Lebanon - AL-MONITOR: The Middle Eastʼs leading independent news source since 2012

Lebanon

Lebanon

April 26, 2026

Beirut 4:56 am

23°C

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.

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

Saudi Arabia has been engaged in intense diplomacy in Lebanon in recent days, leading up to the extension of a ceasefire with Israel.

US Ambassador to Lebanon Michel Issa (R) holds a signed "Make America Great Again" hat while (L-R) US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Lebanon Ambassador to the US Nada Hamadeh Moawad listen to US President Donald Trump speak during a meeting with Lebanon Ambassador to the US and Israel Ambassador to the US, at the White House in Washington, DC on April 23, 2026. US President Donald Trump met Lebanese and Israeli envoys at a new round of peace talks Thursday, with Beirut seeking a one-month extension of a

Analysis

Israel fears Trump angling for Lebanon deal to offset Iran missteps

Some Israelis worry the US president might force them to accept an unsatisfactory agreement driven by his inability to secure a tangible achievement in Iran.

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

US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee, Israel Ambassador to US Yechiel Leiter, US Vice President JD Vance, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Lebanon Ambassador to the US Nada Hamadeh and US ambassador to Lebanon Michel Issa listen as President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting at the White House in Washington on April 23, 2026.

Trump says Israel-Lebanon ceasefire extended by three weeks

President Trump said the second meeting between the Israeli and Lebanese envoys went "very well."

Amal Khalil, a veteran correspondent for the daily newspaper Al-Akhbar, in the southern Lebanese border village of Jebbayn in 2024.

Lebanon bids farewell to Amal Khalil, journalist killed by Israel: What to know

Khalil's death in a targeted strike on a house where she and a colleague took cover sparked widespread condemnation by Lebanese officials and international media groups.

Latest News

Interview

Olmert: Only Israel-Lebanon deal can curb Hezbollah, occupation 'unviable'

Olmert

Lebanon-Israel negotiations to continue even as Iran talks stall

Jewel SAMAD / AFP via Getty Images

Who are Lebanon’s main players influencing talks with Israel?

Joseph EID / AFP via Getty Images

Aoun says Lebanon seeks 'permanent agreements' with Israel after White House invite

Lebanon's President Joseph Aoun delivers a speech during a meeting of Pope Leo XIV with authorities, civil society and diplomatic corps at the presidential palace in Baabda, east of the capital Beirut, on November 30, 2025. (Photo by Andreas SOLARO / AFP via Getty Images)

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

Iran Nasrallah

Iran's caution on Gaza war resonates in Hezbollah's Nasrallah speech

The Hezbollah leader offered little beyond Tehran's reserved approach to avoid a full-blown war with Israel, in a speech that Iranian hardliners had anticipated as a milestone in shaping the region's future.

11/03/2023 Tehran, Iran. In a pro-government rally in the Islamic Republic of Iran, people gathered at Imam Hossein Square in Tehran on November 3, 2023, to watch Hezbollah Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah's speech regarding the Israel-Hamas conflict. Among the crowd, Lebanon's Hezbollah flags and Palestinian flags were proudly waved. During the speech in Beirut, Nasrallah addressed the Israeli army's attack on Gaza and issued a warning to Israel about a potential attack on Lebanon. (Photo by Hossein Beri

Analysis

Hezbollah's Nasrallah signals restraint, keeps options open in Gaza war

Israel likely to agree to US request for humanitarian pause; Blinken gets ‘clear commitment’ from Israel on West Bank violence; Gaza war casualties include over 30 journalists; Turkey's ratification of Sweden's NATO bid still isn't done.

Week in Review

Andrew Parasiliti

By Week in Review , Andrew Parasiliti

People gather in the Imam Hussein square in Tehran, during the televised speech of Lebanese Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah November 3, 2023. Nasrallah told the United States on November 3, that his Iran-backed group was ready to face its warships and the way to prevent a regional war was to halt the attacks in Gaza. (Photo by AFP) (Photo by -/AFP via Getty Images)

Hezbollah's Nasrallah refrains from entering Israel-Hamas war, praises Iraq, Yemen proxies

In his first public speech since Hamas’ attack on Israel, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah said the operation was purely Palestinian, that his movement had no hand in it, and accused the US of direct involvement in the Gaza war.

A smoke plume covers the sun during a forest fire that reportedly ignited after shell fire from Israel, in the Labouneh area in southern Lebanon close to the border with northern Israel, on October 26, 2023, amid the ongoing battles between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas in the Gaza Strip. (Photo by AFP) (Photo by -/AFP via Getty Images)

Will Lebanon's Hezbollah change rules of engagement on Israel to aid Hamas?

