Syria: UN Chief Decries 'Collective Failure' as Turkey Urges Political Solution to Conflict

This is Beirut 05/12 22:00 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Erdogan Antonio Guterres Syria Bashar al-Assad

UN chief Antonio Guterres said Thursday that the escalating conflict in Syria is the result of a "chronic collective failure" of diplomacy, as he called for an end to fighting. After being dormant for years, the Syrian civil war exploded back into life last week as Islamist-led rebels launched an offensive against the forces of ...

Iraqi Cleric Sadr, Rebel Leader Jolani Call for Iraq's Non-Intervention in Syria

This is Beirut 05/12 20:35 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Abu Mohammad al Jolani Syria HTS Iraq Moqtada Sadr

Influential Iraqi Shiite cleric Moqtada Sadr urged his country Thursday to stay out of the fighting in neighbouring Syria triggered by a lightning rebel offensive launched last week. Sadr stressed in a post on X the "necessity of Iraq's government, people, parties, militias, and security forces not getting involved in the Syrian issue," urging ...

Rebels Capture Hama Days After Seizing Aleppo

Vanessa Kallas 05/12 20:15 - Reading : less than a minute

Rebel forces, led by Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham, captured Hama on Thursday, overrunning government troops and taking key sites, including the central prison. This follows the opposition’s capture of most of Aleppo last Saturday, the first major assault on the city since 2016.

Syrian Rebels Capture Strategic City of Hama, Vow to Target Homs Next

This is Beirut 05/12 17:52 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Syria Rebels Hama Bashar al Assad

Islamist-led rebel forces captured the central Syrian city of Hama on Thursday, days after seizing the country's commercial hub Aleppo in a lightning offensive against President Bashar al-Assad's forces. Rebel forces spokesman Hassan Abdel Ghani was quick to announce on Telegram that, after the fall of Hama, Homs was now the new target of ...

ExclusiveAIDS: In the Footsteps of a Major Scientific Scandal (2/2)

Alain E. Andrea 05/12 14:35 - Reading : 6 minute(s)

AIDS Health France United States

At the end of the 20th century, AIDS, previously unknown, spread rapidly, plunging the world into an unprecedented public health crisis. Researchers worked diligently to uncover the causes of this mysterious disease. In May 1983, Luc Montagnier and his team at the Pasteur Institute in Paris published an article in Science announcing that they had ...

Syrian Army Admits Loss of Key City of Hama

This is Beirut 05/12 14:25 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Syria Hama Assad Rebels

The Syrian army has now conceded that it has lost control of the key city of Hama, following reports that rebel fighters had entered the city and seized control of a prison. This concession comes after the Syrian army previously said there was no truth to reports rebels had entered any city district and that its forces remained stationed around ...

Doha to Resume Its Role as Mediator in Israel-Hamas Talks

This is Beirut 05/12 11:35 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Donald Trump Israel Benjamin Netanyahu Qatar

President-elect Donald Trump's new Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, recently visited Qatar and Israel to relaunch efforts to reach a ceasefire in Gaza and an agreement on the release of hostages from Hamas, two Israeli media outlets, Haaretz and Times of Israel, reported on Thursday, citing sources close to the negotiators. This effort is being ...

Bitcoin Surges past $100,000 Valuation for First Time

This is Beirut 05/12 10:55 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Donald Trump USA Bitcoin Korea

Bitcoin burst past $100,000 for the first time Thursday, while Seoul stocks slipped as South Korea's president faced impeachment after his brief imposition of martial law this week. After hovering around the mid-$90,000 mark in recent weeks, the popular cryptocurrency finally shattered the historic level in Asia after incoming US president Donald ...

Syrian army lost control of Hama

This is Beirut 05/12 10:30 - Reading : 5 minute(s)

Damascus Turkey United Nations Syria

The Syrian army lost control of Hama, according to the Syrian news agency, Sana. The rebels took control of the city and freed all prisoners detained in the central incarceration center. Syrian government forces were locked in heavy fighting around the central city of Hama on Thursday morning, trying to halt an advance of Islamist-led rebels, a ...

South Korean President Clings to Power of Martial Law

This is Beirut 05/12 10:25 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

United States USA Washington South Korea

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol was still clinging to power Thursday, with his party announcing they will oppose an impeachment motion after his short-lived imposition of martial law stunned the world. Yoon suspended civilian rule late Tuesday and deployed troops and helicopters to parliament only for lawmakers to vote down the measure and ...

Macron to Seek Solution for Crisis, Following PM's Ouster

This is Beirut 05/12 09:30 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Emmanuel Macron Saudi Arabia USA France Barnier

French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday will seek ways out of France's political crisis, after Michel Barnier became the first prime minister to be ousted by parliament in over six decades. Lawmakers voted on Wednesday to oust Barnier's government after just three months in office, approving a no-confidence motion proposed by the hard left ...

Op-edThe Poisoned Chalice of Political Islam

Salam Zaatari 05/12 09:00 - Reading : 7 minute(s)

Islam ISIS Mossad Muslims

For as long as I can remember, my identity as a Muslim has been a source of both pride and fear. Growing up in a post-9/11 world, I have lived under the shadow of suspicion, my faith often seen through the lens of terrorism, extremism, and political turmoil. From news headlines to Hollywood narratives, the image of Islam has been relentlessly ...