The Leader of a Palestinian Group Based in Syria Arrested in Damascus

This is Beirut 03/05 17:55 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Damascus Palestine Hamas Israel United States

Officials of a small Palestinian militant group that was close to ousted Syrian president Bashar al-Assad said their leader was arrested Saturday by the country's new Islamist-led authorities. The arrest of the leader of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command (PFLP-GC) came after the armed wing of another Palestinian ...

Zelensky Refuses to “Play” with the Short Truces Proposed by Putin

This is Beirut 03/05 17:20 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Volodymyr Zelensky USA Kyiv

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has dismissed a three-day truce ordered by Russian leader Vladimir Putin as theatrics but said Kyiv was ready for a full ceasefire. Moscow said the truce, set to coincide with its World War II commemorations on May 9, was aimed at testing Kyiv's "readiness" for long-term peace and accused ...

SpotlightDisarming Hezbollah: A Time-Sensitive Approach

Amal Chmouny 03/05 16:30 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Hezbollah Joseph Aoun Lebanon United States America

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun's statement that Beirut will not forcibly disarm Hezbollah is reverberating through Washington, sparking debates about Lebanon's political future and the role of the heavily armed militia. Aoun aims for a dialogue-driven strategy, attempting to persuade Hezbollah to relinquish its arms instead of engaging in a ...

Syria: UN Envoy Denounces Israeli Strikes and Calls for De-escalation

This is Beirut 03/05 15:37 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Damascus Israel

United Nations special envoy Geir Pedersen on Saturday urged Israel to immediately stop its attacks on Syria, after strikes including one near Damascus's presidential palace, which followed sectarian violence this week. Fresh overnight strikes were reported, coming as Israel has repeatedly said its forces were ready to protect the Druze ...

Jumblatt Condemns Israeli Strikes on Syria, Urges Support for Political Resolution

This Is Beirut 03/05 13:00 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Syria Druze Lebanon

Former Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Jumblatt strongly condemned the latest Israeli airstrikes on Syrian territory, including areas near Damascus, calling them a “flagrant violation of Syrian sovereignty” and warning that they “do not contribute to the political resolution” currently underway with Syrian President Ahmad ...

Iran Says 'Has Every Right' To Enrich Uranium, Dismissing US Concerns

This is Beirut 03/05 11:55 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Iran USA Abbas Araghchi Nuclear

Iran defended on Saturday its "right" to enrich uranium despite growing Western concern that Tehran may be seeking nuclear weapons and as talks with the United States were delayed. Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said in a post on X that "Iran has every right to possess the full nuclear fuel cycle," citing Tehran's ...

Gaza Rescuers Say Three Babies Among 11 Killed in Israel Strike

This is Beirut 03/05 11:50 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Israel Gaza United Nations

Gaza's civil defense agency said Saturday that an overnight Israeli strike on the Khan Yunis refugee camp killed at least 11 people, including three babies up to a year old. Civil defense spokesman Mahmud Bassal reported 11 killed "after the bombardment of the Al-Bayram family home in the Khan Yunis camp" in southern Gaza at around 3:00 am (0000 ...

More Than 20 Israeli Strikes on Syria's Territory

This is Beirut 03/05 02:50 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Syria Israel Strikes Conflict

Israel launched more than 20 air strikes inside Syria late Friday, a war monitor said, following up an attack near the presidential palace in Damascus which was condemned as a "dangerous escalation" by the country's Islamist rulers. The strikes came amid Israeli warnings to the Damascus government not to harm the Druze minority, ...

Syria Slams “Dangerous Escalation” After Israeli Strike in Damascus

This is Beirut 02/05 22:50 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Damascus Benjamin Netanyahu Israel

Syria's Islamist rulers on Friday denounced an air strike near the presidential palace as a "dangerous escalation", as Israel called it a "clear message" not to harm the Druze minority. The dawn strike came hours after senior Druze clerics and armed factions reaffirmed their loyalty to Damascus and rejected any call for secession. They also ...

Germany: Eight Injured After SUV Plows Into Crowd in Stuttgart

This is Beirut 02/05 22:20 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

A car drove into a crowd in the southern German city of Stuttgart Friday injuring eight people, emergency services said, but police said there was "no indication" it had been an attack. German security services have been on high alert following several deadly car-ramming attacks in recent months, including in the eastern city of Magdeburg and in ...

Syria: Drone Strike Kills Four Druze Fighters in Sweida

This is Beirut 02/05 21:10 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Damascus Israel United Kingdom

Four Druze fighters were killed on Friday in a drone strike targeting Syria’s southern province of Sweida, a stronghold of the Druze minority, according to a rights group, which did not specify who carried out the attack. “Four Druze fighters were killed on a farm in Kanaker in an explosion that coincided with the overflight of a drone,” ...

AfD Designated as "Far-Right Extremist": Is a Ban on the Party Coming ?

This is Beirut 02/05 20:55 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Donald Trump Europe USA

Germany's domestic intelligence service on Friday designated the rising far-right party AfD as an extremist group, handing authorities greater powers to monitor it and fuelling calls for it to be banned. The anti-immigration Alternative for Germany (AfD) swiftly slammed the move as a "heavy blow" to democracy, just months after they won second ...