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There is no security in the whole region as long as Palestinians are left outside of the equation." The Hamas attack launched from Gaza follows months of rising violence in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, with stepped-up Israeli raids, Palestinian street attacks and assaults by Jewish settlers on Palestinian villages. "Some (Arab states) unfortunately started imagining that Israel could be the gateway for America to defend their security." "I would say for certain Hamas, terrorist groups like Hamas, will not derail any such outcome. Tehran called Saturday's attack an act of self-defence by Palestinians.

Persons: Ammar Awad, Israel, Ismail Haniyeh, Benjamin Netanyahu, Peacemaking, Laura Blumenfeld, Osama Hamdan, Netanyahu, Ali Baraka, Richard LeBaron, IRAN'S, Joe Biden's, Yahya Rahim Safavi, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Dennis Ross, Samia Nakhoul, Nidal El Mughrabi, Laila Bassam, Matt Spetalnick, Edmund Blair Organizations: REUTERS, Saudi, Israel Saudi, Hamas, Iran, Israel, Al, West Bank, Reuters, Johns Hopkins School, International Studies, U.S . Middle, Atlantic Council, Islamic, Palestinian, Analysts, Washington Institute for Near, U.S ., Thomson Locations: Gaza, Sderot, Israel, DUBAI, GAZA, WASHINGTON, Saudi Arabia, Washington, Riyadh, Tehran, Iran, Al Jazeera, Lebanese, U.S, East, Lebanon, America, Kippur, Egypt, U.S . Middle East, Saudi, Israeli, normalisation, Islamic Jihad, Palestine, Jerusalem, Syria, Iraq, Yemen, Yemeni, Dubai, Beirut

☆ Israel strikes Lebanon after Hezbollah hits Shebaa Farms
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/5] Smoke rises from Halta village as seen from Ibl al-Saqi village in southern Lebanon, near the border with Israel, southern Lebanon, October 8, 2023. REUTERS/Aziz Taher Acquire Licensing RightsOct 8 (Reuters) - Israel fired barrages of artillery into southern Lebanon on Sunday after Hezbollah targeted three Israeli military positions in the disputed Shebaa Farms. Israel has held the Shebaa Farms, a 15-square-mile (39-square-km) patch of land, since 1967. Both Syria and Lebanon claim the Shebaa Farms are Lebanese. The United Nations peacekeeping mission in southern Lebanon did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Persons: Aziz Taher, Har Dov, Israel's, Ari Rabinovitch, William Mallard 私 Organizations: REUTERS, Sunday, Israel Defense Forces, United Nations Locations: Halta, Lebanon, Israel, Iran, Shebaa . Israel, Syria, Gaza, Beirut, Jerusalem

☆ Analysis-In Surprise Attack, Hamas Strikes Israel and Regional Security Realignment
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-07 | by ( Oct. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +7 min

"Some (Arab states) unfortunately started imagining that Israel could be the gateway for America to defend their security." In the years since 1973, Egypt signed a peace treaty with Israel and several other Arab states have also since normalised ties, including some Gulf Arab states next to Saudi Arabia. Netanyahu has previously said the Palestinians should not be allowed to veto any new Israeli peace deals with Arab states. Tehran called Saturday's attack an act of self-defence by Palestinians. Dennis Ross, a former Middle East negotiator who is now at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy in Washington, said of Saturday's attack: "This is all about preventing the U.S.-Saudi-Israel breakthrough."

Persons: Samia Nakhoul, Nidal, Matt Spetalnick, Laila Bassam, Israel, Ismail Haniyeh, Benjamin Netanyahu, Peacemaking, Osama Hamdan, Netanyahu, Ali Baraka, Richard LeBaron, IRAN'S, Joe Biden's, Yahya Rahim Safavi, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Dennis Ross, Nidal El Mughrabi, Edmund Blair Organizations: Hamas, Iran, Israel, Saudi, Al, West Bank, Reuters, U.S . Middle, Atlantic Council, Islamic, Palestinian, Analysts, Washington Institute for Near, U.S . Locations: Laila Bassam DUBAI, GAZA, WASHINGTON, Israel, Saudi Arabia, Washington, Riyadh, Tehran, Iran, Gaza, Al Jazeera, Lebanese, U.S, Lebanon, America, Kippur, Egypt, U.S . Middle East, Saudi, Israeli, normalisation, Islamic Jihad, Palestine, Jerusalem, Syria, Iraq, Yemen, Yemeni, Dubai, Beirut

