This is Beirut

Iran Rejects Macron's Remarks on its Role in Region as 'Baseless'

This is Beirut, 08/01 09:15 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Emmanuel Macron Donald Trump USA Middle East Tehran

Iran on Wednesday rejected as "baseless" French President Emmanuel Macron's claim that Tehran was the main strategic and security challenge in the Middle East. Foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei described the comments as "baseless, contradictory, and speculative," and called for France "to reconsider its non-constructive approaches to ...

Wildfire Sparks Panicked Evacuations in Los Angeles Suburb

This is Beirut, 08/01 09:05 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Los Angeles Donald Trump United States USA

A ferocious wildfire in a Los Angeles suburb devoured buildings and sparked panicked evacuations Tuesday, as hurricane-force winds tore through the region. Frightened residents abandoned their cars on one of the only roads in and out of the upscale Pacific Palisades area, fleeing on foot from the almost 3,000-acre (1,200-hectare) blaze engulfing ...

The Caesar Act: A Long And Winding Road

Mario Chartouni, 08/01 09:00 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Syria USA Sanctions

For over thirteen years, Syria has been at the heart of one of the bloodiest civil wars of the past half-century. While the fighting has subsided with the fall of Bashar al-Assad – overthrown on December 8, 2024, by a coalition of rebels led by the group Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) – the country remains mired in an unprecedented economic and ...

Quake in China's Tibet Kills 126 With Tremors Felt in Nepal, India

This is Beirut, 07/01 16:25 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

USA China

A devastating earthquake in China's remote Tibet region killed at least 126 people and destroyed "many buildings" on Tuesday, state media reported, with tremors also felt in neighboring Nepal's capital Kathmandu and parts of India. Videos published by China's state broadcaster CCTV showed houses destroyed with walls torn ...

ESEC Launches 'January 7 Call' to Push for the Election of a President

This is Beirut, 07/01 16:10 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

USA

On Tuesday, the French Economic, Social and Environmental Council (ESEC) launched its “January 7 Call” to push for the election of a President of the Republic during the parliamentary electoral session on Thursday, January 9. ESEC argued in this appeal for a return to the fundamental ideas of the rule of law, “which cannot exist without a ...

Blinken Says US-Japan Ties Rock Solid Despite Rift Over Steel Deal

This is Beirut, 07/01 09:25 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Antony Blinken USA Donald Trump US Secretary of State United States

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken insisted during a visit to Tokyo on Tuesday that ties with Japan were stronger than ever, days after President Joe Biden blocked Nippon Steel's takeover of US Steel. Business groups say the decision could have a chilling effect on Japan's standing as the biggest foreign investor in the United States, just as ...

Hochstein: Israel Will Withdraw From All Lebanese Territories

This is Beirut, 06/01 19:20 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Amos Hochstein Israel Lebanese Army United States USA

US envoy to Lebanon Amos Hochstein announced on Monday the start of the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Naqoura. Following his meeting with Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri in Ain el-Tineh and Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati in the Grand Serail, Hochstein reiterated Washington's support for the Lebanese army. “Israeli forces ...

'Protect Our People': Armed Syrian Volunteers Watch Over Damascus

This is Beirut, 06/01 14:25 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Damascus USA

Every night, Damascus residents stand guard outside shops and homes armed with light weapons often supplied by Syria's new rulers, eager to fill the security vacuum that followed the recent takeover. After Islamist-led rebels ousted former president Bashar al-Assad in early December, thousands of soldiers, policemen and other security officials ...

Equivocations

Charles Chartouni, 06/01 09:00 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Syria Lebanon Hezbollah Iran USA Israel

The situation in both Lebanon and Syria is still shrouded in ambiguities, deliberate equivocations, and malevolence. Nothing seems clear, and actors continue to operate in grey zones, let alone in the dark alleys that persist throughout.. The chances of negotiations and constructive engagement are quite narrow and are not part of the political ...

Truce Violations Persist... Adraee: "Hezbollah Will Not Be Allowed to Rearm"

This is Beirut, 05/01 20:30 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Hezbollah Israel USA

The Lebanese army reopened three roads that had been blocked by Israel at dawn after the latter infiltrated the Taybeh-Marjeyoun area and obstructed the roads with dirt barriers, the Lebanese army said in a statement. The Israeli army advanced on Sunday toward the town of Taybeh, where it demolished several houses using explosives and conducted ...

Wafic Safa: Our Only Veto Is Against Samir Geagea

This is Beirut, 05/01 12:20 - Reading : less than a minute

Amos Hochstein Hassan Nasrallah Joseph Aoun USA Hezbollah

As four days separate us from the January 9 presidential election, the head of Hezbollah's coordination and liaison unit, Wafic Safa, declared that “there is no veto on the candidacy of the commander-in-chief of the army, General Joseph Aoun, for the presidency of the Republic. However, our only veto is against Samir Geagea, as he embodies a ...

Gaza Truce Talks Resume in Qatar as Violence Shows no Let-Up

This is Beirut, 05/01 09:40 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Palestine Donald Trump Benjamin Netanyahu USA Hamas

Israel confirmed on Saturday that negotiations for a Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal had resumed in Qatar, as rescuers said more than 30 people had been killed in fresh bombardment of the territory. The civil defence agency said a dawn air strike on the home of the al-Ghoula family in Gaza City killed 11 people, seven of them ...

USA