This is Beirut

Netanyahu Dodges Snap Election Threat as Dissolution Bill Fails in Knesset

This is Beirut, 12/06 09:05 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's hard-right government survived an opposition bid to dissolve parliament on Thursday, as lawmakers rejected a bill that could have paved the way for snap elections. Out of the Knesset's 120 members, 61 voted against the proposal, with 53 in favor. The opposition had introduced the bill hoping to force ...

Hamas Accused of Killing Gaza Aid Workers Backed by US and Israel

This is Beirut, 12/06 08:50 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Gaza Israel Hamas Gaza Humanitarian Foundation

A US - and Israeli-backed charity operating in Gaza accused Palestinian militant group Hamas of attacking aid workers en route to a distribution centre on Wednesday, saying at least five people were killed. The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation said a bus carrying its staff to a distribution site near Khan Younes in the south was "brutally attacked by ...

Special Space ‘Shuttles’ Bound for Disaster

Marc Saikali, 12/06 08:30 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Hezbollah Lebanon Israel

Three... two... one... Touchdown! Each week, the Rafic Hariri International Airport runway hums with the arrival of diplomatic missions. On Monday, France’s special envoy to Lebanon Jean-Yves Le Drian touched down. American envoys Tom Barrack and Massaad Boulos are expected soon. But so far, each mission has taken off again before Lebanon’s ...

Israel to Expel French Nationals on Gaza Aid Boat by End of Week

This is Beirut, 11/06 22:12 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Israel Gaza Rima Hassan Madleen Jean-Noel Barrot France

Israel is to expel by the end of the week four French nationals held after security forces intercepted their Gaza-bound aid boat, France's foreign minister said Wednesday, as an Israeli NGO said one of the French campaigners was briefly put in solitary confinement. The announcement came as France's prime minister accused activists aboard ...

The Israeli Army Crosses the Blue Line, Kills a Man in Beit Leif

This is Beirut, 11/06 16:15 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Lebanon Israel Airstrike Hezbollah Beirut southern suburbs

An Israeli drone strike targeted a parked car outside a residential home in the town of Beit Leif, in ssouthern Lebanon’s Bint Jbeil district, killing one person and injuring three others, the Ministry of Health announced on Wednesday. Also Wednesday, an Israeli infantry unit reportedly advanced into the outskirts of the southern Lebanese ...

Israeli Opposition Submits Bill to Dissolve Knesset

This is Beirut, 11/06 13:30 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Israel Opposition Knesset Haredim

Israeli lawmakers will vote Wednesday on a bill submitted by the opposition to dissolve parliament, which, if successful, could start paving the way to a snap election. While the opposition is composed mainly of centrist and leftist groups, ultra-Orthodox parties that are propping up Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government are also ...

Setbacks Undermine Palestinian Camp Disarmament Ahead of June 15 Deadline

Bassam Abou Zeid, 11/06 12:00 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Hamas Hezbollah Israel Palestinian Camp

Lebanese and Palestinian officials face a looming deadline to implement the first phase of a long-delayed plan to disarm Palestinian refugee camps, set for June 15. However, sources suggest the process is unlikely to unfold as Lebanese authorities had hoped, with several key details still unresolved. Palestinian representatives say they are still ...

Le Drian in Beirut as Pressure Mounts Ahead of UNIFIL’s Mandate Renewal

Samar El-Kadi, 11/06 11:08 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Hezbollah Israel UN Security Council UNIFIL Lebanon Jean-Yves Le Drian

As the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) approaches its annual mandate renewal this August, tensions are mounting in south Lebanon following repeated altercations between residents and peacekeepers, jeopardizing the mission’s future. French presidential envoy Jean-Yves Le Drian is in Lebanon to reaffirm Paris’ long-term ...

Yemeni National Arrested in Lebanon for Spying for Israel

This is Beirut, 11/06 10:45 - Reading : less than a minute

Israel Mossad Lebanon Hezbolla Houthis

A Yemeni national accused of working for the Israeli Intelligence Agency (Mossad) was arrested in Lebanon on Tuesday by a Lebanese security agency, according to a Lebanese judicial source who spoke with Asharq Al-Awsat news channel. The agent is allegedly a Houthi leader working as a mediator between Hezbollah and the Houthis in Yemen, reported ...

Israel Deports Greta Thunberg after Intercepting Gaza-Bound Aid Boat

This is Beirut, 10/06 20:55 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Israel Greta Thunberg Sweden Madleen Gaza

Israel deported campaigner Greta Thunberg on a flight to Sweden via France on Tuesday after detaining her along with other activists aboard a Gaza-bound aid boat. Of the 12 activists on board the Madleen, which was carrying food and supplies for Gaza, four, including Thunberg, agreed to be deported, the rights group that legally represents some ...

Israeli Army Kills Two in Shebaa, Lebanese Army Inspects Building in Beirut

This is Beirut, 10/06 20:45 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Lebanon Israel Lebanese Armed Forces Hezbollah drone Shebaa

An Israeli drone targeted the Janaam area in the southern border town of Shebaa on Tuesday, killing a man from the Kanaan family and one of his sons, and injuring another son. The Israeli army later confirmed it had struck what it called two militant operatives, one from Hezbollah and the other from the Lebanese Saraya Organization. According ...

Sirens in Central Israel as Army Says Projectile Launched from Yemen

This is Beirut, 10/06 20:15 - Reading : less than a minute

Israel Yemen Houthi Movement

Air raid sirens sounded across central Israel and Jerusalem on Tuesday as the military said it had detected a projectile launched from Yemen. "The [Israeli military] has identified the launch of a missile from Yemen toward Israeli territory," the military said in a statement, adding that sirens were sounded in several areas. AFP reporters heard ...

israel