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Lebanon

Lebanon

July 3, 2026

Beirut 6:14 pm

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Motorists drive past a billboard bearing a picture of Iran's slain supreme leader Ali Khamenei, ahead of his funeral in Tehran on July 3, 2026. Iranian leaders began paying their respects on July 3 before the coffin of the country's late supreme leader Ali Khamenei, killed in the US-Israeli strikes that triggered the Middle East war, as Tehran prepared for a vast funeral. Khamenei's body arrived at Tehran's Grand Mosalla on July 3 ahead of ceremonies which are expected to draw millions. (Photo by AFP via Ge

Analysis

As US-Iran talks falter, Israel views war outcome as 'total strategic failure’

Israeli officials believe the US failure to attain the kind of agreement with Iran that it originally sought stems from the strategic mistakes made during and after the recent war.

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

The court stands at the start of the first hearing at the International Court of Justice in which Myanmar is accused of committing genocide against the country's Muslim minority, the Rohingya, in the Hague on January 12, 2026. The Gambia filed the genocide case in cooperation with the Organization of Islamic Cooperation in 2019. Myanmar's military deliberately targeted the Rohingya minority in a bid to destroy the community, Gambia's Justice Minister Dawda Jallow told the International Court of Justice Mond

Explainer

Does provision 13 of Lebanon-Israel deal bar Beirut from pursuing war crimes claims?

Part of the Israeli-Lebanese agreement has led to calls for Beirut to grant the International Criminal Court jurisdiction in Lebanon or sign the Rome Treaty to allow prosecutions.

Nawaf Salam and Asaad al-Shibani shake hands in Beirut on July 2, 2026.

Syria, Lebanon stress noninterference as Damascus mulls Hezbollah talks

When asked whether Damascus would be willing to meet with Hezbollah in the future, Syria’s foreign minister indicated that it would not rule out such a meeting.

An activist takes part in a demonstration against sexual harassment, rape and domestic violence in the Lebanese capital Beirut on December 7, 2019. (Photo by ANWAR AMRO / AFP) (Photo by ANWAR AMRO/AFP via Getty Images)

Culture

Lebanon arrests man after video of public assault on wife goes viral

The man seen violently beating a woman at a restaurant has been arrested, but the incident has reignited debate over domestic violence amid warnings that such abuse can increase during periods of war.

Latest News

Analysis

For Israel, Lebanon deal 'historic' despite fears Hezbollah will rebuild

Shia Muslim devotees gather for a mourning ritual near the shrine of Hassan Nasrallah, the slain leader of the Lebanese Shia movement Hezbollah who was killed in a 2024 Israeli-airstrike, in Beirut's southern suburbs on June 26, 2026 at the peak of Ashura, a 10-day period commemorating the seventh century killing of Prophet Mohammed's grandson Imam Hussein. (Photo by JOSEPH EID / AFP via Getty Images)

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

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

Romania's President Traian Basescu (R) walks with Lebanon's President Michel Suleiman during an official welcoming ceremony at Cotroceni palace in Bucharest February 28, 2012. President Suleiman is on a three-day official visit to Romania. REUTERS/Bogdan Cristel (ROMANIA - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR2YKF8

What can Lebanon learn from Suleiman's presidency?

As Lebanese President Michel Suleiman’s term ends on May 25, his successor should examine the obstacles and successes of his mandate to prepare for the path ahead.

Teachers hold placards during a protest in front of the Grand Serail in Beirut, February 27, 2013. An open-ended strike by teachers and civil servants entered its second week today for the government to approve the wage hike proposal. REUTERS/Sharif Karim (LEBANON - Tags: POLITICS EDUCATION CIVIL UNREST) - RTR3ECE2

Lebanon: private education soars, public education sinks

Despite a student-teacher ratio of 7-1, public education in Lebanon ranks poorly worldwide and reform is urgently needed.

Lebanese members of parliament gather to elect the new Lebanese president in the parliament building in downtown Beirut April 23, 2014. Lebanese parliamentarians failed to elect a new president in a first round of voting on Wednesday, with leading candidate Samir Geagea falling well short of the required two-thirds majority. REUTERS/Joseph Eid/Pool (LEBANON - Tags: POLITICS ELECTIONS) - RTR3MAQN

Lebanon approaches presidential deadline

If Lebanon’s parliament fails to elect a president by the constitutionally stipulated deadline of midnight on May 24, the ensuing vacuum could further exacerbate the already tense situation in the country.

Lebanese President Michel Sleiman (R) gestures beside Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rai (L), in a celebration to solidify the reconciliation between Christians and Druze in Brih May 17, 2014. REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir (LEBANON - Tags: POLITICS RELIGION) - RTR3PLSX

How will Lebanon’s Christians deal with presidential vacancy?