Israel has the right to defend itself and its people, full stop. Secretary of State Antony Blinken was at the White House for meetings and spoke to Israel's president and foreign minister, while Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin spoke with Israel's defense minister. But given the scale of the Hamas attacks and Israel's military response, the officials said they were not optimistic about any short-term solution. Zelenskyy, who is Jewish and had relatives who died in the Holocaust, said “Israel’s right to self-defense cannot be questioned." In Lebanon’s Palestinian refugee camps, hundreds took to the streets to celebrate the operation by Hamas.

Persons: Joe Biden, Biden, Benjamin Netanyahu, United States “, There’s, ’ ’, ” Biden, Netanyahu, King Abdullah II, Antony Blinken, Lloyd Austin, Israel, ” Netanyahu, We’ll, ”, – “, It’s, ’, Blinken, “, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Ursula Von Der Leyen, OIaf Scholz, Karl Nehammer, Rishi Sunak, ” Nehammer, Mikhail Bogdanov, Bogdanov, Israel ”, Nasser Kanaani Organizations: WASHINGTON, Hamas, Israeli, White House, Defense, Pentagon, ”, United Arab, Telegram, Jewish, British, Austrian, Foreign Ministry, Tass, Saudi Foreign Ministry, Iranian Foreign Ministry, Associated Press Locations: Israel, United States, U.S, Kippur, Gaza, ’ ’, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, United Arab Emirates, Austrian, Vienna, Moscow, Iran, “ Israel, Palestine, Beirut, Tripoli

Thursday’s strike on the Homs Military Academy killed 89 people, including 31 women and five children, and wounded as many as 277, according to the health ministry. No group immediately claimed responsibility for Thursday's attack as Syria endures its 13th year of conflict that has killed half a million people. Syrian Defense Minister Gen. Ali Abbas was present Friday outside the hospital, where he comforted the families of victims. An opposition war monitor reported Thursday that Abbas had left the graduation ceremony shortly before the attack. The tide turned in Assad’s favor against rebel groups in 2015, when Russia provided key military backing to Syria, as well as Iran and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah.

Persons: —, Thursday’s, Syria’s, ”, Qader, Ibrahim Shaaban, Raneem, Mohammed, Rima, Hussein Quba, ” Shaaban, Bassam Mohammed, Ali Abbas, Abbas, Jaafar Mohammed, “, Bashar Assad’s, Bassem Mroue Organizations: Homs Military Academy, Syrian Civil Defense, Syrian Defense, Associated Press Locations: HOMS, Syria, Homs, Russia, Turkey, Russian, Idlib, Aleppo, Daret, Raneem Quba, Iran, Lebanese, Beirut

☆ At least 60 killed in drone attack on Syrian military academy
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BEIRUT, Oct 5 (Reuters) - At least 60 people were killed on Thursday in an attack on a military academy in Syria, a war monitor and a security source said, with weaponised drones bombing the site minutes after Syria's defence minister left a graduation ceremony there. Civilians and military personnel were killed in the attack on the military academy in the central province of Homs, Syria's defence ministry said in a statement, adding "terrorist" groups had used drones to carry it out. The statement did not specify an organisation and no group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack. Syria's defence minister attended the graduation ceremony but left minutes before the attack, according to a Syrian security source and a security source in the regional alliance backing the Damascus government against opposition groups. We don't know where it came from, and corpses littered the ground," said a Syrian man who had helped set up decorations at the academy for the occasion.

Persons: Syria's, Bashar al, Assad, Laila Bassam, Suleiman Al, Khalidi, Kinda, Jon Boyle, Mark Heinrich, David Gregorio, Alexandra Hudson Organizations: Reuters, Alexandra Hudson Our, Thomson Locations: BEIRUT, Syria, Homs, Damascus, Syrian, fatigues, Russia, Iran, Tehran, Lebanon, Iraq, Turkey

☆ At least 100 killed in drone attack on Syrian military academy, monitor says
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

People stand and walk outside a building after drone attack on Syrian military academy in Homs, Syria October 5, 2023 is seen in this screen grab from a video. Video obtained by Reuters/via REUTERS Acquire Licensing RightsBEIRUT, Oct 5 (Reuters) - At least 100 people were killed on Thursday in an attack on a military academy in Syria, a war monitor and an official said, with weaponised drones bombing the site minutes after Syria's defence minister left a graduation ceremony there. Civilians and military personnel were killed in the attack on the military academy in the central province of Homs, Syria's defence ministry said, adding "terrorist" groups had used drones. Syria's defence and foreign ministries vowed to respond "with full force". The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said more than 100 people were killed and 125 injured.

