This is Beirut 05/07 16:25 - Reading : 2 minute(s)
Syrian emergency workers were battling forest fires raging in the coastal province of Latakia on Saturday for a third day in tough conditions as neighboring Turkey sent assistance. An AFP correspondent saw strong winds fanning the flames in forest areas and farmland in Qastal Maaf, around a dozen kilometers (eight miles) from the Turkish border, ...
This is Beirut 05/07 14:55 - Reading : 4 minute(s)
Israel was mulling its response on Saturday after Hamas said it was ready to start talks "immediately" on a US-sponsored proposal for a Gaza ceasefire. The security cabinet was expected to meet after the end of the Jewish Sabbath at sundown to discuss Israel's next steps as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu prepares to leave for ...
This is Beirut 05/07 13:06 - Reading : 3 minute(s)
Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdogan opposition
Turkey arrested three more opposition mayors early on Saturday as part of an investigation into alleged graft, officials from the main opposition CHP said, denouncing it as a "political operation." The early morning arrests were the latest move targeting elected officials of the Republican People's Party (CHP) as the government of ...
This is Beirut 05/07 05:50 - Reading : 3 minute(s)
Donald Trump United States Politics
US President Donald Trump signed his flagship tax and spending bill into law Friday, capping a grandiose White House Independence Day ceremony featuring a stealth bomber fly-by. "America is winning, winning, winning like never before," Trump said before signing the so-called "One Big Beautiful Bill" while flanked by Republican ...
This is Beirut 04/07 23:25 - Reading : less than a minute
Ceasefire Hamas Israel Palestine Gaza
Hamas said Friday it was ready to start talks "immediately" on a proposal for a ceasefire with Israel in Gaza, after holding consultations with other Palestinian factions. "The movement is ready to engage immediately and seriously in a cycle of negotiations on the mechanism to put in place" the terms of a draft truce proposal received from ...
This is Beirut 04/07 21:25 - Reading : 2 minute(s)
Syrian rescuers were evacuating residential areas in the coastal Latakia province because of major forest fires, authorities said on Friday. Fires have been spreading across large parts of Syria, particularly the coast, for several days, with firefighters struggling to control them due to strong winds and an intense drought. Abdulkafi Kayyal, ...
This is Beirut 04/07 20:25 - Reading : 2 minute(s)
European Union USA Donald Trump
EU and US negotiators will hold final stretch talks through the weekend as Brussels chases a deal before a July 9 deadline to avoid the return of steep tariffs, diplomats said on Friday. If the European Union does not clinch an agreement with the United States by Wednesday next week, higher levies will snap back in and unleash economic pain on ...
This is Beirut 04/07 20:20 - Reading : 4 minute(s)
Donald Trump BRICS Xi Jinping Vladimir Putin Rio
The BRICS nations will convene for a summit in Rio de Janeiro on Sunday and Monday, with members hoping to weigh in on global crises while tiptoeing around US President Donald Trump's policies. The city, with beefed-up security, will play host to leaders and diplomats from 11 emerging economies, including China, India, Russia, South Africa, and ...
This is Beirut 04/07 17:15 - Reading : 3 minute(s)
Israel USA United Nations Damascus New York Syria
Syria said on Friday it was willing to cooperate with the United States to reimplement the 1974 disengagement agreement with Israel, which created a UN-patrolled buffer zone separating the two countries' forces. In a statement after a phone call with his US counterpart Marco Rubio, Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani expressed Damascus's ...
This is Beirut 04/07 16:20 - Reading : 3 minute(s)
Athens Wildfires Crete Climate change
A wildfire on the island of Crete that forced the evacuation of 5,000 tourists and locals is "retreating", Greek firefighters told AFP on Friday, but a new blaze fanned by strong winds is spreading east of the capital, Athens. Hot, dry weather in Greece—not unusual for this time of year—has heightened the risk of summer wildfires, and ...
This is Beirut 04/07 15:50 - Reading : less than a minute
In northern Sudan, farmland is dying in silence. Since the beginning of the conflict in April 2023, electricity has been cut off. Without power, the pumps have stopped, and water from the Nile no longer reaches the crops. With AFP