Arab World News

UN Monitoring Lebanon’s Efforts to Form Cabinet Headed by Nawaf Salam

Arab World File photo: Secretary-General Antonio Guterres (right) joined Nawaf Salam, Permanent Representative of Lebanon to the United Nations, and others, in a tree-planting ceremony on the grounds of UN Headquarters in New York. (UN)

UN Monitoring Lebanon’s Efforts to Form Cabinet Headed by Nawaf Salam

UN Security Council members held Monday closed consultations on Lebanon and received an update on the implementation of the cessation of hostilities agreement…

Ali Barada (Washington)
Arab World A person passes in front of a display of Houthis-made mock missile and drones at a square in Sanaa, Yemen, 13 January 2025. (EPA)

Israel Says It Intercepted a Missile Fired by Yemen’s Houthis

Israel’s military said it intercepted a missile fired toward the country by Yemen’s Houthi militias, setting off sirens on Monday across the Jordan Valley and…

Arab World Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani attends an event marking the Iraqi Police Day at the Police Faculty in Baghdad, Iraq, January 9, 2024. (Anadolu Agency/Pool via Reuters /File Photo)

Iraq PM Says He Will Sign Security Deal with Britain

Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani said on Monday he would sign a bilateral security deal with Britain as well as a strategic partnership accord as…

Arab World  Destroyed buildings are seen inside the Gaza Strip from southern Israel, Monday, Jan. 13, 2025. (AP)

Israeli Strikes across Northern Gaza Kill at Least 14 People, Including a Family of 5

At least 14 Palestinians, including a family of five people, were killed in three separate Israeli airstrikes Monday in northern Gaza Strip, Palestinian medics…

Arab World Supporters of the Health Workers 4 Palestine movement demonstrate in solidarity with Dr. Hossam Abu Safiya, director of Kamal Adwan hospital in the Gaza Strip, in front of the European Parliament in Brussels, Belgium, 06 January 2025. (EPA)

Israel Confirms a Gaza Hospital Director Is at Notorious Military Prison in West Bank

An Israeli rights group says Hossam Abu Safiya, the director of a north Gaza hospital who had disappeared since he was taken by Israeli troops during a raid…


Arab World Syrian security forces in Umayyad Square, Damascus, on January 8. (AFP)

Revenge Attacks in Rural Damascus Raise Human Rights Concerns

Residents of Dummar, a suburb west of Damascus, publicly celebrated the execution of former local official Mazen Knaineh on Friday, raising alarm among civil…

Asharq Al Awsat (Damascus)
Arab World Israeli soldiers are seen in a tunnel that the military says was used by Hamas to attack the Erez crossing in the northern Gaza Strip, December 15, 2023. (AP)

Israeli Defense Minister Orders Army Plan for ‘Complete Defeat of Hamas’

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz on Friday directed the military to quickly prepare a comprehensive plan for the total defeat of Hamas in Gaza if ongoing…

Kifah Zboun (Ramallah)
Arab World Military mobility of Israeli army continues on the Syrian-Israeli border in the Majdal Shams region of Golan Heights in Syria on December 19, 2024 (Anadolu Agency)

Israel Seeks to Maintain Areas of Control and Influence in Syrian Territory

Israel plans to maintain areas of “control” (occupation) and “influence” (intelligence) in Syrian territory, according to a new operational concept that…

Kifah Zboun (Ramallah)
Arab World 18 September 2024, Egypt, Cairo: Egypt's Foreign Minister Dr. Badr Abdelatty speaks during a press conference at Tahrir Palace. (dpa)

Egypt Seeks to Deepen Ties with African Nations to Counter Common Challenges

Egypt held a series of contacts and consultations with African officials to boost its relations throughout the continent. Foreign Minister Dr. Badr Abdelatty…

Fathiya al-Dakhakhni (Cairo)
Arab World Hayat Tahrir al-Sham fighters in Damascus. (Reuters)

Report: Western Powers Warn Syria over Foreign Fighters in Army

US, French and German envoys have warned Syria's new rulers that their appointment of foreign fighters to senior military posts is a security concern and bad…

Arab World Palestinians, including children, hold metal pots and pans as they gather to receive food cooked by a charity kitchen, in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, 10 January 2025. (EPA)

With UNRWA Fate Unclear, UN and Israel Argue over Who’s Responsible for Palestinians

The United Nations and Israel are arguing over who must fill the gap if the UN Palestinian relief agency UNRWA stops working in the Gaza Strip and West Bank…

Arab World Turkish Minister of Foreign Affairs Hakan Fidan addresses the audience during a press briefing meeting to review the past year and to share insights regarding regional and global developments in Istanbul, on January 10, 2025. (AFP)

Türkiye Has No ‘Secret Agenda’ in Syria, Minister Says

Türkiye “does not have any secret agenda” in Syria and wants to construct a “new culture of cooperation,” Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said Friday. …

Arab World Lebanese President Joseph Aoun (R) meets with Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides (L), at the presidential palace in Baabda, east of Beirut, Lebanon, 10 January 2025. (EPA)

Cyprus Leader Becomes First Foreign Dignitary to Visit Lebanon’s New President

Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides has become the foreign head of state and first foreign dignitary to pay an official visit to Lebanon's new President…

Arab World  Black smoke raises following airstrikes on Sanaa, Yemen, Friday, Jan. 10, 2025. (AP)

Israel Bombs Power Station and Two Ports Controlled by Houthis in Yemen

Israeli warplanes bombed a power station and two ports in Houthi-controlled Yemen on Friday in retaliation for Houthi drone and missile strikes against Israel,…

Arab World  Lebanon's newly elected President Joseph Aoun smiles as he walks into a meeting at the presidential palace in Baabda, east of the capital Beirut, on January 10, 2025. (AFP)