Persons: Syria's, Hassan Al, Ghobash, Bashar al, Assad, Laila Bassam, Suleiman Al, Khalidi, Kinda, Jon Boyle, Mark Heinrich, David Gregorio, Alexandra Hudson, Andrew Heavens Organizations: Reuters, REUTERS Acquire, Rights, Syrian Observatory, Human Rights, Health, Thomson Locations: Homs, Syria, Rights BEIRUT, Idlib, Damascus, Syrian, fatigues, Russia, Iran, Tehran, Lebanon, Iraq, Turkey

☆ Lebanon Arrests Individual Who Fired on US Embassy Last Week - Security Sources
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-25 | by ( Sept. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: 1 min

BEIRUT (Reuters) - Lebanon's security forces have arrested at least one individual involved in shooting at the U.S. embassy last week, two security sources have told Reuters. One security source said the individual was a Lebanese man. The second security source said ammunition he had in his position had also been seized.

Organizations: U.S, Reuters Locations: BEIRUT, Lebanese

BEIRUT (AP) — Lebanon’s security agencies have launched an investigation into a late night shooting outside the U.S. embassy in Lebanon that caused no injuries, officials said Thursday. Top CIA officials were among those killed in the 1983 embassy attack in a Beirut coastal neighborhood. In 2008, an explosion targeted a U.S. Embassy vehicle in northern Beirut, killing at least three Lebanese and injuring an American bystander and a local embassy employee. In October 1983, a truck bombing killed 241 American service members at the U.S. Marine barracks at Beirut airport. The U.S. withdrew all diplomats from Beirut in September 1989 and did not reopen its embassy until 1991.

Persons: Jake Nelson, ”, Francis E, Meloy Jr, Robert O, Waring, William Buckley Organizations: U.S, Embassy, Lebanese, Top CIA, Hezbollah, U.S . Embassy, U.S ., CIA, Islamic Locations: BEIRUT, Lebanon, Awkar, U.S, Beirut, American, Ambassador

BEIRUT (AP) — Four years after Lebanon’s historic meltdown began, the small nation is still facing “enormous economic challenges,” with a collapsed banking sector, eroding public services, deteriorating infrastructure and worsening poverty, the International Monetary Fund warned Friday. Since the financial meltdown began in October 2019, the country’s political class — blamed for decades of corruption and mismanagement — has been resisting economic and financial reforms requested by the international community. Lebanon started talks with the IMF in 2020 to try reach an approved bailout, but since reaching a preliminary agreement with the IMF last year, the country's leaders have been reluctant to implement needed reforms. “Lebanon has not undertaken the urgently needed reforms, and this will weigh on the economy for years to come,” the IMF statement said. The IMF said that all official exchange rates should be unified at the market exchange rate.

Persons: Sayrafa, Wassim Mansouri, — Organizations: International Monetary Fund, IMF Locations: BEIRUT, Lebanon

[1/5] People walk amidst the wreckage, in the aftermath of the floods in Derna, Libya September 15, 2023. "Bodies are littering the streets, washing back on shore and are buried under collapsed buildings and debris. Mohammad al-Qabisi, head of Derna's Wahda Hospital, said a field hospital was treating people with chronic illnesses needing regular attention. Thursday's U.N. report said more than 1,000 bodies in Derna and over 100 bodies in Al Bayda, another coastal city which was hit by flooding, had been buried in mass graves. The ICRC sent a cargo flight to Benghazi, eastern Libya's largest city, on Friday with 5,000 body bags.

