World

Rubio's Warning About a Potential Syrian Civil War Puts Lebanon on the Edge

Amal Chmouny 02/06 11:30 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Lebanese Army Hezbollah US Secretary of State Marco Rubio

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio's recent warning about Syria's potential descent into a "full-scale civil war of epic proportions" has not gone unnoticed. This cautionary note has raised alarm bells not only within Syria's borders but also in neighboring Lebanon, which remains precariously balanced on a fragile socio-political ...

ExplainerWhat we Know about Ukraine's Drone Attacks in Russia

This is Beirut 02/06 10:42 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky

Ukrainian security services conducted an massive drone attack against Russian military airbases on Sunday, striking thousands of kilometres from the front line in what President Volodymyr Zelensky said was their longest-range operation ever. The operation, code-named "Spider's web", required months of preparation and the smuggling of drones ...

SpotlightNintendo Aims to Match Switch Success with New Console

This is Beirut 02/06 10:25 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Nintendo Switch

Nintendo hopes to match the runaway success of the Switch when its levelled-up new console hits shelves Thursday, with strong early sales expected despite the gadget's high price. Featuring a bigger screen and more processing power, the Switch 2 is an upgrade to its predecessor, which has sold 152 million units since launching in 2017 -- making ...

Is Trump Deterring European Tourists to US? Not so Fast

This is Beirut 02/06 09:20 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Donald Trump USA Europe Tourists

President Donald Trump's hardline immigration tactics, sweeping tariffs and nationalist policies may be a turn-off for many would-be European tourists to the United States, but the data paints a more nuanced bigger picture. The number of visitors to the United States from Western Europe in March fell by 17 percent from the same month a year ...

Nationalist Nawrocki Wins Polish Presidential Election

This is Beirut 02/06 09:00 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Karol Nawrocki Election Poland

Nationalist historian Karol Nawrocki won Poland's presidential election, official results showed on Monday, in a major blow for the country's pro-EU government. The 42-year-old, an admirer of US President Donald Trump, scored 50.89 percent of votes in Sunday's runoff, the national election commission said. His 53-year-old rival Rafal ...

AnalysisThe Iranian Regime's Deadly Entanglements

Charles Chartouni 02/06 09:00 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Iran Gaza Israel Palestine Lebanon Hezbollah

The Middle Eastern landscape is becoming more complicated, with its issues bordering intractability. The heightening tensions are far from being incidental; they are part of the Iranian sabotaging politics. Iranians have always been duplicitous when negotiating their nuclear deals. Hezbollah’s obstructionism is hobbling normalization in ...

Polish Presidential Election Rivals Neck and Neck

This is Beirut 01/06 22:45 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Donald Trump European Union Europe Ukraine USA

The centrist and nationalist candidates vying for the Polish presidency were neck and neck, an exit poll showed on Sunday, each predicting victory in a vote with major implications for Poland's pro-EU government. Warsaw's liberal mayor Rafal Trzaskowski, 53, a government ally, was narrowly ahead with 50.3 percent of votes against nationalist ...

Qatar, Egypt Say Will Intensify Efforts to Resume Gaza Truce Talks

This is Beirut 01/06 22:25 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Palestine USA Hamas Israel Middle East

Qatar and Egypt announced on Sunday plans to step up efforts for Gaza truce negotiations, as the Palestinian militant group Hamas said it was prepared to "immediately" hold a fresh round of talks. "Qatar and Egypt, in coordination with the United States of America, affirm their intention to intensify efforts to overcome the obstacles facing the ...

British FM Says Morocco’s Autonomy Plan for W. Sahara ‘Most Credible’ Solution

This is Beirut 01/06 22:15 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

UN Security Council United Kingdom United Nations USA Morocco

British foreign minister David Lammy said on Sunday that Morocco's autonomy plan for the territory of Western Sahara was the "most credible" solution to the decades-long dispute, reversing London's long-standing position. Western Sahara, a mineral-rich former Spanish colony, is largely controlled by Morocco but has been claimed in its entirety ...

Gaza Rescuers Say Israeli Fire Kills 31 Near Aid Site

This is Beirut 01/06 20:25 - Reading : 5 minute(s)

Palestine United Nations Hamas Israel USA

Gaza's civil defence agency said Israeli gunfire killed at least 31 Palestinians near a US-backed aid distribution site on Sunday, with both the group in charge of the site and the military denying any such incident took place. Israel has faced growing condemnation over the humanitarian crisis in the war-ravaged Gaza Strip, where the United ...

Egypt Unveils Plan for New Desert City in Latest Megaproject

This is Beirut 01/06 19:50 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Egypt Jirian Nile

Egypt on Sunday unveiled plans for a vast new urban development west of Cairo where a man-made channel of the River Nile will eventually wind through what was once arid desert. The new city, named Jirian, meaning "Flow" in Arabic, is part of Egypt's Nile Delta scheme, a massive agricultural initiative aiming to reclaim about 2.5 million acres ...

Ukraine Strikes Russian Bombers ahead of Istanbul Talks

This is Beirut 01/06 19:23 - Reading : 5 minute(s)

Ukraine Russia Volodymyr Zelensky

Ukraine said Sunday it launched a "large-scale" attack to destroy Russian bombers as it geared up for talks in Istanbul with Moscow counterparts to explore prospects of a ceasefire. The spectacular claim that Ukraine damaged $2 billion worth of Russian aircraft parked at airbases thousands of kilometers (miles) away came as Kyiv ...