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Lebanon

Lebanon

October 24, 2026

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tunnel

Lebanon uncovers new tunnel amid tensions with Hezbollah: What to know

A tunnel was discovered near Beirut as tensions between Lebanese authorities and Hezbollah have been running high over the seizure of weapons shipments destined for the Iran-backed group.

Israeli troops stand guard on the dividing line between the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights and Syrian, near Majdal Shams, July 16, 2025.

Analysis

'The problem and the solution': Netanyahu-Sharaa call exposes Israel's Syria dilemma

The Israeli leader revealed that he spoke with the Syrian president last year, but stalled talks and Israel's fortification of a security zone on Syrian land underscore his mistrust of Sharaa.

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

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun met with Qatar’s Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani

Qatar PM in Beirut as Lebanon seeks economic relief: What to know

Qatar’s Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani’s visit to Beirut coincides with the Lebanese authorities’ ongoing efforts to curb Hezbollah’s influence in the country.

Mihrac Ural, who was also known as Ali Kayali, was arrested

Explainer

Syria arrests Mihrac Ural, ex-Assad militia head also wanted by Turkey

The Turkey-born militia chief and a longtime ally of the Assad-regime, was sought by Ankara over the deadly Reyhanli bombings and by Damascus over his alleged role in massacres on the Mediterranean coast.

Latest News

Syria denies meeting with Lebanon’s Hezbollah in Turkey: What to know

Lebanon seeks Turkey’s help to join Syria-Saudi rail link: What to know

A picture taken on May 1, 2019 shows a railroad of Mar Mikhael neighborhood in the Lebanese capital Beirut.

Lebanon PM meets Rubio as Israel talks stall: What to know

SAUL LOEB / AFP via Getty Images

Lebanon's PM calls for international force to replace UNIFIL: What to know

Brendan SMIALOWSKI / 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

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

General view of Lebanon's Roumieh Central Prison overlooking Beirut, where riots erupted on April 7 and continue today April 8. A prison warden and three inmates were slightly wounded in the revolt by prisoners demanding better conditions at Lebanon's largest jail which holds 3,000 inmates. - RTXIFDY

Lebanon's main prison a hotbed for terrorists

Roumieh Prison holds a variety of detainees, including terrorists and radical Islamists who pose a challenge to security in the lockup and in the country.

Lebanon's senior Hezbollah official Sheikh Nabil Qawouq leads the payers around the coffin of Ibrahim al-Haj, a Hezbollah commander who died during a mission in Iraq, during his funeral in Mashghara village in the Bekaa Valley July 30, 2014. A Hezbollah commander has died during a mission in Iraq, sources familiar with the incident said on Wednesday, indicating the Lebanese group that is already fighting in Syria's civil war may be involved in a second conflict in the region. Four sources in Lebanon named t

Hezbollah calls for resistance against IS

Hezbollah sources told Al-Monitor that the Islamic State’s attack on Arsal was only the beginning of another series of attacks in parts of Lebanon.

A Christian woman carries a cross during a demonstration against militants of the Islamic State, formerly known as the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), in Arbil, north of Baghdad July 24, 2014. Hundreds of Iraqi Christians marched to the United Nations office in Arbil city on Thursday calling for help for families who fled in the face of threats by Islamic State militants. REUTERS/Stringer (IRAQ - Tags: CIVIL UNREST POLITICS TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) - RTR400H7

Erbil Christians torn between arming themselves or leaving

Kurdish officials in Erbil met with a Lebanese delegation headed by Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil and discussed the possibility of establishing a Christian armed brigade to fight the Islamic State in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq.

Iraqi Deputy Foreign Minister Nizar al-Khairallah (R) greets Lebanon's Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil (L) at the Baghdad airport in Baghdad, August 18, 2014. REUTERS/Ali Abbas/Pool (IRAQ - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR42T21

Baghdad welcomes Lebanese, but they don't see eye to eye

The Lebanese delegation to Baghdad offers diplomatic help to confront the Islamic State (IS), but it seems both parties have different priorities.

People are seen leaving Lebanon's Central Bank in Beirut July 7, 2011. Lebanese banks which worked for years to build up business in neighbouring Syria have been quietly implementing U.S. and European Union sanctions against Damascus to avoid jeopardising their international operations, bankers and economists say. Picture taken July 7, 2011. To match Feature LEBANON-SYRIA/BANKS REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir (LEBANON - Tags: BUSINESS) - RTR2XHQQ

Lebanese banks concerned over Hezbollah sanctions bill

Lebanese banks are worried that a US bill aiming to increase sanctions on Hezbollah will weaken confidence in the banking sector.

