after US strikes

This is Beirut, 17/03 09:17 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Houthi USA

Yemen's Iran-backed Huthi rebels claimed on Monday to have twice attacked an American aircraft carrier group within 24 hours, calling it retaliation for deadly US strikes. The Huthis initially said they launched 18 missiles and a drone at the "aircraft carrier USS Harry Truman and its accompanying warships" in the Red Sea, before ...

Turkey's Erdogan Tells Trump He Supports his Ukraine Efforts

This is Beirut, 16/03 17:45 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Donald Trump Turkey Ukraine Kyiv USA

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told US counterpart Donald Trump in a call on Sunday that he supported his "direct and decisive" initiatives to end the three-year war in Ukraine, his office said. NATO member Turkey has sought to maintain good relations with both of its Black Sea neighbors since the Russian invasion three years ago and has ...

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