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

Lebanon

Lebanon

September 19, 2026

Beirut 8:24 pm

24°C

Hibatullah Barakat / Middle East Images / AFP via Getty Images

Lebanon charges 5 in alleged Hezbollah operation to train Assad loyalists

A Lebanese military court has charged the five, including an Assad-era Syrian officer and Hezbollah members, with running a cross-border security network planning attacks in Syria’s coastal region.

ISRAEL-ENTERTAINMENT-TELEVISION-POLITICS-GOVERNMENT-MASS-MEDIA-D (L to R) Lior Raz and Avi Issacharoff, co-creators of the hit Israeli TV show "Fauda", attend a demonstration against the Israeli government's plans to shut-down public broadcaster KAN, in Israel's Mediterranean coastal city of Tel Aviv on January 25, 2023. (Photo by JACK GUEZ / AFP) (Photo by JACK GUEZ/AFP via Getty Images)

Culture

Israeli show ‘Fauda’ tops Netflix in Lebanon, hits top 10 across Arab states

The show was created by Israeli journalist Avi Issacharoff and actor Lior Raz, drawing on their experiences serving in the Israeli military’s elite Duvdevan unit.

UN peacekeepers stand next to an armored vehicle during a patrol in southern Lebanon, Feb. 22, 2026.

Explainer

Why France is pushing to keep UNIFIL in Lebanon beyond 2026

Showing its support for Lebanon, Paris is backing Beirut’s request at the UN for a short-term extension of UNIFIL’s mandate, although French sources acknowledge that the chances of the request being approved are slim.

A photograph taken from the southern Lebanese area of Nabatieh shows smoke as it rises from the site of Israeli strikes that targeted the hilltops of the mountainous area of the strategic Ali al-Taher Ridge on Aug. 14, 2026.

Israel says it destroyed Hezbollah tunnels in Ali al-Taher ridge: What to know

The ridge has become a flashpoint in the Israel-Hezbollah conflict in Lebanon due to its extensive tunnel network Israel says is utilized by the Iran-backed group.

Latest News

Israeli escalation in south Lebanon leaves 27 dead in 3 days as talks stall

Kawnat HAJU / AFP via Getty Images

Lebanon says at least 12 killed in Israeli strikes as tensions rise in south

An excavator digs as rescuers search for survivors amid the rubble following an overnight Israeli airstrike on the village of Kfar Roummane, southern Lebanon, Sept. 7, 2026.

Analysis

Playing for time: Despite US pressure, Israel stalls Lebanon talks until after election

Ammar Ammar / AFP via Getty Images

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

Why Ali al-Taher ridge is emerging as Israel-Hezbollah flashpoint

A flare fired by the Israeli military lands over the highlands of the area of Ali al-Taher as seen from nearby Marjayoun (Marjeyoun) in southern Lebanon on June 14, 2026.

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

People sit in a coffee shop in Hamra street in Beirut January 24, 2011. Lebanon was plunged into political crisis after Hezbollah and its allies walked out of caretaker Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri's unity government on Jan. 12 in a dispute over still-confidential indictments by a U.N.-backed tribunal which is investigating the 2005 killing of statesman Rafik al-Hariri, the premier's father. Picture taken January 24, 2011. REUTERS/Sharif Karim (LEBANON - Tags: SOCIETY) - RTXX13K

Beirut’s Historic Hamra Street No Longer Cultural Epicenter

Once an epicenter for Arab and Lebanese intellectuals, Beirut’s famous Hamra Street has in recent decades been transformed by consumption-oriented establishments.

Lebanese and Syrian supporters of Syria's President Bashar al-Assad, celebrate in Qusair June 9, 2013, after the Syrian army and Lebanese Hezbollah fighters took control of the town from rebel fighters in this handout photograph released by Syria's national news agency SANA. REUTERS/SANA/Handout via Reuters (SYRIA - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NOT FOR SALE FOR MARKETING OR ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS. THIS PICTURE IS DISTRIBUTE

Whether Qusair Will Tip The Balance Remains to Be Seen

The defeat of Syrian opposition forces in Qusair may be a turning point toward a deepening of the conflict or a catalyst for a peace conference.

A picture taken on June 8, 2013 shows Syrian army soldiers gathering ammunition from a tunnel in the village of Buweida, north of Qusayr, in Syria's central Homs province. Forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad have now seized all of the Qusayr area in central Syria, state television reported, as troops overran the last rebel bastion in the area. AFP PHOTO / STR (Photo credit should read -/AFP/Getty Images)

Syria’s War of Tunnels

An exclusive report from Qusair.

A hotel employee is pictured behind a barricade as he cleans the street near Taksim square in central Istanbul June 10, 2013. Turkey's Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan warned protesters who have taken to the streets across Turkey demanding his resignation that his patience has its limits and compared the unrest with an army attempt six years ago to curb his power. REUTERS/Murad Sezer (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTX10I8R

Which Way Is Turkey Going?

