Arab World News

Israel Releases Detained Palestinian Woman Footballer

Arab World 07 June 2026, Israel, Tzur Yitzhak: Israeli Security forces inspect the scene of a shooting attack in the town of Tzur Yitzhak in central Israel near the occupied West Bank border. (dpa)

Israel Releases Detained Palestinian Woman Footballer

Israeli authorities released a player on the Palestinian national women's football team after six days in detention in Jerusalem, her mother and police told…

Arab World Workers clean the debris following Israeli airstrikes that hit the previous day, near the archaeological site of the Roman hippodrome in the southern Lebanese city of Tyre on June 8, 2026. (AFP)

Lebanon Reports Israeli Strikes as Hezbollah Claims Attacks Against Troops in South

An Israeli strike hit a vehicle in the city of Tyre, south Lebanon on Monday, Lebanese state media reported, as Israel vowed to press attacks on Hezbollah…

Arab World A picture shows Iraq Airlines planes parked at the Baghdad International Airport on April 24, 2024 - AFP

Iraq Reopens Airspace after Iran Ends Operation against Israel

Iraq reopened its airspace on Monday, the country's civil aviation body said, following Iran's announcement that it was halting its military operation against…

Asharq Al Awsat
Arab World Palestinians assess damage at the site of an Israeli airstrike in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, on June 7, 2026. (AFP)

Israeli Military Kills Six in Gaza and Expands Control Zone, Locals Say

Israeli strikes killed six Palestinians, including a child, in the Gaza Strip on Monday, health officials there said, as Israel's military expanded the area…

Arab World FILE PHOTO: Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam speaks during a declaration press event held along with French President Emmanuel Macron (not pictured) following their meeting at the Elysee Presidential Palace in Paris, France, April 21, 2026. Ludovic Marin/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo

Salam: Israel Has Bombed Lebanon Nearly 3,500 Times During Ceasefire

Israel has carried out nearly 3,500 air strikes on Lebanon and hundreds of controlled explosions since the US announced a ceasefire for the country on April 16…

Asharq Al Awsat (Beirut)

Arab World The Lebanese delegation participating in the Washington talks on Tuesday (Reuters) 

Lebanon’s Shiite Duo Drops Israeli Withdrawal Demand in Ceasefire Talks

Recent statements by Lebanon’s Shiite duo - the Amal Movement and Hezbollah - indicate a tacit acceptance that Israeli forces could remain in Lebanese…

Asharq Al Awsat (Beirut)
Arab World Members of Asaib Ahl al-Haq take part in a Quds Day march in Baghdad on July 1, 2016. (AP)

Iraq Faces Delayed Showdown with Factions Rejecting State Arms Control

Observers in Baghdad say a long-delayed confrontation may be looming with factions that reject the principle of “placing arms under state control,” a move…

Hamza Mustafa (Baghdad)
Arab World From right, Qassam Brigades leaders assassinated by Israel in separate attacks: Mohammad Odeh, Rafe Salama, Abu Obeida, and Mohammad Deif, in a photo released by the Israeli military. (Israeli military)

Tunnels or Voiceprints: Why Israel Is Killing Qassam Leaders Faster

Throughout Israel’s war on Gaza, from October 2023 until a fragile ceasefire was announced two years later in October 2025, Israel’s pursuit of the leaders of…

Asharq Al Awsat (Gaza)
Arab World People attend a protest in memory of dentist and former chess champion Rania al-Abbasi, her husband, and their children, after National Commission for Missing Persons (NCMP) reports confirmed that her children were killed in Syrian government detention facilities during the rule of ousted Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, at the Faculty of Dental Medicine, in Damascus, Syria, June 1, 2026. (Reuters)

Syrians Mourn a Former Chess Champion as Her Death Is Confirmed 13 Years Later

Hundreds of people flocked to a tent in Damascus on Wednesday to mourn a former national chess champion who went missing 13 years ago along with her husband…

