This is Beirut - middle east

Trump says 'Open' to Considering Lifting Iran Sanctions

This is Beirut, 07/11 09:30 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Donald Trump Israel Middle East Tehran Sanctions

President Donald Trump said Thursday that Iran has asked for heavy US sanctions against Tehran to be lifted -- and that he is open to having a discussion about it. "Frankly, Iran has been asking if the sanctions could be lifted. Iran has got very heavy US sanctions, and it makes it really hard," Trump said during a dinner with Central Asian ...

Yitzhak Rabin: Oslo Accords Architect Assassinated 30 Years Ago

Élie-Joe Kamel, 04/11 21:15 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Palestine Banks Hamas Israel Middle East

On November 4, 1995, in Tel Aviv, three gunshots ended the life of former Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin, plunging the nation into shock. On what was then Kings of Israel Square, now Rabin Square, the architect of the Oslo peace process fell, struck by the bullets of an ultranationalist Israeli Jew. The assassin, Yigal Amir, a far-right ...

Nintendo Hikes Switch 2 Annual Unit Sales Target

This is Beirut, 04/11 10:30 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Middle East New York Nintendo Console Switch 2

Nintendo said Tuesday it aims to sell 19 million Switch 2 consoles within this financial year, up from its previous target of 15 million for the smash-hit gadget. The Switch 2 became the world's fastest-selling games console after launching in June to a frenzy of excitement from fans of "Super Mario" and other top titles. "The hardware has seen ...

White House Withdraws Joel Rayburn’s Nomination for Deputy Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs

This is Beirut, 28/10 11:00 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

White House Donald Trump Middle East US Secretary of State Joel Rayburn

The White House has withdrawn the nomination of Joel Rayburn for the position of Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs, according to the American media outlet Axios. Rayburn’s nomination had stirred controversy over his alleged role in concealing U.S. troop levels in Syria from then-President Donald Trump during his first term, ...

Saudi Hosts World's Business Elite with Eyes on Gigaprojects, AI

This is Beirut, 28/10 09:05 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Gulf Middle East Saudi Arabia Investment Economy FII

Saudi Arabia welcomes heads of state and the global business elite at a major investment conference this week as it seeks support for its sprawling "gigaprojects" and sky-high AI ambitions. Chinese Vice President Han Zheng, joined by several ministers and more than 150 business leaders, and Syria's interim president are among the guests at the ...

Lebanon and the Middle East: Between Irrationality and Paradox

Michel Touma, 27/10 08:30 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Middle East Donald Trump Amal Banks Hamas

When irrationality and reckless behavior come to define the actions of a powerful political faction, it doesn’t take long before red lines are dangerously breached. As a result, serious threats hang over the lives of populations directly exposed to the faction’s erratic excesses. This is exactly what we are witnessing today among several of ...

Flights Over a Nest of Fools!

Marc Saikali, 23/10 08:30 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Hamas Hezbollah Israel Middle East Palestine

More than half of Ici Beyrouth and This is Beirut’s audience lives between France, North America and Africa. Those of you reading from these far-off lands are lucky enough not to be, like us, lulled from dawn to dusk by the relentless hum of drones. Yes, they are back. And this time, they are flying even lower. Beirutis have gone all out, ...

Senate Panel Probes Hezbollah Links to Latin American Drug Trade

This is Beirut, 22/10 14:35 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Donald Trump Hezbollah Middle East Venezuela drugs trafficking US

The US Senate Caucus on International Narcotics Control convened a hearing on Tuesday to examine suspected connections between Hezbollah and Latin American drug trafficking networks, as lawmakers warned of the group’s expanding footprint in the Western Hemisphere. Chaired by Senator John Cornyn (R-TX), the bipartisan session focused on ...

Pope Leo XIV’s Visit: Bookings Soar, Hotels Remain on Standby

Christiane Tager, 20/10 20:50 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Middle East Pope Francis Pope Leo XIV

With the historic visit of Pope Leo XIV, scheduled from November 30 to December 2, 2025, drawing near, Lebanon is experiencing a surge in travel bookings. Airlines report a strong rise in demand, while the hotel sector is still waiting to see tangible gains. The announcement of Pope Leo XIV’s first trip to the region has generated widespread ...

Khamenei Tells Trump to 'Keep Dreaming' Over Claims of Destroying Iran Nuclear Sites

This is Beirut, 20/10 15:35 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Donald Trump Israel Middle East Tehran USA Ali Khamenei

Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Monday rebuffed claims by US President Donald Trump that the Islamic republic's nuclear sites had been destroyed by US strikes in June. In a statement on his official website, Khamenei told Trump to "keep dreaming" over the comments on the sites' destruction and questioned the US president's right ...

Hezbollah and the “Reality Principle”

Michel Touma, 20/10 08:30 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Hezbollah Israel Middle East United States

Major developments are unfolding rapidly in the Levant, placing the region before what increasingly seems like an urgent reality: Hezbollah’s leadership, and more broadly its Iranian backers, need to align their political conduct with the so-called “reality principle.” In psychoanalytic terms, the “reality principle” means facing facts ...

Between a Rock and a Hard Place: The Delicate Position of Iran’s Jews

Marie de La Roche Saint-André, 19/10 19:10 - Reading : 6 minute(s)

Donald Trump Israel Middle East Palestine Tehran

With around 10,000 members, Iran’s Jewish community is the second largest in the Middle East. Its presence is discreet but tangible in a nation marked by pronounced hostility toward Israel, most recently expressed during 12 days of open conflict last June. The Jewish presence in the lands of present-day Iran dates back to the eighth century ...

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