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Lebanon

Lebanon

May 4, 2026

Beirut 7:59 pm

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Members of Lebanese security forces stand guard in the perimeter of the Parliament, a day ahead of a parliamentary session to elect a president in Beirut on January 8, 2025. Lebanese political heavyweights held talks on January 8, a day ahead of a parliamentary session to elect a president of the tiny Mediterranean country, already deep in economic and political crisis, and which has been without a president for more than two years. (Photo by ANWAR AMRO / AFP) (Photo by ANWAR AMRO/AFP via Getty Images)

Under US pressure, will Lebanon repeal Israel Boycott Law?

The 1955 law criminalizes all dealings with Israel, raising questions about how far Beirut can even go with its current engagement, currently at the ambassadorial level.

Ibrahim AMRO / AFP via Getty Images

Analysis

Without exit strategy, Israel faces emboldened Hezbollah, limited options on Iran

While President Donald Trump remains undecided on striking Iran again, the Israeli military is sinking deeper into its Lebanon quagmire with a reinforced Hezbollah.

In Tel Aviv, reporting on national security, Israeli politics, defense

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio (C), alongside US State Department Counselor Michael Needham (2L) and US Ambassador to Lebanon Michel Issa (2R), speaks during a meeting.

US seeks to train Lebanon army units to disarm Hezbollah: What to know

Funding for such a program remains unclear, though the Pentagon has requested $36 million for fiscal year 2027 to support Lebanon’s army.

Latest News

Analysis

Despite Trump pressure to limit Israel's Lebanon attacks, Aoun-Netanyahu meeting still unlikely

ANWAR AMRO/AFP via Getty Images

In Tel Aviv, reporting on national security, Israeli politics, defense

'Treason is war for external interests': Lebanon’s Aoun hits back at Hezbollah

Lebanese president Joseph Aoun (L) stands next to the parliament speaker Nabih Berri as he delivers a speech at the parliament building in Beirut Jan. 9, 2025.

Why US, Israel are freezing France out of Lebanon talks

French President Emmanuel Macron speaks to journalists as he arrives for an informal meeting of the European Council in Nicosia, Cyprus, April 24, 2026.

In Lebanon, Saudi Arabia pursues quiet diplomacy as Trump pushes Israel normalization

Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan (L) disembarks from an airplane upon his arrival at the Rafic Hariri International Airport in Beirut on Jan. 23, 2025.

Francesco Schiavi

In Bologna, reporting on security, defense, economy, governance

Beatrice Farhat

Associate Editor (Lebanon)

In Beirut, reporting on regional news, culture, conflict

Joyce Karam

Editor-in-Chief

Ali Hashem

In Doha, reporting on Iran, regional politics, conflict

Hanna Davis

In Beirut, reporting on politics, migration, human rights

Rodayna Raydan

In Boqaata, reporting on culture

Lebanese Army soldiers patrol the road leading to Beirut international airport, following the kidnap of a Turkish airlines pilot and his colleague in Beirut, August 9, 2013. A Turkish Airlines pilot and his colleague were abducted in Lebanon on Friday by armed men who forced them from a bus driving from Beirut airport in the early hours of the morning. The Turkish foreign ministry and the airline said they were in close contact with the Lebanese authorities but had no immediate information on who was behind

Turkish Pilots Abducted At Gunpoint in Beirut

Two Turkish Airlines pilots were kidnapped in Beirut early Friday, Aug. 9, to put pressure on the Turkish government to help release nine Shiite Lebanese hostages in Syria since May 2012.

An Israeli soldier cleans the barrel of a tank near the border with Syria in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights July 17, 2013. Syria's civil war has brought an end to decades of calm on the Golan Heights, a strip of land which Israel captured in the 1967 Middle East war. Battles between rebels fighting against President Bashar al-Assad's forces in Syrian villages nearby are being watched intensely by Israel's military. REUTERS/Baz Ratner (POLITICS MILITARY TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) - RTX11P94

Israel Prepares for Next War With Hezbollah

The Israel Defense Forces is watching with concern as Hezbollah improves its military capabilities in Syria.

Lebanon's President Michel Suleiman (C), Lebanon's Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, Prime Minister-designate Tammam Salam (L) and Lebanon's caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati (R) attend a graduation parade for Lebanese officer cadets at a military academy in Fayadyeh, near Beirut, marking the 68th Army Day, August 1, 2013. REUTERS/Sharif Karim (LEBANON - Tags: POLITICS ANNIVERSARY MILITARY) - RTX126UK

Lebanon-Israel Border Incident Tests UNIFIL-Hezbollah Ties

Following the Israeli military’s violation of the UN Blue Line this week, the reactions of both UNIFIL and Hezbollah may provide a litmus test for their relationship.

Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal (C), Head of Hezbollah's parliamentary bloc Mohamed Raad (R) and Lebanon's Minister of Education Hassan Mneimneh (L) listen to Lebanon's Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah speak via a video display during the Arab and International Forum to support the Resistance, in Beirut January 15, 2010. REUTERS/Jamal Saidi (LEBANON - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR28WF6

Is Hamas Considering A Move to Beirut?

Beirut has been the scene of intense political activity by Hamas as it seeks to restore ties with Hezbollah and Iran.