Arab World Mourners react during the funeral of brothers Saqer and Moamen ‌Khalil Abu Karim, who were killed in an Israeli strike, according to medics, at Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al-Balah, in the central Gaza Strip, June 3, 2026. (Reuters)

Israeli Strikes Kill Three People in Gaza, Medics Say

Israeli strikes killed ‌three Palestinians in Gaza on Wednesday, health officials said, and the Palestinian group Hamas said an end to such attacks was…

Arab World This photograph taken from the southern Lebanese area of Marjeyoun shows smoke rising from the site of an Israeli strike that targeted the village of Arnoun on June 3, 2026. (AFP)

Netanyahu Says He and Trump Share Goal to Disarm Hezbollah, Demilitarize Lebanon

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Wednesday that he and US President Donald Trump are aligned on the goal of disarming Hezbollah in order to…

Arab World Lebanese soldiers gather near a car hit by an Israeli drone in the Khaldeh area at the southern entrance to Beirut, Lebanon, 03 June 2026. EPA/WAEL HAMZEH

Israel Carries Out Deadly Strikes Near Beirut, Across Southern Lebanon

Lebanon said an Israeli strike hit a target near Beirut on Wednesday while a medical source told AFP six people were killed as Israel pounded the country's…

Asharq Al Awsat (Beirut)
Arab World The Coordination Framework expressed its support for government efforts to impose state monopoly over weapons. (X)

Iraq Moving Forward with Imposing State Monopoly over Weapons

Iraq is stepping up its measures to impose state monopoly over weapons with some Shiite armed factions declaring that they were dismantling their military…

Fadhel al-Nashmi (Baghdad)
Arab World President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi stressed the centrality of coordination and consultation between Egypt and America (Egyptian Presidency)

Egypt Stresses Importance of Strengthening Political, Economic Ties with the US

President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi has stressed Cairo’s “appreciation for the strategic relations binding Egypt and the United States” and called for enhancing…

Asharq Al Awsat (Cairo)
Arab World Tunisia's Ennahdha party chief Rached Ghannouchi after leaving court. File photo

Tunisia: Ennahdha Leader Ghannouchi Handed Life Imprisonment

Several officials of Tunisia's Ennahdha party, including its chief Rached Ghannouchi, were handed jail sentences on Tuesday ranging from 10 years to life in…

Asharq Al Awsat (Tunis)
Arab World An aerial view from the window of a Lebanese Middle East Airlines (MEA) airplane shows smoke rising, after Israeli strikes following an escalation between Hezbollah and Israel, amid the US-Israeli conflict with Iran, in the southern suburbs of Beirut, Lebanon, March 12, 2026. (Reuters)

Lebanon Launches Safety Audit of Middle East Airlines Amid Pilot Groups’ Complaints

Lebanon's aviation regulator has launched a safety audit of Middle East Airlines (MEA) as pilot groups raised concerns that crews were being asked to fly close…

Arab World 01 June 2026, Syria, Deir Ezzor: A view of the war-damaged buildings in Deir Ezzor. (dpa)

Syria Hopes for Terrorism Delisting to Spur Economic Recovery

The Syrian government is betting that removal from Washington’s list of state sponsors of terrorism, a designation in place since 1979, will clear the biggest…

Souad Jarous (Damascus)
Arab World Members of the Iraqi Popular Mobilization Forces parade of the Asaib Ahl al-Haq, participate in a Quds Day march in Baghdad, Iraq, Friday, July 1, 2016. (AP)

Iraq’s Asaib Ahl Al-Haq Says It Will Start Handing Its Weapons to the State

One of Iraq’s most powerful Iran-backed armed groups said Tuesday it would begin putting its weapons under government control, a major step in the new…

Arab World  Rescue workers use excavators, as they search for victims under the rubble of a building that was hit Monday in an Israeli airstrike in the southern port city of Tyre, Lebanon, Tuesday, June 2, 2026. (AP)

Lebanon’s Berri to Guarantee Hezbollah Respect for ‘Global’ Truce with Israel, Says Adviser

