Israel says it has launched first stages of Operation Gideon’s Chariots and moves to seize territory, Palestinians commemorate the Nakba’s 77th anniversary amidst starvation, mass exodus and ongoing bombings, Trump lifts US sanctions on Syria and meets al-Sharaa in Riyadh during the first foreign tour of his second term, The Arab League summit meets in Baghdad, with Aoun, al-Sharaa and bin Salman missing, Municipal elections continue in Beirut and the Beqaa Valley, as candidatures close in the South and Nabatieh governorates, Pope Leo XIV assures President Aoun of continued efforts for peace in Lebanon and the region, Donald Trump concludes his four-day tour in the Gulf with dizzying investment pledges, UN announces conference on two-state solution from June 17 to 20 in New York, Israeli strikes target UNIFIL base in south Lebanon, Residents of Bint Jbeil’s village condemned repeated violations by UNIFIL, Cabinet reassigns North Lebanon governor and appoints CDR president, Lebanese Army arrests 86 people for celebratory gunfire during the elections, Fadlallah denies Hezbollah role in Beirut airport gold smuggling attempt, Lebanon to receive forest fire management support from UN, World Bank announces resumption of aid programs in Syria, Syria intends to have a newly-designed currency printed in the UAE and Germany instead of Russia, Trump says Iran “has the American administration’s proposal and knows it needs to move quickly”, Yemen’s Ansar Allah reports Israeli strikes on Hodeida port after evacuation order, Sudan’s army and RSF militia enter bone-breaking phase in Nyala and Port Sudan
On Sunday, May 18, Lebanese citizens from three governorates – Baalbek-Hermel, the Beqaa Valley, and the capital, Beirut – headed to the polls to elect municipal councils and mukhtars, the local representatives of their towns and villages. In Beirut alone, the municipal council comprises 24 members.
This third and largest phase of the municipal elections followed earlier rounds in Mount Lebanon, the North, and Akkar, involving – in theory – over a million eligible voters. But while low turnout in Beirut came as no surprise, reflecting a longstanding detachment from local politics, participation in the Beqaa and Baalbek-Hermel exceeded expectations and surpassed that of the capital. By the time the polls closed at 7 pm, turnout was about 45 percent in the two Beqaa governorates, and 21 percent in Beirut – with the highest participation recorded in Mazraa polling stations at 26%. The attendance in the capital, albeit law, did not go far from the 20 percent of 2016: and even though many things have happened since then – the thawra, the Port blast, frozen bank accounts, and the destructive war between Israel and Hezbollah – the indifference of Beirutis to local politics has been reconfirmed.
The elections were awaited as a popularity test for Sunni, Christian and Shiite political actors: in Beirut, particularly, the prolonged absence of the main Sunni leader, Saad Hariri, and his Future Movement made the competition uncertain, with the preservation of the Islamic-Christian parity within the municipal council – granted by the ‘Beirut Btejmaana’ list – threatened by a tending convergence of voters towards the heads of lists, especially within the Sunni community, now headless. Unlike the parliamentary election which has sectarian quotas and is based on a proportional representation system, in fact, the electoral law that governs the municipal vote is majoritarian, meaning the winning candidate list takes all in the council, except in some instances.
Yet it seems that once again the ruling élites’ list succeeded. News reports on Monday indicated that after most polling stations were counted, the results in the Beirut municipality showed a victory for the Lebanese Forces and Fouad Makhzoumi, with a parity between 12 Christian and 12 Muslim members.
Caught between widespread disillusionment and the enduring grip of traditional political forces, independent candidates found it difficult to break through. Unlike the major parties, with their well-oiled electoral machines and dominant presence, the campaign of the reformist ‘Beirut Madinati’ list – which included several younger candidates and 13 women and 11 men – has remained modest, at times nearly invisible amid a political landscape still largely controlled by establishment heavyweights such as the Free Patriotic Movement, the Lebanese Forces, Kataeb, Hezbollah, and Amal.
In the Beqaa, then, the battle between different poles in Zahle was also expected to be tight, while in Baalbek civil society dared to challenge – despite incidents that saw its banners torn down and reports of its candidates and supporters intimidated or threatened – the electoral stronghold imposed by the Amal-Hezbollah tandem. However, the participation rate in the Valley was much higher, and so was the incident rate. In Zahle, it was set to be a tight race between the Lebanese Forces and Myriam Skaff’s Popular Bloc and its allies – which ended up in the victory of Geagea -, and in the city of Baalbek, the ‘Baalbeck Madinati’ list – supported by the ‘change’ camp and notably relying on the support of dissident Shiites, but also the city’s other communities, Christians and Sunnis – challenged the victorious Shiite duo. Only in Rashaya, according to preliminary figures, Walid Joumblatt’s Progressive Socialist Party won.
But yesterday’s voting did not go smoothly. Military intelligence raided a Hezbollah campaign office in Maallaqa, in Zahle district, amid suspicions of vote-buying, with the operation resulting in several injuries, including two military personnel. Shots fired by unknown individuals were also reported in West Beqaa’s Kamed al-Loz village – despite the Army’s warnings against firing celebratory shots under penalty of legal action – targeting the campaign team of a local list, with one person minorly injured.
