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Lebanon

Lebanon

December 17, 2025

Beirut 8:10 am

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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (R) meets with US special envoy Tom Barrack, Jerusalem, Dec. 15 2

Analysis

Trump's Syria envoy Barrack tests Israel's patience as Netanyahu pushes back

The struggle between the Israeli prime minister and the envoy is an acknowledgment by Israeli leaders that "what will happen is what Trump wants to happen."

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

Lebanese Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates Youssef Rajji meets with Maj. Gen. Diodato Abagnara, UNIFIL head of mission and force commander, at the UN peacekeeping headquarters in Naqoura, southern Lebanon, Oct. 24, 2025.

Lebanon FM lashes out at Iran amid ambassador impasse: What to know

Lebanese officials have grown more frustrated at Tehran over its perceived meddling in Lebanon’s internal affairs by making repeated comments about its ally, Hezbollah, and the importance of its weapons, at a time the country is working to extend control over all arms.

Lebanese Foreign Minister Youssef Rajji visits the headquarters of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) in Naqoura, southern Lebanon, on October 24, 2025, touring border villages and the Blue Line aboard a UNIFIL helicopter as part of efforts to assess the security situation along the frontier. (Photo by Courtney Bonneau / Middle East Images via AFP) (Photo by COURTNEY BONNEAU/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images)

Lebanon's FM snubs Iran, turns down invitation to visit Tehran: What to know

Youssef Rajji declined an invitation from his Iranian counterpart to visit Tehran, saying, "The appropriate conditions for such a visit were not present.”

TOPSHOT - Syrian and Lebanese people in the northern Lebanese city of Tripoli celebrate on December 9, 2024, after Islamist-led rebels declared that they have taken the Syrian capital in a lightning offensive, sending President Bashar al-Assad fleeing and ending five decades of Baath rule in Syria. (Photo by Fathi AL-MASRI / AFP) (Photo by FATHI AL-MASRI/AFP via Getty Images)

Clashes and protests in Lebanon over Syria's anniversary: What we know

As celebrations erupted in Lebanon to commemorate the fall of the Assad regime in Syria, Hezbollah supporters held counter-rallies.

Latest News

Analysis

Lebanon-Israel direct talks pause operation against Hezbollah — but for how long?

An Israeli military tank patrols along the border fence separating northern Israel from southern Lebanon on November 24, 2025. Hezbollah held the funeral on November 24 for its top military chief and other members of the militant group a day after Israel killed them in a strike on Beirut's southern suburbs. (Photo by Jalaa MAREY / AFP via Getty Images)

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

Lebanon, Israel to hold second round of direct talks: What we know

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)

Who is Simon Karam, head of Lebanon’s delegation to talks with Israel?

Simon Karam

US pressure prompted Israel-Lebanon talks to avert war with Hezbollah

US deputy Middle East envoy Morgan Ortagus speaks during a United Nations Security Council meeting on the situation in Gaza, at UN headquarters in New York, on Sept. 18, 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

Senior News Editor

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional geopolitics, China in the Middle East

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 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.

sraeli soldiers take positions near the Israeli military base of Har Dov on Mount Hermon, a strategic and fortified outpost at the crossroads between Israel, Lebanon, and Syria, on October 10, 2023. Israeli strikes on Lebanon killed three Hezbollah members on October 10 amid surging tensions after Palestinian militants tried to infiltrate Israel from Lebanon, in an escalation on Israel's northern border two days after Hamas militants launched an unprecedented attack on the country's southern flank from the

Explainer: As Lebanon-Israel border heats up, 3 armed groups stand out

Several Palestinian militants are active in southern Lebanon, a stronghold of the Iran-backed Hezbollah movement.

Solar panels are installed on a rooftop near the red-and-white chimneys of a power plant in the industrial district of Zouk Mikael, where residents believe they are more likely to develop cancer than elsewhere in the country because of air pollution, north of Lebanon's capital Beirut on October 10, 2022. - A Greenpeace study found that the surrounding Jounieh area ranked fifth in the Arab world and 23rd globally for cities most contaminated by nitrogen dioxide, a dangerous pollutant released when fuel is bu

How solar power has become a lifeline in Lebanon

Private solar energy is serving as a lifeline for commerce, industry, and homes in Lebanon during the economic crisis. But for solar power to have a lasting impact on the Lebanese economy, a better legal framework and more financing is needed.

Francisco Serrano

Francisco Serrano

In Lisbon, reporting on North Africa business

MBZ Mikati

UAE reopens embassy in Lebanon as MBZ hosts Mikati in Abu Dhabi

The move comes as Lebanon continues to face deteriorating political, economic and security conditions.