Hezbollah has been careful not to escalate the situation along Israel's northern border beyond the accepted norms, but the situation could change quickly depending on events in Gaza.

Hezbollah Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah meets deputy head of Hamas’ politburo Saleh al-Arouri, and head of the Islamic Jihad Ziad al-Nakhalah.

Hezbollah hosts Palestinian factions as warnings surge over Lebanon's volatility

Hezbollah and Israel have been trading fire since Hamas launched its surprise attack in southern Israel on Oct. 7, raising fears of a new front in south Lebanon.

NINEVEH, IRAQ - JUNE 20: Iraqi PMF fighters June 20, 2017 on the Iraq-Syria border in Nineveh, Iraq. The Popular Mobilisation Front (PMF) forces, composed of majority Shi'ite militia, part of the Iraqi forces, have pushed Islamic State militants from the north-western Iraq border strip back into Syria. The PMF now hold the border, crucial to the fall of Islamic State in Mosul, blocking the Islamic State supply route for militants from Syria to Mosul. (Martyn Aim/Getty Images).

No consensus yet among Iraqi armed groups on joining Israel-Hamas war

Interviews with faction leaders reveal anger with Hamas over starting a unilateral conflict, but also a determination to get involved if Hezbollah greenlights such a move and Israel invades Gaza.

The Tamar drilling natural gas production platform, some 25 kilometers west of Ashkelon, Israel, February 2013.

Analysis

Could Israel-Hamas war lead to another winter energy crisis for Europe?

LNG spot prices have shot up since the Israel-Hamas conflict broke out, but European inventories are at all-time highs.

In Bristol, reporting on regional business, climate change, AI, tech

Lebanese security forces use water cannons as they clash with protesters outside the US Embassy in Awkar east of Beirut, during a demonstration in solidarity with the Palestinians of the Gaza Strip, on October 18, 2023. Thousands rallied across the Arab and Muslim world on October 18 to protest the deaths of hundreds of people in a strike on a Gaza hospital that they blame on Israel, despite its denials. (Photo by Ibrahim AMRO / AFP) (Photo by IBRAHIM AMRO/AFP via Getty Images)

US issues 'worldwide' alert for citizens amid Israel-Hamas war

The US Embassy in Beirut also urged Americans wishing to depart Lebanon to make plans "as soon as possible."

a rally in front of the French embassy complex in Beirut early on October 18, 2023, in support of Palestinians after a strike on the Ahli Arab hospital in central Gaza that killed hundreds. Israel and Palestinians traded blame for the incident, which an "outraged and deeply saddened" US President Joe Biden denounced while en route to the Middle East. (Photo by ANWAR AMRO / AFP) (Photo by ANWAR AMRO/AFP via Getty Images)

Lebanon, Hezbollah hold 'day of rage' as US Embassy ups travel alert

Several pro-Palestinian rallies took place across the country, with demonstrators heeding Hezbollah’s call for a "day of rage."

Shiite Muslim clerics chant slogans during an anti-Israel rally in solidarity with the Palestinian people organised by supporters of the Lebanese Shiite movement Hezbollah in Lebanon's southern city of Nabatieh on October 13, 2023. Thousands of people, both Israeli and Palestinians have died since October 7, 2023, after Palestinian Hamas militants entered Israel in a surprise attack leading Israel to declare war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip on October 8. (Photo by MAHMOUD ZAYYAT / AFP) (Photo by MAHMOUD ZAYYA

Hezbollah calls for 'day of anger' as Biden heads to Israel, Gaza war rages

Cross-border fire has been ongoing between Lebanon’s Hezbollah movement and Israel in southern Lebanon since Hamas’ surprise attack on Israel last weekend.

Lebanese Broadcast Corporation International (LBCI) television show host Giselle Khoury sits at her desk 02 May 2001 during a visit to Dubai. Khoury, who runs the "Hiwaar al-Umr", or "Life Dialogue", general affairs show is noted for her engaging interviewing skills. EDITORS NOTE: Khoury's left eye is naturally lighter than the right one. (Photo by EDDY PADO / AFP) (Photo by EDDY PADO/AFP via Getty Images)

Tributes pour in for Giselle Khoury, Lebanon’s maverick journalist, after battle with cancer

Khoury, 62, was one of the Arab world’s most prominent TV anchors, with a career that started in 1986 at the Lebanese Broadcasting Corporation.

Issam Abdallah, CPJ

Reuters journalist killed, 6 wounded in Israeli shelling on Lebanon border

A Reuters video journalist has been killed and three others were wounded in the Israeli airstrike in the village of Alma al Shaab in southern Lebanon.