Waiting to vote in a destroyed south
At the same time, nominations for the two governorates of South Lebanon and Nabatieh officially closed from Tuesday night to Wednesday, as the fourth phase of municipal elections is scheduled for Saturday, May 24, following Mount Lebanon on May 4, North Lebanon on May 11, and Beirut and the Beqaa Valley yesterday. This penultimate electoral phase is all the more important because the southern regions, traditionally strongholds of the Amal movement and Hezbollah, were the scene of the destructive war in 2023-2024 between Hezbollah and Israel, and are still targeted by Israeli strikes despite the ceasefire came into effect on November 27.
With the deadline for candidate submissions now passed, contenders have a brief window to withdraw their names before the official announcement of municipal councils elected by acclamation – some of which have already been confirmed in the southern regions.
In the Nabatieh governorate, which encompasses the districts of Bint Jbeil and Marjayoun, a total of 918 candidates will vie for municipal seats, alongside 308 candidates for the mukhtar positions across 40 towns and villages. The final day of registration alone saw a surge of activity, with 203 municipal and 57 mukhtar applications submitted – highlighting a notable degree of engagement in this electoral round. In Bint Jbeil district specifically, municipal candidacies totaled 787, with 343 more for mukhtar roles.
In the Tyre district, candidate registration closed with 1,152 individuals running for municipal positions. Meanwhile, several local councils in the area were formed uncontested, with acclamations confirmed in villages such as Arzoun, al-Bass, Rashidieh, al-Hennieh, al-Zaloutieh, al-Kneisseh, Baflay, Bethtiyat, Derdghaya, Shabriha, the Orthodox neighborhood in Tyre, Mahrouneh, Nafakhiyeh, and Wadi Jilo.
Despite mounting concerns over security, Lebanese authorities appear determined to move forward with the municipal elections in the south. Persistent Israeli strikes on border villages and ongoing delays in reconstruction efforts following the Israeli military campaign last September have cast doubt on the feasibility of holding the vote in several southern areas. Many villages remain in ruins, and daily bombardments continue to threaten civilian life.
Yet, with election day fast approaching, officials are holding firm. “Postponing the elections is not an option,” Interior Minister Ahmad Hajjar declared. Authorities are reportedly weighing contingency plans, including the possibility of setting up polling stations in relatively ‘safe’ zones to ensure residents of high-risk border areas can cast their ballots. Still, officials at the Grand Serail pushed back on speculation about such measures. “We have not received any such warning,” said a source close to Prime Minister Nawaf Salam. The source, however, stopped short of offering any assurances regarding the risk of Israeli attacks during the vote.
An ongoing catastrophe
Meanwhile, on Thursday, Palestinians in Gaza relived – more than commemorated – the 77th anniversary since the Nakba, the forced displacement in 1948 of nearly 760,000 people by Zionist militias, massacring and pillaging in British mandatory Palestine, after which Israel declared its independence. It coincided with looming Israeli threats to invade Gaza’s entirety – the first moves of Operation Gideon’s Chariots – after already occupying more than half its territory, and to massively displace its population.
It is a truism: we all thought so, on May 15 this year, that ‘the catastrophe’ is not an event – not a commemoration, not a stone, still, of history – but a process, and a worsening one. What is new is the specter, the horror of mathematical counting tools, of continuous digital, mediatic supervision. On Saturday, 150 Palestinians were killed in just 24 hours. A bomb falls every four minutes, in Gaza: a territory barely 45 square kilometers in area, where two million people do not live, but scramble to survive. Clinging to the earth, when the buildings don’t collapse – and to the air, when they try to get out of the rubble. Since Israel has banned the entry of rescue vehicles and materials, the Civil Defense has been using plastic shovels to dig, crowbars to pry, and arms to grab for signs of life in the rubble.
By late Sunday morning, the number of victims had already risen by another 125. And the date from which to start the count is constantly changing: UNICEF, for example, published the number of children killed since 19 March: more than 950, to be added to the 20 thousand ones counted dead from October 7. The new starting point – the beginning of the new phase of the war, before the holy month of Ramadan came to an end, and after, for just two months, eating, washing, moving, in Gaza, had become thinkable again. Possible to walk – without thinking of stepping on one’s own possible blood, the following day. This is how the tens of thousands of displaced Palestinians appeared as they crossed, on foot, the so-called ‘Netzarim Corridor’ to their homes in the north of the Strip: they were returning.
A call for that return was written by Ruwaida Amer, journalist for Al-Jazeera, in her article, a memoir, about being born Palestinian, discovering herself a refugee, having loved the camp, dreamt of the land. Listening to her grandparents’ stories about torture – and reliving it; about death – and facing its constant threat; about the desperate search for a sack of flour – and seeing it unfolding before her same eyes: in Shujaiya, among the mangled bodies of two young men next to the supplies they had managed to scavenge.