Lebanon's Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah makes a rare public appearance as he addresses his supporters during a rally to mark Quds (Jerusalem) Day in Beirut's southern suburbs, August 2, 2013. Nasrallah delivered a speech to hundreds of supporters in support of Palestinians in his first public appearance since last September. He has been living in hiding, for fear of assassination, since Hezbollah fought a month-long war with Israel in 2006. REUTERS/Sharif Karim (LEBANON - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL U

Nasrallah Calls for Muslim Solidarity In Quds Day Speech

Celebrating Quds Day at a particularly polarized moment in the Arab world, Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah reminds his Sunni counterparts of the need for solidarity with the Palestinians.

Palestinian children play near a section of the controversial Israeli barrier in Shuafat refugee camp in the West Bank near Jerusalem July 29, 2013. Israeli and Palestinian officials put forward clashing formats for peace talks due to resume in Washington on Monday for the first time in nearly three years after intense U.S. mediation. It is unclear how the United States hopes to bridge the core issues in the dispute, including borders, the future of Jewish settlements on the West Bank, the fate of Palestini

A Thorough Reassessment Of US Policy Is Required

The United States needs to reassess its policy after Israeli moves to continue settlement activities threaten to derail the negotiation process.

Greek Orthodox Patriarch John Yazigi (C) leads a prayer at the Balamand Monastery in Koura, near the north Lebanese city of Tripoli, to call for the release of bishops kidnapped in northern Syria two months ago, June 22, 2013. Patriarch John Yazigi led the candle-lit vigil on Saturday for Greek Orthodox archbishop Paul Yazigi and Syriac Orthodox archbishop Yohanna Ibrahim, appealing to their kidnappers to free them and urging Syrian security forces to do more to win their release. REUTERS/Omar Ibrahim (LEBA

Worries Grow About Fate Of Kidnapped Syrian Bishops

The fate of the two bishops kidnapped in Syria on April 22 is still unknown, but they are feared to have been abducted and killed by Chechen jihadists, according to a Lebanese official.

Lebanese Army Commander General Jean Kahwaji (L) and Army Chief of Staff General Walid Salman attend a graduation parade for Lebanese officer cadets at a military academy in Fayadyeh, near Beirut, marking the 68th Army Day, August 1, 2013. Lebanon's defence minister extended the term of the army chief on Wednesday to avoid a vacuum in military leadership at a time when the country is facing violence linked to Syria's war and political paralysis. The extension by two years of Army Chief Jean Kahwaji's posti

Recent Attacks Portend Danger For Lebanon

The Lebanese are divided about the Syrian crisis, but recent rocket and other attacks suggest the country might already be entrenched in its neighbor’s civil war.

Egypt's interim Foreign Minister Nabil Fahmy (3rd L) speaks as German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle (2nd R) looks on during their meeting in Cairo August 1, 2013. Germany urged Egypt to avoid "the appearance of selective justice" on Thursday amid a crackdown on deposed President Mohamed Mursi's Muslim Brotherhood, which remained defiantly dug in at a protest camp the police have orders to remove. REUTERS/Mohamed Abd El Ghany (EGYPT - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTX126WM

The Road Map That Egypt Needs

A number of conditions could break the deadly stalemate in Egypt and produce a smooth transition.

Islamist preacher Omar Bakri attends an interview with Reuters at his home in Tripoli, northern Lebanon May 24, 2013. Bakri praised Michael Adebolajo, one of the suspected killers of a British soldier in Woolwich, but said his actions were spontaneous and that he acted alone. Syrian-born Bakri, who founded the banned Islamist group al-Muhajiroun, was banished from Britain in 2005. REUTERS/Stringer (LEBANON - Tags: CRIME LAW RELIGION CIVIL UNREST) - RTXZYWR

Extremist Preacher Denies Al-Qaeda’s Presence in Lebanon

Salafist preacher Omar Bakri Fostock has denied that al-Qaeda maintains a presence in Lebanon, but doesn’t rule out the establishment of an Islamic emirate in the country.

The Caracalla Dance Theatre performs a new theatrical production of "The village" (Al-Dayaa) during a dress rehearsal during the Baalbeck International Festival in Baalbek, in the Bekaa valley, July 14, 2009. The Baalbeck International Festival is an annual entertainment festival that takes place in July and August in the Roman Ruins of the Baalbek Temples. REUTERS/Ahmed Shalha (LEBANON SOCIETY ENTERTAINMENT) - RTR25NWB

Lebanon's Latest Church-State Scuffle

In Lebanon’s complex, diverse society, religious institutions often take on vocal roles in protecting what they regard as affronts to the sanctity of their beliefs.

People walk past empty restaurants in downtown Beirut November 20, 2012. In addition to tumbling exports, Lebanon's tourist industry has declined by as much as 15 percent. Most Gulf countries warned their citizens this year not to visit Lebanon after clashes erupted between supporters and opponents of the Syrian uprising. Lebanon has also lost most of the 600,000 Arab tourists who usually drive into Lebanon through Syria each year. To match Reuters Summit MIDEAST-SUMMIT/LEBANON-SYRIA REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir

Lebanon's Economy Shrinks Under Burden of Syrian Crisis

Traditionally bolstered by its larger and more economically diverse neighbor, Lebanon’s economy has felt the sting of the war raging in Syria.