Middle East

Trump Hails Central Asia's 'Unbelievable Potential' at Summit

This is Beirut 07/11 09:45 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Nawaf Salam Donald Trump Asia Washington Central Asia

US President Donald Trump hosted all five Central Asian leaders on Thursday for the first time, a few months after they held separate summits with Russia's Vladimir Putin and China's Xi Jinping. The West has upped its interest in the resource-rich region, where Moscow's traditional influence has been questioned since the Kremlin's Ukraine ...

Trump says 'Open' to Considering Lifting Iran Sanctions

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

Nawaf Salam Donald Trump 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 ...

Three Dead in Latest US Strike on Suspected Drug Vessel

This is Beirut 07/11 09:00 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

USA Donald Trump Drug Cartel Caribbean

US forces on Thursday struck another alleged drug trafficking boat in the Caribbean, killing three people, Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth said, bringing the death toll from Washington's controversial anti-narcotics campaign to at least 70. The United States began carrying out such strikes in early September, taking aim at vessels in the Caribbean ...

New U.S. Sanctions Target Hezbollah Financial Intermediaries

This is Beirut 07/11 09:00 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Lebanon Hezbollah United States Washington sanctions Iran

The U.S. Department of the Treasury announced on Thursday new sanctions against several individuals accused of transferring tens of millions of dollars from Iran to Hezbollah in 2025 through Lebanese money exchange houses. According to the Treasury, these networks exploit Lebanon’s largely cash-based and informal financial system to fund the ...

Op-edHas the Countdown for Collapse Started in Iran?

Salam El Zaatari 07/11 09:00 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Nawaf Salam Iran Tehran Moscow Beijing

A seismic shift appears to be underway in the Middle East. The tremors so far are faint but detectable, hinting at an upcoming eruption along the region’s geopolitical fault lines. Iran's ruling clerical regime is showing signs of great vulnerability, not just those pointing to potential unrest but also to the beginnings of a systemic collapse. ...

Kazakhstan to Join Abraham Accords as Trump Pushes Mideast Peace

This is Beirut 07/11 08:56 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Nawaf Salam Kazakhstan Abraham Accords

Kazakhstan said Thursday it will join the Abraham Accords between Israel and mainly Muslim nations, in a largely symbolic move aimed at boosting US President Donald Trump's push for Middle East peace. The central Asian republic has had diplomatic ties with Israel for decades, unlike the four Arab states that normalized relations with Israel ...

UN Lifts Sanctions on Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa Ahead of Historic White House Visit

This is Beirut 06/11 22:35 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Syria Sanctions United Nations United States

The United Nations Security Council voted in favor of a US resolution on Thursday to lift sanctions on Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa ahead of his White House visit next week. "(The Council) decides that Ahmed al-Sharaa...and (Interior Minister) Anas Hasan Khattab are delisted from the ISIL and Al-Qaida Sanctions List," said the ...

UN Human Rights Council to Hold Emergency Session on Sudan’s El-Fasher Crisis

This is Beirut 06/11 19:10 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Sudan United Nations El Fasher

The UN Human Rights Council announced Thursday that it would hold an urgent session next week on the situation in Sudan's violence-ravaged western city of El-Fasher after it was overrun by paramilitaries. The United Nations' top rights body said in a statement that it would "hold a special session on the human rights situation in and around El ...

Nancy Pelosi to Retire from Politics in January 2027

This is Beirut 06/11 16:35 - Reading : less than a minute

Nancy Pelosi United States

Nancy Pelosi, a towering figure in US politics and the first female speaker of the House of Representatives, announced on Thursday that she would be stepping down at the next election. "I will not be seeking reelection to Congress," the 85-year-old Democrat said in a video heavily targeted at her hometown constituents in San Francisco. "With a ...

The U.S. Urges the UN to Lift Sanctions on Syria’s President

Paul Guillot 06/11 16:10 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Nawaf Salam United Nations Donald Trump Damascus Syria Ahmad al-Sharaa

According to a draft obtained by The Associated Press, the U.S. is asking the Security Council to remove a set of sanctions imposed on Ahmad al-Sharaa and his Interior Minister Anas Hasan Khattab. The resolution could be put to a vote as early as Thursday. To pass, it must secure at least nine votes and avoid a veto from any of the five permanent ...

'Vibe Coding' Named Word of the Year by Collins Dictionary

This is Beirut 06/11 14:00 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Vibe coding AI Collins

"Vibe coding," a word that essentially means using artificial intelligence (AI) to tell a machine what you want instead of coding it yourself, was on Thursday named the Collins Word of the Year 2025. Coined by OpenAI co-founder Andrej Karpathy, the word refers to "an emerging software development that turns natural language into computer code ...

ReportSyrians Furious at Major Hike in Electricity Prices

This is Beirut 06/11 13:55 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Syria electricity poverty economy

In his workshop near the Syrian capital, Ghassan Aama is at a loss following a recent decision to massively hike electricity prices, even as much of the country continues to face extensive outages. Last month, the energy ministry raised prices by at least 60 times compared to the previous tariff, sending shockwaves through a population already ...