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Lebanon

Lebanon

October 24, 2026

Beirut 11:48 am

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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

Women mourn during a funeral of a victim killed in a bomb attack, in Najaf, 160 km (100 miles) south of Baghdad, November 14, 2013. A suicide bomber blew himself up during a Shi'ite Muslim religious ritual in the eastern Iraqi city of al-Sadiya on Thursday, killing at least 35 people and wounding 75, a senior official and security sources said. No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, which came on the day of Ashura, a holy ritual when Shi'ites commemorate the death of Imam Hussein, a gra

Where is 'Democracy Brigade' to fight sectarian terrorists?

The proliferation of sectarian violence overwhelms the region, which needs a democratic backlash.

Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah (R) meets Lebanon's President Michel Suleiman in Riyadh in this June 1, 2012 handout picture released by the Saudi Press Agency. REUTERS/Saudi Press Agency/Handout (SAUDI ARABIA - Tags: POLITICS ROYALS) FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NOT FOR SALE FOR MARKETING OR ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS. THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. IT IS DISTRIBUTED, EXACTLY AS RECEIVED BY REUTERS, AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS - RTR32YK4

The Syrian shadow on Lebanon-Saudi ties

Lebanese President Michel Suleiman reviews Lebanon-Saudi ties in an official visit to Riyadh.

ATTENTION EDITORS - VISUAL COVERAGE OF SCENES OF INJURY OR DEATH
Soldiers, policemen and medical personnel gather at the site of explosions near the Iranian embassy in Beirut November 19, 2013. Two explosions targeting the Iranian embassy hit the Lebanese capital Beirut on Tuesday, security sources said, killing at least seven people and damaging buildings in the embassy compound. REUTERS/ Mohamed Azakir (LEBANON - Tags: CIVIL UNREST POLITICS)
TEMPLATE OUT - RTX15JO7

Crisis in Lebanon requires urgent action

The Nov. 19 bombing of the Iranian Embassy in Beirut underscores Lebanon's need for a cabinet.

A soldier (in green, 2nd L) and policeman gesture at the site of the explosions near the Iranian embassy in Beirut November 19, 2013. Two explosions apparently targeting the Iranian embassy hit the capital Beirut on Tuesday, security sources said, damaging at least six buildings in the embassy compound. REUTERS/Mahmoud Kheir (LEBANON - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTX15JOA

Lebanon in crisis from spillover of Syria conflict

Difficulty accommodating the exorbitant numbers of Syrian refugees pouring into the country, as well as growing sectarian tensions between Sunni and Shiite Muslims, highlight Lebanon’s dire situation.

Civil Defence personnel extinguish a fire on cars at the site of the explosions near the Iranian embassy in Beirut November 19, 2013. The cultural attache Ebrahim Ansari at the Iranian embassy in Beirut was among at least 23 people killed in two explosions on Tuesday, Lebanese sources said. Lebanese Health Minister Ali Hassan Khalil said the explosions wounded 146 people. REUTERS/Ahmad Yassine (LEBANON - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTX15JQX

Iran Embassy bombing: Repeat of Iraqi model in Lebanon?

The suicide bombing targeting the Iranian Embassy in Beirut on Nov. 19 shows that al-Qaeda has established both tactical and ideological cells in Lebanon.

Soldiers, policemen and medical personnel gather at the site of explosions near the Iranian embassy (L) in Beirut November 19, 2013. Two explosions targeting the Iranian embassy hit the Lebanese capital Beirut on Tuesday, security sources said, killing at least seven people and damaging buildings in the embassy compound. REUTERS/ Mohamed Azakir (LEBANON - Tags: CIVIL UNREST POLITICS MILITARY TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) - RTX15JOF

Lebanon enters 'third stage' of suicide bombings

Tuesday’s suicide attack on the Iranian Embassy in Beirut represents a new stage of violence in Lebanon, with Lebanese citizens targeting their compatriots at home.

U.S. President Barack Obama walks out after speaking about the violence in Egypt while at his rental vacation home on the Massachusetts island of Martha's Vineyard in Chilmark August 15, 2013. REUTERS/Larry Downing (UNITED STATES - Tags: POLITICS) - RTX12MDQ

Israel, Egypt, Gulf fear US betrayal

Israel has become part of an unexpected alliance with the Gulf countries, Egypt and Jordan, all disappointed by the US administration's lack of Middle East understanding.

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif (R) speaks next to European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton during a news conference at the end of the Iranian nuclear talks in Geneva November 10, 2013. Zarif and Ashton said on Sunday they hoped Iran and six world powers would reach an agreement when they gather again in 10 days, adding that the latest round of talks on Tehran's nuclear programme was something all delegations can build on.REUTERS/Jason Reed (SWITZERLAND - Tags: POLITICS) - RTX157

Saving the Iran deal – and the Syrian state

Ratcheting up sanctions on Iran risks a chance to end the war in Syria.

Orthodox Christian worshippers gather before the start of a procession outside Jerusalem's Old City September 5, 2013. About two hundred Orthodox Christians took part in an annual procession in which an icon of the Virgin Mary is carried from a church at the foot of the Mount of Olives believed by Christians to mark the tomb of the Virgin Mary back to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem's Old City. REUTERS/Ammar Awad (JERUSALEM - Tags: RELIGION) - RTX137SV

'Culture of fear' for region's minorities

Conferences recently dedicated to the plight of Middle East Christians need to be understood in broader context.

Shiite cleric Ali Fadlallah (R), son of Lebanese Grand Ayatollah Sayyed Mohammed Hussein Fadlallah, receives condolences from Lebanese President Michel Sleiman at a mosque in Beirut's southern suburb on July 4, 2010, following his father's death earlier in the day at the age of 75. AFP PHOTO/ANWAR AMRO (Photo credit should read ANWAR AMRO/AFP/Getty Images)

Lebanese Shiite leader launches interfaith dialogue

The prominent Lebanese Shiite scholar Ali Fadlallah has launched a new initiative aimed at promoting interfaith dialogue and cooling sectarian tensions in the region.

Shi'ite Muslim men bleed as they gash their foreheads with swords and beat themselves during a ceremony marking Ashura in Nabatieh, southern Lebanon November 25, 2012. Shi'ite mourners beat themselves during Ashura with steel-tipped flails or slash their bodies with knives to mark the death anniversary of Imam Hussein, a grandson of the Prophet Mohammad, who was killed during a battle in A.D. 680 in Kerbala, a city in modern-day Iraq. REUTERS/Sharif Karim (LEBANON - Tags: RELIGION) SOCIETY) - RTR3AURP

Lebanese Shiites fear Salafist terrorism during Ashoura

This year, the Salafist practice of targeting Shiite Ashoura processions in Iraq may spread to Lebanon.

A protester stands near a line of fire during a demonstration in Cairo October 9, 2011. Nineteen people were killed in Cairo on Sunday when Christians, some carrying crosses and pictures of Jesus, clashed with military police, medical and security sources said, in the latest sectarian flare-up in a country in political turmoil. REUTERS/Amr Abdallah Dalsh (EGYPT - Tags: CIVIL UNREST POLITICS RELIGION TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) - RTR2SGGO

Levant Christians consider threats to their communities

During a gathering of Christian representatives from various Near East countries in Beirut, participants were divided when it came to determining their main enemy and strategies for the future.