Tag Archives: Lebanon

US Preps Evacuation Of Citizens From Middle East

The Washington Post reports: The Biden administration is preparing for the possibility that hundreds of thousands of American citizens will require evacuation from the Middle East if the bloodshed in Gaza cannot be contained, according to four officials familiar with the U.S. government’s contingency planning. The specter of such an operation comes as Israeli forces, aided by U.S. weapons and …

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Israeli Shell Kills One Journalist, Wounds Six Others

The Associated Press reports: An Israeli shell landed in a gathering of international journalists covering clashes on the border in south Lebanon, killing one and leaving six others injured. An Associated Press photographer at the scene saw the body of the dead journalist and the six who were wounded, some of whom were rushed to hospitals in ambulances. Images from …

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Lebanon May Ban Barbie: It “Promotes Homosexuality”

Reuters reports: Lebanon’s culture minister moved to ban the film “Barbie” from cinemas, saying it “promotes homosexuality” and contradicts religious values. Minister Mohammad Mortada is backed by powerful Shi’ite armed group Hezbollah, whose head Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah has ramped up his rhetoric against the LGBT community, referring in a recent speech to Islamic texts that call for punishing offenders with …

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Lebanon Begins Lockdown After Cases Surge Post-Blast

The Washington Post reports: Lebanon started a two-week lockdown Friday as coronavirus cases continue to surge in the aftermath of the devastating Aug. 4 explosion in the capital of Beirut that killed more than 170 people and displaced hundreds of thousands of others. At least 11,000 coronavirus cases have been confirmed in Lebanon this year, with around half confirmed since …

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Lebanese PM And Government Resign After Blast

Gulf News reports: Lebanon’s Prime Minister Hassan Diab, submitted his resignation on Monday to Lebanese president Micheal Aoun since a deadly blast blamed on state negligence ripped through the capital. The explosion, along with a severe economic crisis, has been widely blamed on decades of corruption and misrule by Lebanon’s entrenched political class. Lebanon’s cabinet faced mounting pressure on Monday …

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World Leaders Pledge $300M To Aid Beirut [VIDEO]

Reuters reports: World leaders and international organizations pledged nearly $300 million in emergency humanitarian aid to Beirut in the wake of the devastating explosion, but they warned on Sunday that no money for rebuilding the Lebanese capital will be made available until the country’s authorities commit themselves to the political and economic reforms demanded by the people. Over 30 participants …

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Protesters Battle Beirut Police After Explosion [VIDEO]

The Washington Post reports: Security forces in Beirut fired tear gas at protest crowds as mourning turned to anger over the huge blast that leveled parts of Beirut earlier this week and left a shattered city casting blame on the country’s leaders. Activists have called for protests in the central Martyrs’ Square later Saturday in further evidence of the rage …

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Lebanon President Knew About Explosives Last Month

The Associated Press reports: Lebanese President Michel Aoun knew about the huge stockpile of explosive material stored at Beirut’s port nearly three weeks before it blew up, he said Friday, adding he had ordered action be taken about it at the time, although the top leader also said he had no authority over the facility. “Do you know how many …

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Beirut Crowds Mob French President As He Offers Help

CNN reports: Large crowds mobbed French President Emmanuel Macron in Beirut as he toured a neighborhood of the Lebanese capital devastated by Tuesday’s massive explosion. “Revolution, revolution!” people chanted, as shock at the devastation in the city gave way to anger on Thursday. New information reveals that Beirut officials had ignored repeated warnings about a stockpile of dangerous chemicals linked …

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Beirut Explosives Were Abandoned By Russian Owner

The Moscow Times reports: Nearly 3,000 tons of a highly explosive fertilizer that caused Tuesday’s devastating blast in Beirut came from a ship owned by a Russian businessman, the Mediazona news website reported Wednesday, citing Lebanese television and members of the ship’s crew. Lebanese authorities in 2014 confiscated 2,750 tons of ammonium nitrate from a Moldovan ship called the Rhosus, …

