This is Beirut, 2024-12-24 17:50 - Reading : 3 minute(s)
Iran's top council responsible for safeguarding the internet voted Tuesday to lift a ban on the popular messaging application WhatsApp, which has been subject to restrictions for over two years, state media reported. "The ban on WhatsApp and Google Play was removed by unanimous vote of the members of the Supreme Council of ...
This is Beirut, 2024-12-24 13:45 - Reading : 2 minute(s)
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US group Hostage Aid Worldwide said Tuesday that it believes journalist Austin Tice, who went missing in Syria in 2012, is still alive, though it did not offer concrete information on his whereabouts. "We have data that Austin is alive till January 2024, but the president of the US said in August that he is alive, and we are sure that he is alive ...
Katia Kahil, 2024-12-24 11:03 - Reading : 6 minute(s)
We’ve all lost something, but we’ve also learned to help one another. It’s important to keep the Christmas spirit alive, even if it’s challenging under the current circumstances. We need to show that we’re rooted here, that we haven’t given up hope,” says Paul, a shop owner in Marjeyoun, as he carefully ...
David Hale , 2024-12-23 15:05 - Reading : 6 minute(s)
Syria Lebanon USA Donald Trump Iran Turkey
So many Syrians and Lebanese are celebrating the downfall of the Assad regime, whose last decade of rule came courtesy of Russia, Iran, and Hezbollah. The proximate cause of the final collapse is debatable; some attribute it to the inability of Russia to come to Assad's defense, while others cite Israel's decimation of Assad's Hezbollah ...
This is Beirut, 2024-12-23 12:58 - Reading : 2 minute(s)
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Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi expressed his country's support for Syria's reconstruction in a meeting with its new leader Ahmed al-Sharaa on Monday, in the latest visit to Damascus by a high-profile delegation since Bashar al-Assad's overthrow. It was the first trip to Syria by a senior Jordanian official since Assad's ...
This is Beirut, 2024-12-23 03:20 - Reading : 4 minute(s)
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Despite growing hopes of a ceasefire, the violence continues in the Gaza Strip, where 35 people have been killed in the last 24 hours according to the Civil Defence of the Palestinian territory, ravaged by more than a year of war between Hamas and Israel. The Islamist movement Hamas and two other Palestinian groups had suggested on Saturday that ...
This is Beirut, 2024-12-22 17:05 - Reading : 4 minute(s)
Oleksandr Usyk won his heavyweight championship rematch against Tyson Fury by unanimous decision overnight on Saturday to stay unbeaten across two divisions and cement his place among the greats. The Ukrainian, who forced the pace and repeatedly tagged Fury with his accurate left hook, was awarded the fight 116-112 by all three judges, handing ...
This is Beirut, 2024-12-20 17:41 - Reading : 1 minute(s)
A delegation of US diplomats visiting Syria had a "positive" meeting on Friday with the country's new ruler, Ahmed al-Sharaa, a Syrian official told AFP. "The meeting took place, and it was positive. And the results will be positive, God willing," the official said on condition of anonymity. A planned press conference by ...
This is Beirut, 2024-12-20 17:00 - Reading : 2 minute(s)
American forces killed an Islamic State (IS) group leader and another of the group's members in a strike in Syria, the US military said on Friday. Washington has stepped up military action against the jihadist group since the fall of Bashar al-Assad's government earlier this month, hitting areas that were shielded by Syrian and Russian air ...
This is Beirut, 2024-12-19 16:25 - Reading : 2 minute(s)
Thousands of people demonstrated Thursday in northeast Syria in support of a US-backed, Kurdish-led force that for weeks has been pushing back against Turkey-backed fighters, an AFP correspondent said. The show of support for the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) comes after Islamist-led rebels toppled Syria's longtime strongman Bashar al-Assad ...
This is Beirut, 2024-12-19 13:30 - Reading : 2 minute(s)
Ankara will push ahead with its military preparations until Kurdish fighters "disarm", a defense ministry source said Thursday, stressing Turkey faces an ongoing threat along its border with northern Syria. The comments came as concerns grew over a possible Turkish assault on the Kurdish-held Syrian border town of Kobane, also known as Ain ...
This is Beirut, 2024-12-18 21:30 - Reading : less than a minute
The US Federal Reserve cut interest rates by a quarter point Wednesday and signaled a slower pace of cuts ahead, amid uncertainty about inflation and President-elect Donald Trump's economic plans. Policymakers voted 11-to-1 to lower the US central bank's key lending rate to between 4.25 percent and 4.50 percent, the Fed announced in a statement. ...