Are we witnessing a clash between Islamism and Kemalism in Turkey?

Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi (L) sits with his Turkish counterpart Ahmet Davutoglu during the opening of a ministerial meeting in the Saudi Red Sea city of Jeddah, by the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) on May 13, 2013. The OIC urged its member states to make generous contributions at this week's main donors conference on Mali to be held in Brussels, which aims to raise funds to repair the damage caused by the war against Islamists in the African country. AFP PHOTO/STR (Photo c

US Needs Iran, Turkey For Diplomatic Surge in Syria

The latest UN report on Syria calls for a “diplomatic surge” to end the war, which has reached “new levels of brutality.”

Syrian refugees watch the convoy of Oxfam chief executive Mark Goldring as he visits Al Zaatri refugee camp in the Jordanian city of Mafraq, near the border with Syria, April 30, 2013. Goldring is currently visiting Oxfam's work with refugees on the Syria/Jordan border. REUTERS/ Majed Jaber (JORDAN - Tags: POLITICS SOCIETY IMMIGRATION CONFLICT) - RTXZ4X7

UN Must Address Syrian Humanitarian Tragedy

While the UN issued the biggest financial appeal in its history, a humanitarian tragedy is unfolding in Syria and for Syrian refugees abroad.

A tank is seen in a neighbourhood of Zabadani, near Damascus, February 14, 2012. Syrian government forces launched an offensive on the city of Hama early on Wednesday, firing on residential neighbourhoods from armoured vehicles and mobile anti-aircraft guns, opposition activists said. REUTERS/Handout (SYRIA - Tags: CIVIL UNREST POLITICS MILITARY) FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NOT FOR SALE FOR MARKETING OR ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS. THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. IT IS DISTRIBUTED, EXACTLY AS RECEIVE

For Hezbollah, What is VictoryIn Syria?

Hezbollah grapples with the long-term objectives and consequences of its intervention in Syria.

Qusair: Exclusive Eyewitness Account

Qusair is a city in rubble.

Civilians hold up pictures of Syria's President Bashar al-Assad and of his father, Syria's late president Hafez al-Assad (R), as they celebrate in Qusair June 6, 2013, a day after the Syrian army took control of the town from rebel fighters. Syrian troops and Lebanese Hezbollah fighters pushed toward villages near Qusair on Thursday, a day after driving rebels from the border town shattered in weeks of combat. Insurgents seeking to overthrow Syrian President Bashar al-Assad were putting up a fierce fight a

Qusair Victory Could Prove Fateful for Hezbollah's Future

The events that unfolded in the three-week battle for Qusair will prove fateful for the future role of Hezbollah in the Syrian, as well as regional, conflict.

A view of a makeshift hospital which was used by the Free Syrian Army fighters in Qusair June 6, 2013, a day after the Syrian army took control of the town from rebel fighters. Syrian troops and Lebanese Hezbollah fighters pushed toward villages near Qusair on Thursday, a day after driving rebels from the border town shattered in weeks of combat. Insurgents seeking to overthrow Syrian President Bashar al-Assad were putting up a fierce fight around the villages of Debaa and Buwayda as their opponents attacke

FSA Commander Speaks From Qusair Just Before Its Fall

Just hours before the Syrian army retook control of the town of Qusair, Al-Monitor spoke with an opposition commander about the ongoing battle and Hezbollah’s role in the fighting.

An image of Syria's President Bashar al-Assad is seen on a car's windscreen as Hezbollah supporters celebrate, after the Syrian army took control of Qusair from rebel fighters, in the Shi'ite town of Hermel June 5, 2013. Syrian government forces and their Lebanese Hezbollah allies seized control of the border town of Qusair on Wednesday, dealing a major defeat to rebel fighters battling to overthrow Assad. REUTERS/Jamal Saidi (LEBANON - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST MILITARY CONFLICT TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) -

After Qusair, Is Hezbollah Finished in Syria?

Will Hezbollah continue its military involvement in Syria?

Lebanese Army soldiers stand atop of their army vehicle as they secure the area, during a protest organised by Syrians living in Lebanon in support of Syria's regime, in Sidon, southern Lebanon, May 12, 2013. The poster in the background depicts Syria's late President Hafez al-Assad (C, top), father of current President Bashar al-Assad (C, bottom), Lebanon's Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah (L) and Lebanon's parliamentary speaker Nabih Berri (R). REUTERS/Ali Hashisho (LEBANON - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL

Pro-Hezbollah Sunni Sheikhs Face Assassination Attempts in Lebanon

As tensions stemming from the Syrian crisis continue to mount in Lebanon, two pro-Hezbollah Sunni sheikhs become the target of assassination attempts.