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Officials: Up To 300K Left Homeless In Beirut Explosion

Al Jazeera reports: Lebanese President Michel Aoun called for an emergency cabinet meeting on Wednesday and said a two-week state of emergency should be declared following a massive explosion in Beirut that killed at least 100 people and injured 4,000 others. The explosion on Tuesday sent shockwaves across the city, causing widespread damage as far as the outskirts of the …

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Pentagon Denies Trump’s Claim Of Beirut “Attack”

The Daily Beast reports: Pentagon officials have reportedly said that they have absolutely no idea what President Donald Trump was talking about when he described the gigantic and deadly Beirut explosion as a “terrible attack” carried out using a “bomb of some kind.” On Tuesday, hours after the explosion killed at least a hundred people and wounded thousands, Trump said: …

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Officials: Thousands Hurt, Dozens Dead In Beirut Blast

The BBC reports: A large blast in the Lebanese capital, Beirut, has killed at least 50 people and injured more than 2,700 others, the health minister says. It is not yet clear what caused the explosion. Videos show smoke billowing from a fire before the blast, which is followed by a mushroom cloud. Hospitals are said to be overwhelmed and …

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Massive Explosion Rocks Central Beirut [VIDEO]

The Guardian reports: A massive explosion has rocked central Beirut that shattered windows, knocked down doors and shook buildings several hundred feet away. The source of the blast, which appeared to occur around the Lebanese capital’s port, is unclear. An enormous cloud of smoke could be seen from across the city and witnesses said there were reports of a fire …

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Interpol Issues Warrant For Fugitive Ex-Nissan Boss

CNBC reports: Lebanon received an Interpol arrest warrant on Thursday for ousted Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn, a Lebanese judicial source told Reuters. The request, an Interpol red notice that calls on authorities to arrest a wanted person, was received by Lebanon’s internal security forces and has yet to be referred to the judiciary, the source said. Ghosn fled to Beirut …

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Ex-Nissan Boss: I Fled Japan’s Injustice, Discrimination

The Associated Press reports: Nissan’s former Chairman Carlos Ghosn said Tuesday from Lebanon that he was not fleeing justice but instead left Japan to avoid “injustice and political persecution” over financial misconduct allegations during his tenure leading the automaker. “I am now in Lebanon and will no longer be held hostage by a rigged Japanese justice system where guilt is …

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Lebanon Sees Riots Amid Economic Crisis [VIDEO]

The Associated Press reports: Lebanese security forces fired tear gas, rubber bullets and water cannons Sunday to disperse hundreds of protesters for a second straight day, ending what started as a peaceful rally in defiance of the toughest crackdown on anti-government demonstrations in two months. The violence comes on the eve of a meeting between the president and parliamentary blocs …

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US Quietly Releases $100M In Withheld Aid To Lebanon

The Associated Press reports: The Trump administration has quietly released more than $100 million in military assistance to Lebanon after months of unexplained delay that led some lawmakers to compare it to the aid for Ukraine at the center of the impeachment inquiry. The $105 million in Foreign Military Financing funds for the Lebanese Armed Forces was released just before …

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LEBANON: Government Blocks Access To Grindr

The Independent reports: The gay dating app Grindr has been blocked for most users in Lebanon, sparking concern over a widening crackdown on the LGBT+ community in the country. The social networking app, which connects users based on their location, went offline for users of the state-owned internet service provider over the weekend and has been unusable since. The local …

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LIVE VIDEO: Trump Holds Presser With Lebanese PM

CBS News reports: During President Trump’s joint news conference with Lebanese Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri Tuesday, there are a number of issues he may be asked about, including his relationship with Attorney General Jeff Sessions, as well as the health care bill which is being considered in the Senate. Mr. Trump and Hariri are meeting about fighting terrorism, the economy …

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