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Lebanon

Lebanon

August 18, 2025

Beirut 6:49 pm

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Lebanon's PM slams Hezbollah chief for making 'threat of civil war'

Tensions are rising as Lebanon’s government, under pressure from the US, moves forward with a plan to disarm the Iran-backed Hezbollah.

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun, right, meets with US Ambassador to Turkey and Special Envoy to Syria Tom Barrack, in Baabda, east of Beirut, July 7, 2025.

Analysis

Lebanon key to Trump plan for turnaround in Middle East

The final "This Week" column reflects on US policy toward Lebanon, Syria, Iraq and Gaza.

Andrew Parasiliti

By Andrew Parasiliti

In Washington, DC, reporting on diplomacy, regional politics, national security

Iran's Supreme National Security Council chief Ali Larijani (C) speaks to reporters after meeting with Lebanon's parliament speaker in Beirut on Aug. 13, 2025.

Iran’s Larijani in Lebanon as Beirut, Tehran spar over Hezbollah disarmament

The visit of Iran’s top security chief Ali Larijani to Beirut comes amid tensions between Lebanon and Iran following the approval of a plan to disarm the Iranian-backed Hezbollah, which also rejected the move and vowed not to give up its weapons.

Sudani and Larijani

Iran security chief visits Iraq, Lebanon as Baghdad weighs pro-Iran militia law

Ali Larijani, who was recently appointed to head Iran’s top security body, has embarked on visits to Iraq and Lebanon as Baghdad faces US pressure to contain Iranian-backed groups.

Latest News

Lebanon cabinet backs Hezbollah disarmament as US urges year-end deadline

Hezbollah supporters wave the yellow flag of the Lebanese militant group during a parade on motorbikes while people returned to the area to check their homes in Beirut's southern suburbs on Nov. 27, 2024, after a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah took effect.

Lebanon tasks army with plan to control weapons as Hezbollah rejects disarmament

Lebanese demonstrators march during a gathering to honour the victims of the catastrophic port explosion in 2020 and to call for accountability for the blast, in Beirut on August 4, 2025. Lebanese President Joseph Aoun on August 4, vowed justice and accountability five years after a catastrophic explosion at Beirut's port, as the investigating judge finished questioning defendants, a judicial official said. (Photo by ANWAR AMRO / AFP) (Photo by ANWAR AMRO/AFP via Getty Images)

5 years after Lebanon's port explosion: Can Beirut find accountability?

A picture shows a metal installation set up across from the destroyed Beirut port silos during a gathering to honour the victims of the catastrophic port explosion in 2020 and to call for accountability for the blast, in Beirut on August 4, 2025. Lebanese President Joseph Aoun on August 4, vowed justice and accountability five years after a catastrophic explosion at Beirut's port, as the investigating judge finished questioning defendants, a judicial official said. (Photo by JOSEPH EID / AFP) (Photo by JOSE

Lebanon’s cabinet to discuss Hezbollah disarmament as US ups pressure

TOPSHOT - A person holds a sign with the Arabic slogan "we will not relinquish arms" as Lebanese Shiite Hezbollah supporters take part in a ceremony during the peak of Ashura, a 10-day period commemorating the seventh century killing of Prophet Mohammed's grandson Imam Hussein, in Beirut's southern suburbs on July 6, 2025. (Photo by ANWAR AMRO / AFP) (Photo by ANWAR AMRO/AFP via Getty Images)

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 woman sits with her belongings in Martyrs' Square as she seeks shelter after being displaced by Israeli airstrikes, on Sept. 29, 2024, in Beirut, Lebanon.

As Israel's invasion begins, Lebanon's displaced shelter in streets with 'nowhere to go'

The myth of an invincible Hezbollah has largely collapsed, according to analysts, as its followers mourn the death of their leader, Hassan Nasrallah.

Turkey's Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan speaks during a joint press conference with his Egyptian counterpart, in Cairo on Aug. 5, 2024.

Analysis

Turkey's FM met with Nasrallah days after Oct. 7 — does that mean he's 'pro-Iran'?