Lebanon's Prime Minister Tammam Salam (L) shakes hands with former Lebanese prime minister Saad al-Hariri upon his arrival at the government's headquarters in Beirut August 8, 2014. Hariri arrived back in Lebanon on Friday for the first time in three years, a visit seen as reasserting his leadership over the Sunni community after a deadly incursion by Islamist militants in the northeast. REUTERS/Georges Farah (LEBANON - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR41O2O

Could Maliki's departure spur Lebanon’s presidential election?

Many Lebanese are looking for signs that the departure of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki in Iraq will lead to progress in Lebanon's presidential race, but diplomatic sources are quick to downplay any such hopes.

The Armenian St. Kevork Church (Saint George) is seen in the northern Syrian city of Aleppo, on October 30, 2012, after it was burnt during fighting between rebel fighters and Syrian government forces. AFP PHOTO/STR (Photo credit should read STR/AFP/Getty Images)

Aleppo's Christians in Syrian crossfire

Christians in Aleppo fear an uncertain fate; Iran’s decisive role in the appointment of Haider al-Abadi as Iraqi prime minister-designate; battle for Arsal may not be over yet; Netanyahu is Israel’s "weakest prime minister" ever; lobbying profiles of Gulf countries to be released.

Syrian refugees, fleeing the recent fighting in Arsal, wait with their belongings in Majdel Anjar in the Bekaa valley, near the Lebanese border with Syria August 8, 2014. The refugees, who had sought shelter in Arsal, were attempting to head back to Syria; however, they say Syrian authorities at the border rejected them until further investigation to verify their identities and statuses. REUTERS/Hassan Abdallah (LEBANON - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTR41Q6X

Arsal battle brings Syrian refugee issue to the fore in Lebanon

Since the Arsal battle, Lebanon has been taking a new look at its Syrian refugee crisis, which it has been struggling with for years.

Iraqi Christians displaced by the violence in their country wait in line to receive aid from a Chaldean Catholic Church truck in Beirut August 13, 2014. Well financed and armed, Islamic State insurgents have captured large swathes of territory in a summer offensive, as the Iraqi army - and now Kurdish Peshmerga forces in the self-governing north - have crumbled in the face of its onslaught, massacring Shi'ites and minority Christians and Yazidis as they advance. REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir (LEBANON - Tags: POLI

Lebanon a safe haven but Middle Eastern Christians still at risk

The arrival of Iraqi Christians in Lebanon is significant, as the country has historically been considered a safe haven for Christians in the Levant, and requires considerable diplomatic support from religious and political authorities in the region.

Damage is seen on a building and a mosque from the fighting between Lebanese army soldiers and Islamist militants, in the Sunni Muslim border town of Arsal, in eastern Bekaa Valley August 7, 2014. Militant Islamists have mostly withdrawn from the Lebanese border town of Arsal, which they seized at the weekend, taking with them captive Lebanese soldiers, militant and security sources said on Thursday, as a truce to end the deadly battle appeared to hold. REUTERS/Ahmad Shalha (LEBANON - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL U

Arsal: The battle that begins a long war

The Arsal agreement reached between the Lebanese military and government parties and the militants indicates that the two parties are betting on different factors.

A general view shows damage and burnt tents for Syrian refugees from the fighting between Lebanese army soldiers and Islamist militants in the Sunni Muslim border town of Arsal, in eastern Bekaa Valley August 7, 2014. Militant Islamists have mostly withdrawn from the Lebanese border town of Arsal, which they seized at the weekend, taking with them captive Lebanese soldiers, militant and security sources said on Thursday, as a truce to end the deadly battle appeared to hold. REUTERS/Hassan Abdallah (LEBANON

Is Lebanon next target of Islamic State?

Lebanon battles extremist armed groups; Egypt’s political isolation in Gaza; Iran’s shift on Hamas; family of Al-Monitor columnist killed by Israeli airstrike; lobbying series continues.

Hezbollah supporters wave Lebanese, Syrian, Palestinian and Hezbollah flags as they listen to their leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah addressing his supporters during a rally to mark "Quds (Jerusalem) Day" in Beirut's southern suburbs July 25, 2014. REUTERS/Sharif Karim (LEBANON - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST RELIGION) - RTR4056R

Gaza war brings Hamas, Hezbollah closer

The war on Gaza offers an opportunity to renegotiate the strategic relationship between Hamas and Hezbollah, whose relationship has been severed over the past three years, providing major obstacles can be overcome.