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Lebanon

Lebanon

May 1, 2026

Beirut 6:20 pm

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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.

ANWAR AMRO/AFP via Getty Images

Analysis

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

As President Donald Trump pressures Israel to limit its strikes in Lebanon, Hezbollah is taking advantage of the situation.

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

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.

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

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun rejects Hezbollah’s criticism of talks with Israel, insisting negotiations are aimed at ending hostilities and saying “treason” is taking the country to war for external interests.

Latest News

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.

Analysis

Israel fears Trump angling for Lebanon deal to offset Iran missteps

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

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

Trump says Israel-Lebanon ceasefire extended by three weeks

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.

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

A Syrian refugee woman carries her child as they sit inside a tent near Tripoli January 9,2013. More than 600,000 Syrian refugees have fled to neighbouring countries exposed to the storm. Many in Lebanon and Jordan were forced to move after their tents were flooded. REUTERS/Omar Ibrahim (LEBANON - Tags: ENVIRONMENT DISASTER CIVIL UNREST)

Lebanon Struggles to Manage Palestinian, Syrian refugees

As more Syrians flee to Lebanon, displaced Palestinians from refugee camps in Damascus threaten the fragile political and sectarian balance in the country, writes Nasser Chararah.

Lebanon's President Michel Suleiman (5th from bottom) presides a cabinet meeting at the presidential palace in Baabda, near Beirut January 3, 2013. Lebanon, now a haven for 170,000 Syrians fleeing civil war, has asked foreign donors for $180 million to help care for them and said it will register and recognise refugees after a year-long hiatus. The Beirut government has officially sought to "dissociate" itself from the 21-month-old struggle in Syria, nervous about the destabilising impact of the increasingl

Lebanon Struggles With Political Deadlock, Syria Crisis

Lebanon is threatened by the escalating situation in neighboring Syria, as well as by internal political disputes, writes Mohammad Harfoush.

Syrian refugees stand in snow outside their tents during a winter storm in al-Marj, in the Bekaa valley January 9, 2013. The worst winter storm in two decades has hit the eastern Mediterranean this week, bringing destruction and death to Syria and its neighbours who are already dealing with a refugee crisis from the country's civil war. REUTERS/Afif Diab (LEBANON - Tags: ENVIRONMENT DISASTER)

Displaced Syrians in Lebanon 'Beyond Our Control'

As the conflict in Syria intensifies, Elie Hajj speaks to an opposition activist in Beirut about the influx of Syrian refugees into Lebanon.

A participant leaves a candle next to a sign during a candlelight vigil for the Indian rape victim, who passed away last Friday, in Singapore January 2, 2013. The death of the 23-year-old woman, who has not been named, prompted street protests across India, international outrage and promises from the government of tougher punishments for offenders. About 150 people took part in the vigil in Singapore. REUTERS/Edgar Su (SINGAPORE - Tags: OBITUARY SOCIETY CIVIL UNREST)

India's Loss of Values

Clovis Maksoud comments on the plight of women in India.

Lebanon's President Michel Suleiman (5th from bottom) presides a cabinet meeting at the presidential palace in Baabda, near Beirut January 3, 2013. Lebanon, now a haven for 170,000 Syrians fleeing civil war, has asked foreign donors for $180 million to help care for them and said it will register and recognise refugees after a year-long hiatus. The Beirut government has officially sought to "dissociate" itself from the 21-month-old struggle in Syria, nervous about the destabilising impact of the increasingl

Lebanon Must Reform Electoral Law

Nassif Hitti writes that the Lebanese elections will not matter unless there is fundamental reform, including of the electoral law.

U.S. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) addresses his meeting with President Barack Obama about the country's debt ceiling, during a news conference at the Capitol in Washington May 12, 2011. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst (UNITED STATES - Tags: POLITICS BUSINESS)

Never Rush to Judgment

Relatives of Lebanese who had gone missing in Syria on Friday chant slogans during a protest to enquire about their relatives' fate, in Tripoli, northern Lebanon, December 3, 2012. At least 12 Lebanese gunmen were killed in a Syrian army ambush in the central Syrian province of Homs, a security source and people close the men's families said on Friday, a sign that Lebanon is getting further tangled in Syria's war. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said 30 Lebanese fighters had gone missing and a secon

Lebanon and the FutureOf 'Greater Syria'

One consequence of the Syrian crisis may be the end of its "greater Syria" approach to Lebanon, writes Mohammad Harfoush.

Syria's President Bashar al-Assad (R) meets International peace envoy for Syria Lakhdar Brahimi in Damascus December 24, 2012 in this handout photograph released by Syria's national news agency SANA. Brahimi met with Assad in Damascus on Monday to discuss a solution to the country's 21-month-old conflict. Brahimi told journalists after the meeting that he discussed the situation in Syria overall and gave his views on how to solve the crisis. He said conditions in the country were still poor. REUTERS/Sana (S

Assad Speech Reportedly to Propose Settlement Initiative for Syria

Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad reportedly will soon, in coming days, offer a new proposal to resolve the crisis in Syria, writes Jean Aziz.

A Lebanese soldier keeps guard as Christian Maronite worshippers carry a mock coffin with Jesus Christ along a street during the Good Friday procession in Beirut April 6, 2012. REUTERS/Jamal Saidi (LEBANON - Tags: RELIGION MILITARY)

Christians of the Levant Accuse France of Plotting to Displace Them

As the Syrian opposition becomes more and more Islamic, Christians of the Levant fear for their future and have accused France of plotting to displace them, writes Jean Aziz.

Protesters are silhouetted as they shout slogans and flash victory signs during clashes with riot police along a road which leads to the U.S. embassy, near Tahrir Square in Cairo September 13, 2012. Egypt's President Mohamed Mursi said on Thursday he supported peaceful protest but not attacks on embassies, after Egyptians angry at a film deemed insulting to the Prophet Mohammad climbed into the U.S. embassy in Cairo and tore down the U.S. flag. He pledged to protect foreigners in Egypt. REUTERS/Amr Abdallah

Reflections on the New Year: Outrage with a Hint of ... Hope?

Clovis Maksoud calls on Arab governments to take responsibilbity for governance.

A Syrian child refugee cries as he stands at a queue waiting to receive aid from Turkish humanitarian agencies at Bab al-Salam refugee camp in Syria near the Turkish border December 22, 2012. International envoy Lakhdar Brahimi will visit Syria in the next few days and is expected to meet President Bashar al-Assad, government officials and some opposition factions, a source in the Arab League said. REUTERS/Ahmed Jadallah (SYRIA - Tags: CIVIL UNREST POLITICS)

Arab States Must Forge a New Social Contract

Nassif Hitti anticipates a "disordered order" in the region in 2013 and calls for a new social contract in Arab states.

A Lebanese Hezbollah supporter carries a picture of Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah as she takes part in a ceremony marking Ashura in Beirut's suburbs, November 25, 2012. Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah warned Israel on Sunday that thousands of rockets would rain down on Tel Aviv and other Israeli cities if Israel attacked Lebanon. In a speech marking the Shi'ite Muslim festival of Ashura, Nasrallah said Hezbollah's response to any attack would dwarf the attacks from Gaza during the eight-

Hezbollah Weighs Its Options

Nasser Chararah considers Hezbollah's options in dealing with Syria and a potential military strike on Iran.