Lebanese President to Consult on New Prime Minister from Monday

Newly elected Lebanese President Joseph Aoun will hold consultations with members of parliament from Jan. 13 to nominate a prime minister, the presidency said…

Arab World A crowd gathers outside the Umayyad Mosque as they await updates following a stampede that occurred during Friday prayers in Damascus, Syria, Friday Jan. 10, 2025. (AP)

Stampede Kills Four People, Injures 16 in Umayyad Mosque in Damascus

Four people were killed and 16 injured in a stampede in the landmark Umayyad Mosque in Damascus on Friday, the Syrian state news agency (SANA) said. Five…

Arab World Smoke rises above south Lebanon following an Israeli strike amid cross-border hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, as seen from Israel's border with Lebanon in northern Israel, May 5, 2024. (Reuters)

Five Killed in Israeli Strike on Southern Lebanon, Health Ministry Says

Five people were killed and four wounded in an Israeli strike on the town of Tayr Debba in southern Lebanon on Friday, the Lebanese health ministry said. …

Arab World In this photo released by the Syrian official news agency SANA, Syria's de facto leader Ahmad al-Sharaa, right, meets with Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani in Damascus, Syria, Friday, Jan. 10, 2025. (SANA via AP)

Italy Says Suspending EU Sanctions on Syria Could Help Encourage Transition

Italy's foreign minister says a moratorium on European Union sanctions on Syria could help encourage the country's transition after the ouster of President…

Arab World President Joseph Aoun met with PM Najib Mikati at Baabda palace. (NNA)

Lebanon's PM Says Country to Begin Disarming South Litani to Ensure State Presence

Lebanese caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati said on Friday that the state will begin disarming southern Lebanon, particularly the south Litani region, to…

Asharq Al Awsat
Arab World Palestinians walk through the destruction in the wake of an Israeli air and ground offensive in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)

Lancet Study Estimates Gaza Death Toll 40% Higher Than Recorded

Research published in The Lancet medical journal on Friday estimates that the death toll in Gaza during the first nine months of the Israel-Hamas war was…

Asharq Al Awsat
Arab World FILED - 25 June 2024, Lebanon, Beirut: Lebanon's Prime Minister Najib Mikati attends a meeting in Beirut. Photo: Hannes P Albert/dpa

Lebanese Caretaker PM Will Meet Syria's Sharaa in Damascus on Saturday

Lebanese caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati will meet Syria's de facto leader Ahmed al-Sharaa in Damascus on Saturday, a Lebanese source told Reuters on…

Asharq Al Awsat
Arab World Italy's Foreign Affairs Minister Antonio Tajani (C) meets with Syria's Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shibani (R) in Damascus, Syria, 10 January 2025. EPA/GIUSEPPE LAMI

Syrian FM Says Will Visit European Countries in Coming Period

Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad Hassan al-Shibani said on Friday that he will visit European countries in the coming period. He spoke during a press conference…

Asharq Al Awsat
Arab World Newly-elected Lebanese President Joseph Aoun poses for a picture with his family at the presidential palace in Baabda, Lebanon, January 9, 2025. Dalati Nohra/Handout via REUTERS

Lebanese President Faces Domestic, Foreign Challenges

The election of a new president in Lebanon does not mean the country has come out of the economic and political crises which have gutted it for years. Yet…

Youssef Diab (Beirut)
Arab World FILE - South Sudanese people sit outside a nutrition clinic at a transit center in Renk, South Sudan, on May 16, 2023. (AP Photo/Sam Mednick, File)

MSF Suspends Operations at Key Hospital in Sudan's Capital

Medical aid agency MSF said on Friday it has been forced to suspend its activities at one of the few remaining hospitals in southern Khartoum due to repeated…

Asharq Al Awsat
Arab World FILE - President Joe Biden addresses the nation from the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, July 24, 2024. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, Pool, File)

Biden: Joseph Aoun is ‘First-Rate Guy’

US President Joe Biden welcomed the election of Joseph Aoun as Lebanon's president on Thursday, saying in a statement that the army chief was the “right leader…

Asharq Al Awsat (Washington)
Arab World Grundberg arrives at Sanaa airport, Yemen (AFP)

Grundberg Concludes Visit to Sanaa, Urges Houthis to Deescalate Tensions, Release Detainees

The United Nations Special Envoy for Yemen, Hans Grundberg, urged on Thursday Houthi leaders to reduce national and regional escalation and release the…

Ali Rabih (Aden)
Arab World Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani speaks to the media a he arrives for a meeting at Rome’s Villa Madama, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025 on the situation in Syria after the collapse of the Assad regime. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini (Andrew Medichini/AP POOL)

Italy’s Foreign Minister Heads to Syria to Encourage Post-Assad Transition

Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said he would travel to Syria on Friday to encourage the country's transition following the ouster of President Bashar…

Asharq Al Awsat
Arab World French President Emmanuel Macron delivers his speech to French ambassadors posted around the world, on January 6, 2025 at the Elysee Palace in Paris. (Photo by Aurelien Morissard / POOL / AFP)

France's Macron Will Travel to Lebanon Very Soon

French President Emmanuel Macron will visit Lebanon very soon, the French presidency said on Thursday, after Macron spoke with Joseph Aoun, the Lebanese army…

Asharq Al Awsat
Arab World FILED - 06 August 2022, Israel, Sderot: The Israeli Iron Dome missile defense system fires an interceptor missile. Photo: Ilia Yefimovich/dpa

Israel's Military Says 3 Drones Fired from Yemen

Three drones were launched from Yemen toward Israel on Thursday evening, the military said, although there were no injuries according to Israel’s Magen David…

Asharq Al Awsat