Lebanese parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, a key Hezbollah ally, will guarantee the Iran-backed group's adherence to a "global ceasefire" with Israel, his…

Arab World Palestinians inspect a vehicle hit by an Israeli airstrike in Deir al-Balah, in the central Gaza Strip, Tuesday, June 2, 2026. (AP)

Israeli Fire Kills Three People in Gaza, Medics Say

Israeli ‌fire killed at least three Palestinians in separate incidents across the Gaza Strip on Tuesday, Gaza health officials said. Medics said at…

Arab World An Israeli strike hit near a hospital in south Lebanon's city of Tyre. KAWNAT HAJU / AFP

Israel Kills 8 in Lebanon, a Day After Trump Said Israel and Hezbollah Will De-Escalate

Israeli drone strikes on southern Lebanon on Tuesday killed eight people, including two children and their father, a day after US President Donald Trump said…

Asharq Al Awsat
Arab World Families leave Beirut’s southern suburbs after Netanyahu ordered strikes on the area in Lebanon (Asharq Al-Awsat) 

Lebanon Prioritizes Genuine Ceasefire, Ready to Consider a Security Agreement

For the second time, Lebanon’s negotiators are heading to Washington with one primary demand at the top of the agenda: a ceasefire with Israel. The second…

Thaer Abbas (Beirut)
Arab World Two Palestinian children walk through the site of an Israeli military strike on structures and tents housing displaced families, killing ten Palestinians, in Gaza City on May 28, 2026. (AFP)

Hamas to Hold New Talks with Gaza Mediators in Egypt

A Hamas delegation is due to meet with mediators in Egypt on Wednesday to discuss ways of advancing the fragile Gaza ceasefire, Hamas officials told AFP. …

Asharq Al Awsat (Cairo) Asharq Al Awsat (Gaza)
Arab World Israeli soldiers near Beaufort Castle inside Lebanese territory (Reuters).

‘A Temporary Tactical Gain’… Israelis Underestimate the Occupation of Beaufort Castle

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday saw the occupation of the Beaufort castle (Qalaat al-Shaqif), near the city of Nabatiyeh in South Lebanon,…

Nazir Magally
Arab World French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot (Reuters)

France FM: Nothing Can Justify Prolonged Israeli Occupation in Lebanon

France's foreign minister said Tuesday that nothing could justify Israeli troops remaining deep inside Lebanon, following the deepest incursion into Lebanese…

Asharq Al Awsat
Arab World Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi meets with US Embassy Chargé d'Affaires Joshua Harris on Sunday. (Prime Minister's press office)

Barrack’s Appointment May Intensify US Pressure on Iraq to Disarm Factions

The appointment of Tom Barrack as US presidential envoy to Iraq may lead to greater American pressure on Baghdad to meet its demand for the disarmament of…

Fadhel al-Nashmi (Baghdad)
Arab World UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres speaks during a press conference at Japan National Press Club in Tokyo, Japan, 20 May 2026. EPA/FRANCK ROBICHON

Guterres: Vital to Keep a UN Force in Lebanon after Current Peacekeepers Depart

UN chief Antonio Guterres said Monday that peacekeepers will be needed in Lebanon after the mandate of the current mission expires at year-end -- an option…

Asharq Al Awsat
Arab World US Army soldiers from the 5-20 Infantry Division take up positions to provide cover for fellow soldiers as part of the launch of Operation Arrowhead Strike Six in the Shaab neighborhood of northern Baghdad, 06 February 2007. (AFP)

A US Soldier and a British Soldier Die during Training in Iraq

One American soldier and one British soldier died during a training exercise in Iraq, US and UK officials said Monday without releasing further details. The…

Asharq Al Awsat
Arab World UNDOF soldiers in Saidah village in the southern Quneitra countryside. (SANA)

Israel Imposes 'Undeclared Buffer Zone' in Southern Syria

Israeli forces continued their nearly daily violations of Syria territory on Monday when an Israeli artillery shell landed near the village of al-Musayritiyah…

Souad Jarous (Damascus)