Persons: Omran, DERNA, Bilal Sablouh, Ibrahim al, Mohammad al, Nouri Mohamed, Derna's, Kazunobu Kojima, Derna, Thursday's U.N, Al Bayda, I've, Ahmed Bayram, Saad Rajab Mohamed al, Martin Griffiths, Ahmed Elumami, Ayman al, Laila Bassam, Emma Farge, Gabrielle Tetrault, Farber, Nayera Abdallah, Mark Heinrich, William Maclean, Edmund Blair Organizations: REUTERS, WHO, World Health Organization, Reuters, Derna's, Organization for, International Committee, Cross, International Federation of, Red Crescent Societies, ICRC, Norwegian Refugee Council, Danish Refugee, Thomson Locations: Derna, Libya, U.N, GENEVA, Libyan, Africa, Geneva, Libya's Tripoli, Libya's, WHO's, Al, Benghazi, Susah, Beirut

☆ Libyans Come Together for Flood Aid Effort Despite Conflict
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-14 | by ( Sept. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +5 min

Ministers from the Tripoli-based government visited the eastern city of Benghazi on Thursday. A humanitarian source involved in the relief effort said eastern authorities had barred foreign aid flowing to Derna through the internationally recognised Tripoli government, whose legitimacy the eastern administration rejects. A source in the eastern administration denied this, saying it had not rejected aid being channelled via Tripoli. Relief operations in Derna have been directed by Haftar's LNA, the military coalition that controls eastern Libya and was for years in open conflict with western factions. Turkey, long the main supporter of the Tripoli government, rapidly sent an aid team to Derna through Benghazi, the LNA-controlled capital of eastern regions.

Persons: Ahmed Elumami, Ayman al, DERNA, Elias al, Biltrees, Tim Eaton, Khalifa Haftar, FAULTLINES, Eaton, OCHA, Haftar's LNA, Haftar, Emma Farge, Angelo Amante, Tom Perry, Angus McDowall, Alexandra Hudson Organizations: Reuters, Chatham House, United Nations, Brigade Locations: Libya, Misrata, Tripoli, Benghazi, Zawiya, Derna, NATO, Chatham, Libya's, Turkey, Geneva, Rome, Beirut

The Federal Reserve has tamed inflation via interest rate increases, but it may need to take further action, he said. Still, optimism that the U.S. economy will avoid a recession is leading to a reopening of capital markets, Solomon said. "They're meaningful, they're going well," he said. "I do think these capital rules will have an impact on economic growth and that will affect large businesses and small businesses and their access to capital," Solomon said. JPMorgan Chase (JPM.N) CEO Jamie Dimon blasted the proposed rules, telling investors on Monday that they could prompt lenders to pull back and stymie economic growth.

Persons: Mohamed Azakir, Goldman Sachs, David Solomon, Solomon, Treasuries, it's, Goldman, JPMorgan Chase, Jamie Dimon, Saeed Azhar, Lananh Nguyen, Davide Barbuscia, Sharon Singleton, Leslie Adler Organizations: REUTERS, Reuters, Federal Reserve, SoftBank Group Corp, JPMorgan, Thomson Locations: Beirut, Lebanon, U.S, New York

BEIRUT (AP) — The U.S. Treasury on Tuesday slapped terrorism sanctions on a family network of seven individuals and businesses in Lebanon and South America accused of financing the militant group Hezbollah, including a Lebanese man who officials say was involved in two deadly attacks in Argentina in the 1990s. The Iran-backed group is designated a “foreign terrorist organization," and Washington also claims that the group has been involved in drug trafficking in Latin America to generate revenue. Rada, according to the Treasury, spent over a decade in South America before relocating to Lebanon. Political Cartoons View All 1154 ImagesRada's brother, Samer, was also sanctioned and accused of being involved in various drug trafficking and money laundering operations across Latin America. The Treasury also slapped sanctions on Lebanon-based company Black Diamond SARL and owner Ali Ismail Ajrouch.

