Tensions flare between Hezbollah, Gulf states

Analysts say Hezbollah has made a sharp pivot toward confrontation with Gulf states, in part as a result of its alliance with Iran.

Legacy: Gulf

Iranian politicians hail election of Lebanon’s new president

Iranian politicians across the political spectrum have hailed the election of Michel Aoun as Lebanon’s new president.

Saudi Arabia

How Aoun rose from '90s renegade to Lebanon's new president

The election of Gen. Michel Aoun as Lebanon’s president ends a 2½-year void in the office but also divides the Lebanese public, with some considering him the candidate of Hezbollah.

Lebanon

Hariri reverses political slide by backing Aoun presidency

Saad Hariri’s success as prime minister will depend on new compact with Michel Aoun and Hezbollah, less so on Saudi Arabia; Al-Monitor breaks news of Russian draft plan for Syrian Kurdish autonomy; United States seeks ground force to isolate Raqqa.

Saudi Arabia

How Lebanon’s presidential problem turned into opportunity

Lebanon’s former Prime Minister Saad Hariri announced his support for former chief of the army and Hezbollah ally Gen. Michel Aoun as president, which may have been Hariri's last resort as his relationship with Saudi Arabia has been tense.

Saudi Arabia

Israel wary of Russian comeback to the region

Russia has extended its presence in the region to such an extent that any IDF jet crossing the Israeli border in the north immediately appears on Russian military radar screens.

Israel

30 years on, fate of Israeli air force officer remains a mystery

Three decades after IDF navigator Ron Arad ejected from his jet in Lebanon, Israelis still cannot be sure of his fate and cannot heal from the trauma that left such a deep scar on both the military and civil society.

Israel

Incitement, tensions rise over Syrian refugees in Lebanon

Controversial statements by Lebanese authorities point to growing frustration over the presence of more than 1 million Syrian refugees in their country.

Lebanon

Veteran French diplomat: EU should play greater role in resolving Syria crisis

French diplomat Alain Le Roy discusses the European Union's "unstable" and "insecure" borders and its greater challenge of resolving the crisis in Syria.

Palestine

Lebanon positions itself as hub for Syrian reconstruction

Experts say that Lebanon has to prepare for Syria’s reconstruction once the war there ends or else it will be a missed opportunity to improve the Lebanese economy.

Lebanon

Meet the likely successor of Islamic State’s Baghdadi

After IS spokesman and second-in-command Abu Mohamed al-Adnani was killed in an airstrike last month, there are indications that Bahraini citizen Turki al-Binali may replace him.

Saudi Arabia

Did Washington ask Lebanon to negotiate with Israel over oil?

An agreement for Lebanon to begin exploiting oil and gas reserves in the Mediterranean appears to have been put on hold following an American request that Lebanon negotiate with Israel to resolve their maritime border dispute.

Israel