The recent revelation by Hakan Fidan has refocused attention on the top Turkish diplomat's supposed fondness for Iran.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

Refugees from southern Lebanon and Beirut are transported to shelters in Beirut, Lebanon, on Sept. 25, 2024.

Lebanon: At least 1,041 killed, nearly 120,000 displaced as Israel hints at ground op

More than 100,000 have been displaced in Lebanon by the recent fighting, leading to an influx into neighboring Syria.

An apartment block stands in partial ruins after being hit by an Israeli airstrike on, Sept. 30, 2024 in Beirut, Lebanon.

Who were Palestinian commanders in Lebanon targeted in latest Israeli strikes?

Israel has frequently targeted Hezbollah commanders and leaders in Lebanon since the start of the cross-border hostilities, as well as members of Palestinian armed groups that joined Hezbollah on the southern front.

LEBANON-ISRAEL-PALESTINIAN-CONFLICT Smoke rises from the site of an Israeli airstrike that targeted the southern Lebanese village of Khiam on September 30, 2024. (Photo by Rabih DAHER / AFP) (Photo by RABIH DAHER/AFP via Getty Images)

US boosts defense posture as Blinken urges diplomacy between Israel, Lebanon

The White House is calling for a prioritization of diplomacy despite reports that Israel could be readying for a ground operation in Lebanon.

Israeli army tanks are deployed in the Upper Galilee region of northern Israel near the border with Lebanon, Sept. 29, 2024.

Analysis

Israel buoyant after killing Nasrallah, mulls risky Lebanon ground invasion

After the killing of the Hezbollah chief, Israeli security chiefs disagree on a potential ground incursion into southern Lebanon.

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

Yoav Gallant

Gallant hints Israel preparing to launch ground offensive in Lebanon

Speaking with soldiers deployed near the border with Lebanon, Israel's Defense Minister Yoav Gallant hinted that a ground invasion could take place soon.

Head of Hezbollah's Executive Council Hashem Safieddine arrives as trucks loaded with humanitarian aid provided by the Lebanese Shiite group set out for Syria in the aftermath of a deadly earthquake, southern suburbs of Beirut, Lebanon, Feb. 12, 2023.

Meet Hezbollah’s Hashem Safieddine, Iran’s confidant and likely successor for Nasrallah

Hashem Safieddine is considered close to Hezbollah’s slain leader Hassan Nasrallah but is seen as more ruthless and less pragmatic than the late leader of the group.

A Shiite Muslim cleric holds a poster reading "crossing a red line" in Persian next to an image of Hassan Nasrallah, the late leader of the Lebanese Hezbollah group, during an anti-Israel protest in Tehran's Palestine Square on Sept. 28, 2024, after Hezbollah confirmed reports of Nasrallah's killing in an Israeli air strike in Beirut the previous day.

From Yemen to Turkey, Mideast reacts to death of Hezbollah's Nasrallah

Leaders and groups in the Middle East have reacted to the death of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, who was killed Friday in an Israeli airstrike on Beirut.

Hezbollah Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah give a televised speech in a hanger in the Beirut suburb of Dahiyeh in Lebanon on May 24, 2024, following the death of President Ebrahim Raisi of Iran in a helicopter crash.

Who was Hassan Nasrallah, Hezbollah’s formative leader killed by Israel?

After decades of leading Hezbollah and overseeing its rise both in Lebanon and in the region, Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah was killed in an Israeli strike in Beirut.

Smoke rises above Beirut's southern suburbs during an Israeli strike on September 27, 2024. Israeli bombing of Iran-backed Hezbollah strongholds around Lebanon has killed hundreds of people this week, while the militant group has retaliated with rocket barrages. (Photo by AFP) (Photo by -/AFP via Getty Images)

Israel says it struck Hezbollah headquarters in Beirut

The strike followed days of intensifying Israeli strikes on Lebanon.

An injured child and others at a school in Beirut housing displaced people who fled Israeli strikes in southern Lebanon, Sep. 26, 2024.

At least 700 killed, 120,000 displaced as UN calls Lebanon situation ‘catastrophic'

The ongoing Israeli escalation in Lebanon has displaced nearly 120,000 in less than a week, prompting 16,100 Lebanese to enter Syria.