Persons: Amer Mohamed Akil Rada, ”, “, Brian Nelson, Mehdi Akil Helbawi, Diamond SARL, Ali Ismail Ajrouch Organizations: Treasury, Argentine, Israelite Mutual Association, Embassy, Rada, BCI Technologies Locations: BEIRUT, U.S, Lebanon, South America, Lebanese, Argentina, Buenos Aires, Iran, Washington, America, Colombia, Latin America, Belize, El Salvador, Venezuelan

☆ Ten dead as clashes resume in Palestinian camp in south Lebanon
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/5] Residents carry belongings on their heads as they walk near the entrance of Ain el-Hilweh Palestinian refugee camp during Palestinian faction clash, in Sidon, Lebanon September 11, 2023. The Ain el-Hilweh camp has been rocked by factional clashes since late July between the Palestinian mainstream movement Fatah and Islamist fighters. The two remaining victims were civilians, a Lebanese security source and two Palestinian sources said. One was killed on Saturday when a stray bullet from the clashes reached a town near the camp, the Lebanese security source said. Residents fear a similar scenario to the northern Palestinian camp of Naher al-Bared, where Lebanon's army waged a 15-week onslaught to dislodge Islamist groups in 2007.

Persons: Aziz Taher, Fatah, Fighting, Ain, Naher, Maya Gebeily, Mark Heinrich, Hugh Lawson Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Palestinian, United, Fatah, Security, UNRWA, Thomson Locations: Ain el, Sidon, Lebanon, Rights BEIRUT, Ain, Palestine, Israel's

GENEVA (AP) — The U.N. human rights chief called on Monday for an “urgent reversal” of military takeovers and return to civilian rule in countries in Africa where coups have driven out elected leaders in recent years as he assailed a multitude of crises across the globe. Volker Türk's comments set the early tone for the U.N.'s top human rights body as he opened its fall session against the backdrop of conflicts and crises — including the plights of migrants from Myanmar to Mali and Mexico. “The unconstitutional changes in government that we have seen in the Sahel are not the solution,” Türk said. Türk also expressed his concern about a proposed bill in Iran that would impose severe penalties for violations of the country's strictly enforced law on women's mandatory headscarf, or hijab. His remarks came just days before the first anniversary of the Sept. 16 death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, who was detained by Iran's morality police allegedly over violating the dress code, and the nationwide protests that were sparked by her death.

Persons: Volker Türk's, ” Türk, ”, Türk, —, Alexei Navalny, Vladimir Kara, Murza, Amini Organizations: GENEVA, Human Rights, Kremlin Locations: Africa, Myanmar, Mali, Mexico, Sahel, North Africa, Burkina Faso, Niger, Haiti, Beirut, U.S, China, Xinjiang, Iran

☆ Storm and floods kill at least 150 people in Libya-Red Crescent
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-11 | by ( Ayman Werfali | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

"People were asleep and woke up and found their homes surrounded by water," he told Reuters. Heavy floods washed away vehicles, footage broadcast by eastern Libya's Almostkbal TV showed. Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani instructed the government to send aid to the affected area in eastern Libya, Qatar's state news agency reported. His administration holds little sway in eastern Libya, but Dbeibah said on Sunday he had directed all state agencies to “immediately deal” with the damage and floods in eastern cities. Dbeibah's government is recognised by the Central Bank of Libya, which disburses funds to government departments across the country.

Persons: Storm Daniel, Al Bayda, Marj, Fhakeri, Saleh, Ahmed Mohamed, Ahmad Mismari, Khalifa, Witnesses, Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad, Thani, Abdulhamid, Ras Lanuf, Dbeibah, Ayman Werfali, Ahmed Elumami, Moaz Abd, Tarek Amara, Tom Perry, Nick Macfie, Andrew Heavens, William Maclean Organizations: Reuters, Libyan National Army, UNESCO, Authorities, Central Bank of Libya, United Nations, Thomson Locations: BENGHAZI, Libyan, Derna, Benghazi, Sousse, Al, Qatar's, Libya, Tripoli, Zueitina, Brega, Es Sidra, “, Tala, Dubai, Cairo, Tunis, Beirut

☆ Four Killed as Clashes Resume in Palestinian Camp in South Lebanon
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-11 | by ( Sept. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

BEIRUT (Reuters) - Four people were killed and dozens wounded in renewed violence between rival groups in a Palestinian refugee camp in southern Lebanon, with a senior Palestinian official flying in on Monday amid fears the bloodshed could spread. Fighting resumed over the weekend after a month-long ceasefire and has killed four people, according to the United Nations' Palestinian refugee agency (UNRWA). At least two of them were civilians, a Lebanese security source and two Palestinian sources said. One was killed on Saturday when a stray bullet from the clashes reached a town near the camp, the Lebanese security source said. Ain el-Hilweh is the largest of 12 Palestinian refugee camps in Lebanon, hosting around 80,000 of up to 250,000 Palestinians countrywide, according to UNRWA.