If a new Lebanese president is not elected by the constitutionally stipulated deadline of May 25, the Christians’ options are limited.

EDITORS' NOTE: Reuters and other foreign media are subject to Iranian restrictions on their ability to report, film or take pictures in Tehran

Iran's Armed Forces Chief of Staff Hassan Firouzabadi (R) and former Revolutionary Guards commander Yahya Rahim-Safavi salute during a military parade to commemorate the 1980-88 Iran-Iraq war, in Tehran September 22, 2010. REUTERS/Morteza Nikoubazl (IRAN - Tags: ANNIVERSARY MILITARY POLITICS) - RTXSIL4

Former IRGC leader claims Iran's border to Lebanon's shores

The Lebanese presidential elections are of a piece with Iran's regional strategy.

Hezbollah supporters stand in front of a giant banner of their leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah as they listen to his speech, in Aineta village, in south Lebanon March 29, 2014. Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah on Saturday called for domestic support for his militants after a year of growing sectarian violence in Lebanon following the Shi'ite militant group's intervention in the Syrian war. REUTERS/ Sharif Karim (LEBANON - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTR3J41G

Hezbollah evasive on presidential candidates

Although Hezbollah has yet to name its preferred candidate for the Lebanese presidency, there are a number of requirements that a potential candidate must meet to gain the party’s endorsement.

Thousands of Lebanon's public sector employees march through Beirut to demand the parliament to approve a new salary scale law which if passed means a significant wages increase, April 29, 2014. The Union Coordination Committee (UCC) kicked off its demonstration on Tuesday from the Lebanese Central Bank in Hamra towards the Chamber of Trade and Commerce in Sanayeh. The demonstrators called on the Central Bank Governor and concerned sides to meet their demands, the National News Agency (NNA) reported. REUTE

Lebanon union strike not helping economy

The Union Coordinating Body is missing an opportunity to fix the large amount of government waste.

New Cardinal Bechara Boutros Rai of Lebanon (R) is congratulated by an unidentified cardinal during a consistory ceremony in Saint Peter's Basilica at the Vatican November 24, 2012. Pope Benedict XVI installed 6 new Roman Catholic cardinals from around the world on Saturday. REUTERS/Tony Gentile (VATICAN - Tags: RELIGION) - RTR3ATCU

Attacks on Lebanese patriarch’s Jerusalem visit unjustified

Media attacks against Lebanon Maronite Patriarch Bechara al-Rai’s upcoming visit to Jerusalem are based on an antiquated logic, and may be aimed at diverting attention from other issues.

An Israeli tank patrols the Shebaa Farms area, wedged between Lebanon and the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights July 8, 2009. A Lebanese army colonel suspected of collaborating with Israel fled to the Jewish state last week, a Lebanese security source said on Tuesday. REUTERS/Ali Hashisho (LEBANON POLITICS MILITARY) - RTR25GD9

Hezbollah sends Israel message in Shebaa bombing

Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah has claimed responsibility for the Shebaa Farms bombing that wounded Israeli soldiers, and Israel has filed a complaint at the United Nations, signaling that Israel understood the message.

Lebanese members of parliament count the votes after casting their ballots to elect the new Lebanese president in the parliament building in downtown Beirut April 23, 2014. Lebanese parliamentarians failed to elect a new president in a first round of voting on Wednesday, with leading candidate Samir Geagea falling well short of the required two-thirds majority. REUTERS/Joseph Eid/Pool (LEBANON - Tags: ELECTIONS POLITICS) - RTR3MATM

Lebanon's presidential stalemate

The deadlock in the politicking over Lebanon's next president has a familiar feel.

Parliament members give the newly-formed cabinet a vote of confidence in Beirut March 20, 2014. Lebanon's parliament gave a newly-formed cabinet a vote of confidence on Thursday, ending almost a year of political deadlock during which the country has been pulled further into the civil war in neighbouring Syria. REUTERS/Sharif Karim (LEBANON - Tags: POLITICS) BEST QUALITY AVAILABLE - RTR3JS87

Parliament to defer election of Lebanon’s next president

The Lebanese electoral session will be a “feeler” to determine the sizes of the various forces.

Members of the Lebanese Civil Defence stand in the sea near a Lebanese flag during a protest in Beirut April 9, 2014. Workers from public sectors went on strike on Wednesday to demand more rights. REUTERS/Sharif Karim (LEBANON - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTR3KJCX

Lebanon needs a model president

Lebanon currently faces crises that only a unifying president can address.