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

Lebanon

Lebanon

August 26, 2026

Beirut 4:24 pm

34°C

Lebanese Presidency

Large UAE delegation set to arrive in Lebanon in major investment push

A large Emirati delegation of around 70 business leaders and government officials is heading to Beirut, in the latest sign of thaw between the United Arab Emirates and Lebanon.

Iranian ambassador Mohammad Reza Sheibani

In shift, Lebanon grants Iranian ambassador residency extension

Mohammad Reza Sheibani’s visa was set to expire early Tuesday morning and he was first ordered to leave in March.

ALINE DESCHAMPS/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images

In Lebanon, Italy proposes robust multinational force to replace UNIFIL: What to know

Italy has produced alternative to replace the UN peacekeeping force in Lebanon and preserve an international security presence there.

Latest News

US Treasury issues Hezbollah sanctions, labels group Iran-linked

U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent

In first, Lebanon to hand over former Syrian general to Sharaa government

This handout picture released by the official Syrian Arab News Agency on Aug. 18, 2026, shows Judge Fakhr al-Din al-Aryan (C) during the sentencing of Wassim al-Assad.

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 plume of smoke rises following an Israeli airstrike on the outskirts of Tyre, southern Lebanon, on June 1, 2026.

Analysis

Why Iran sees Lebanon as proof that its deterrence still works

Iran is characterizing any Israeli pause in strikes on Beirut as proof of its renewed influence and leverage in an episode that could also expose uncertain regional recalibration.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

People stand in front of the Arrow 3 shield system during an event of the German Air Force to declare the Initial Operating Capability for the Arrow Weapon System for Germany at the Annaburger Heide Air Base in Schoenewalde / Holzdorf, eastern Germany, on Dec. 3, 2025.

Record Israeli arms exports highlight global rush for air defense

Rocket and air defense systems sales accounted for 29% of Israel's defense exports in 2025.

ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS / AFP via Getty Images

Analysis

‘Iranians threatened Trump and he folded’: Beirut veto leaves Netanyahu exposed

Trump’s reported intervention to block an Israeli strike on Hezbollah in Beirut has exposed growing tensions with Netanyahu and raised questions about the Israeli prime minister’s ability to sustain his wartime political narrative ahead of elections.

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

Smoke rises from the sites of Israeli airstrikes in the southern city of Nabatieh on June 2, 2026. Israel's growing offensive in Lebanon, including heavy bombardment and its deepest ground invasion in two decades, has threatened to scupper a ceasefire in the wider Middle East war between the United States and Iran. (Photo by Abbas Fakih / AFP via Getty Images)

Ongoing Israeli strikes, Hezbollah projectiles cloud Trump’s ceasefire in Lebanon

Both Israel and Hezbollah have violated the ceasefire less than a day after President Donald Trump announced it.

Smoke rises following Israeli bombardment in southern Lebanon as seen from a position across the border in the Upper Galilee in northern Israel on May 31, 2026.

Trump says Hezbollah, Israel agree to stop fighting after call with Netanyahu

The US president announced the ceasefire after Iran's IRGC threatened a major attack on northern Israel and warned it could close the Bab al-Mandeb strait if Israel followed through on plans to strike Beirut.

patrol

Lebanon fears return of Israeli occupation as Beirut strikes loom

Israeli forces are deep inside Lebanese territory as the southern suburbs of Beirut brace for airstrikes.

Smoke rises following an Israeli airstrike in Jarjoua, southern Lebanon, on May 13, 2026.

Lebanon and Israel hold military talks at Pentagon despite Israeli offensive: What to know

A renewed Israeli offensive in southern Lebanon aims to extract concessions from Beirut in US-brokered diplomatic talks, but Lebanese military officials say there is no path forward until Israel halts its attacks and returns to the April ceasefire.

Smoke rises following Israeli bombardment on the village of Qlaile as pictured from nearby Tyre in southern Lebanon on April 7, 2026. The Israeli military said on April 7 that it had completed the deployment of ground troops along a "defence line" in southern Lebanon, where it is fighting Iran-backed Hezbollah. The military has not given any geographical details on the furthest point to which its soldiers have advanced into Lebanese territory. (Photo by Kawnat Haju/AFP via Getty Images)

Culture

Tyre, Lebanon’s ‘Queen of the Seas,’ devastated by Israeli bombing: What to know

A series of Israeli strikes near ancient ruins in the Phoenician port city has raised concerns about potential damage to historical landmarks.

Smoke rises from the site of an Israeli airstrike that targeted the southern Lebanese area of al-Hosh, near the coastal city of Tyre on May 16, 2026.

Lebanon-Israel talks at Pentagon undercut by escalation: What to know

The Lebanese army is expected to press for the full implementation of the ceasefire with Israel during military-level talks at the Pentagon, to allow it to carry out its plan to disarm Hezbollah.