Persons: Fatah, Fighting, Ain, Naher, Maya Gebeily, Mark Heinrich Organizations: Palestinian, United Nations, UNRWA, Fatah, Security Locations: BEIRUT, Lebanon, Ain, Palestinian, Israel's, Sidon

DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) — The United Nations special envoy for Syria Sunday urged donors not to reduce their funding as the war-torn country's economic crisis spirals. Political Cartoons View All 1148 ImagesWith international donor support dwindling, U.N. agencies have been cutting programs due to budget cuts for years. “We cannot accept that funding for Syria is going down while the humanitarian needs are increasing,” Pedersen said. “For Syria without addressing the political consequences of this crisis, the deep economic crisis and humanitarian suffering will also continue,” Pedersen said. Meanwhile, Russia and Iran have tried to push Syria and Turkey to rekindle ties, the latter backing opposition groups in northwestern Syria.

Persons: Bashar Assad’s, Assad, Geir Pedersen, Faisal Mekdad, ” Pedersen, —, Pedersen, — Chehayeb Organizations: United Nations, Syria Sunday, Syrian Foreign, Arab League Locations: DAMASCUS, Syria, Sweida, Daraa, Russia, Iran, Damascus, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Iraq, Egypt, Turkey, Beirut, Lebanon

"Iran initially wanted direct access to the funds but in the end agreed to having access via Qatar," said a senior diplomat. Reuters pieced together this account of previously unreported details about the extent of Qatari mediation of the secret talks, how the deal unfolded and the expediency that motivated both parties to clinch the prisoner swap deal. Ties between the U.S. and Iran have been at boiling point since Donald Trump quit a nuclear deal with Iran as U.S. president in 2018. Reaching another nuclear deal has gained little traction since then, as President Joe Biden prepares for the 2024 U.S. election. Then president Trump in 2018 reimposed the sanctions when he pulled Washington out of a deal under which Iran had restricted its nuclear program.

Persons: Mohammed bin Abdulaziz bin Saleh Al Khulaifi, Iran Dr, Ali Bagheri, Antony Blinken, Siamak Namazi, Morad Tahbaz, hasn’t, Jin, Washington, Donald Trump, Joe Biden, Biden, Blinken, Iran’s, Trump, Iran Robert Malley, Abram Paley, Ali Bagheri Kani, Mehdi Safari, Foreign Ministry Mohammed Al, Khulaifi, Malley, Paley, Kani, Al Khulaifi, Laila Bassam, Samia Nakhoul, William Maclean Organizations: Regional Affairs, Political Affairs, Qatar News Agency, Handout, REUTERS Acquire, Qatar, Qatar DUBAI, U.S, Reuters, British, Islamic, Washington, Doha, Iranian, State Department, Qatar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, The State Department, Democrat, Qatari, TRANSIT QATAR, Iran, The Central Bank of, U.S ., State, Foreign Ministry, Thomson Locations: Islamic Republic, Iran, Tehran, Qatar Gulf, DOHA, Qatar, U.S, Tehran’s, Emad Sharqi, Western, Gulf, South Korea, Washington, Switzerland, Seoul, Doha, Iranian, The Central Bank of Iran, Beirut

☆ Iran, US on Verge of Prisoner Swap Under Qatar-Mediated Deal
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-10 | by ( Sept. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +9 min

Persons: Parisa Hafezi, Andrew Mills, Antony Blinken, Siamak Namazi, Morad Tahbaz, hasn’t, Jin, Washington, Donald Trump, Joe Biden, Biden, Blinken, Iran’s, Trump, Iran Robert Malley, Abram Paley, Ali Bagheri Kani, Mehdi Safari, Foreign Ministry Mohammed Al, Khulaifi, Malley, Paley, Kani, Al Khulaifi, Laila Bassam, Samia Nakhoul, William Maclean Organizations: Reuters, U.S, British, Islamic, Washington, Doha, Iranian, State Department, Qatar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, The State Department, Democrat, Qatari, TRANSIT QATAR, Iran, The Central Bank of, U.S ., State, Foreign Ministry Locations: Andrew Mills DUBAI, DOHA, Qatar, Iran, U.S, Tehran’s, Emad Sharqi, Islamic Republic, Western, Gulf, South Korea, Washington, Switzerland, Tehran, Seoul, Doha, Iranian, The Central Bank of Iran, Beirut

BEIRUT (AP) — Lebanese judicial authorities have questioned two people at the request of Turkey on suspicion of being involved in the 2019 escape of auto tycoon Carlos Ghosn from Japan to Lebanon via Istanbul, officials said Friday. Before he could stand trial, however, he escaped to Lebanon, via Turkey, apparently hidden in a box on a private plane. The pilot, officials said, denied that he got paid to help Ghosn escape to Beirut. A Tokyo court handed down prison terms in 2021 for Taylor and his son Peter after they were accused of helping Ghosn escape. Since he fled to Lebanon, Beirut has received three notices from Interpol based on arrest warrants for him from those countries.

Persons: Carlos Ghosn, Ghosn, Ghosn’s, George, Antoine Zayek, Michael Taylor, Taylor, Peter, Zayek Organizations: Nissan, Associated Press, AP, Green, Renault Locations: BEIRUT, Lebanese, Turkey, Japan, Lebanon, Istanbul, Beirut, Tokyo, Dubai, France

☆ Syrians Tear Down Poster of Assad in Sweida as Protests Swell
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-08 | by ( Sept. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

BEIRUT (Reuters) - Demonstrators in the southern Syrian city of Sweida tore down a portrait of President Bashar al-Assad on Friday as anti-government protests that began three weeks ago swelled with crowds coming in from surrounding villages. Sweida is capital of a province of the same name that is home to most of Syria's minority Druze sect. The city remained in government hands throughout the civil war and was largely spared the violence seen elsewhere. In Sweida city, hundreds gathered in Karama Square on Friday as the protests, carrying the multi-coloured Druze flag. Residents of other government-held parts of Syria - where restrictions are tighter - have made more discrete gestures of protest to avoid detection by government forces.

Persons: Bashar al, Assad, Hey Bashar, Bashar's, Hafez al, Maya Gebeily, Frances Kerry Organizations: Farmers ' Union Locations: BEIRUT, Syrian, Sweida, Syria

☆ Syrians rally in south against Assad, economic decline
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

shouted a large crowd in the southern Druze city of Sweida. Home province of most of Syria's Druze community, Sweida remained in government hands throughout the war and was largely spared the violence seen elsewhere. Open criticism of the government remained rare in the areas it controls but as the economic situation grew worse, the discontent has gone public. Some Druze sheikhs have criticized protesters' calls for Assad to step down and say that any improvement to the socioeconomic situation must come through dialogue. They carried the three-star flag emblematic of Syria's uprising, as well as signs criticising the role of Iran, a key Assad ally.

Persons: Bashar al, Assad, Bashar, Sweida, Maya Gebeily, Nick Macfie Organizations: Sky News Arabia, REUTERS, Rights, Ba'ath, Thomson Locations: Damascus, Syria, Syrian, Rights BEIRUT, Sweida, Home, Daraa, Iran, Tartus

☆ Lebanon approves 'Barbie' film for release after bid to ban it
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] A boy stands near an advertising billboard of the movie 'Barbie' at a cinema theatre, as Lebanon approved the film to be screened in cinemas following an initial attempt to ban it, in Beirut, Lebanon September 1, 2023. REUTERS/Emilie Madi Acquire Licensing RightsBEIRUT, Sept 1 (Reuters) - Lebanon on Friday approved the "Barbie" film to be screened in cinemas following an initial attempt to ban it by its culture minister over claims it contradicts conservative values. Interior Minister Bassam Mawlawi in turn asked General Security's censorship committee to review the film and give its recommendation. Kuwait has banned "Barbie" and supernatural horror film "Talk to Me" to protect "public ethics and social traditions", the state news agency said last month. Starring Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling as Barbie and Ken, the movie sends Mattel Inc's (MAT.O) Barbie doll on an adventure into the real world.

Persons: Emilie Madi, Mohammad Mortada, Bassam Mawlawi, Margot Robbie, Ryan Gosling, Barbie, Ken, Mattel, Nour Hajjar, Maya Gebeily, Nick Macfie Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, General Security, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Lebanon, Beirut, Rights BEIRUT, Kuwait, Lebanese

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