“The Nakba. It’s a concept that accompanied me from birth until I lived through it myself these past two years,” she wrote. “I was born a refugee in the Khan Younis camp, known by the city’s residents as the largest gathering of refugees expelled from their lands during the Nakba, when Israel was founded in 1948. Whenever someone asked me my name, it was always followed by: ‘Are you a refugee or a citizen?’ As a child, I would ask: ‘What is a refugee?’.” The answer would have come a few lines later: “Since I realized what it meant to be called a refugee and learned I had a homeland, I’ve been dreaming of returning. This pain, we can never forget it. I still remember the camp and my life there.”
And in the same hours when Zvi Sukkot, an Israeli deputy of the Religious Zionist party, declared in a television interview: ‘Everyone has got used to the fact that a hundred Gazans can be killed in one night, no one in the world cares’ – Ruwaida was able to think about the future: to the day when the genocide of today will be given a definitive starting point – an act of writing history that necessitates, by force, its end – and wondered, what year will be chosen to commemorate our catastrophe, what date, month or season. “It was nice that the commemoration falls in May, with good weather,” she wrote, going back in her memory to the first reports he wrote, from Khan Younis, every May 15, since 2015. “Elderly men and women sat by their doors, just as my grandmother did when I was a child. I used to love sitting with her; she seemed used to open spaces, like her pre-1948 home in Beit Daras.” And thinking of herself as an old woman – hence: a survivor – talking to her grandchildren about the life of before, about the food grown and eaten, about the heartbreak of not being able to return – she turned this horror, for a moment, into the past. Imagining tomorrow’s commemoration of villages, families, dances, and food – she sanctioned the end of destruction, loneliness, of funeral songs, and hunger.
In Lebanon
Aoun, Baghdad and the Vatican: For the first time in Lebanon’s history, the President of the Republic skipped an Arab League summit, despite having made Arab reintegration a priority, marking a notable shift in Beirut’s diplomatic engagement. While Lebanon will still be officially represented, with Prime Minister Nawaf Salam and Foreign Minister Joe Raggi attending, President Aoun’s absence has raised eyebrows and fueled speculation.
Some observers believe the snub may be linked to recent backlash in Iraq over Aoun’s recent public criticism of the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF). Last month, in an interview with Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, Aoun said Lebanon was seeking to disarm Hezbollah, not turn it into a Lebanese version of the PMF, whose incorporation into the Iraqi military apparatus had made it arguably more powerful than Iraq’s army. The remarks sparked anger in Iraq, leading to the summoning of Lebanon’s ambassador to Baghdad.
However, Aoun’s office insisted his absence was due solely to a prior commitment to attend the inauguration Mass of Pope Leon XIV at the Vatican on Sunday.
Diplomatic sources suggested one possible reason for President Aoun’s absence was that he had not yet made an official visit to Iraq, which is often seen as a diplomatic step before attending high-level summits there. While not a strict requirement, Aoun previously skipped such a visit before attending the Arab emergency summit in Cairo this past March, he may now be choosing to follow protocol.
Before any trip to Baghdad, however, Aoun is expected to travel to Cairo on Monday, May 19, for talks with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi.
Sources familiar with the matter said a visit to Iraq was being planned as a gesture of goodwill and to acknowledge Iraq’s continued support for Lebanon, especially its fuel shipments that have helped ease the country’s energy crisis, and the welcoming of thousands of displaced Lebanese during Israel’s aggression last fall. But the Lebanese President is not the only prominent leader missing from the Baghdad summit: Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Syria’s President Ahmed al-Sharaa were also not attending.
By the Pope: On Sunday, Pope Leo XIV told Lebanese President Joseph Aoun and First Lady Neemat Aoun after the inaugural mass of his reign that he continues to “work for peace in Lebanon and the region.” The head of state and his wife briefly spoke with Pope Prevost – the first north-American in history – after attending a religious service in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican, the President’s office said in a statement. President Joseph Aoun invited the pontiff to visit Lebanon, telling him: “We highly appreciate your declaration to do everything necessary for peace in Lebanon.”
The Pope responded that he was praying “for the security and stability of Lebanon and the happiness of its people,” and that he would continue to “work for peace in Lebanon and the region.”
On May 14, during a meeting with representatives of Eastern Churches at the Vatican, Pope Leo XIV reaffirmed his desire to “do everything possible to spread peace from the Holy Land to Ukraine, from Lebanon to Syria, from the Middle East to Tigray and the Caucasus.” “War is never inevitable; weapons can and must be silenced, for they do not solve problems; they only aggravate them,” he said.
In the mass, Pope Leo XIV set the tone for his papacy on Sunday by denouncing economic systems that exploit the planet and marginalize the poor, speaking before tens of thousands of people and several world leaders at his inaugural mass. Ten days after his election, he delivered a message focused on peace, unity and social justice in a multilingual, high-security ceremony attended by an estimated 200,000 people, according to Italian authorities. Dignitaries present included US Vice President J.D. Vance and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
Keep on striking: An Israeli drone strike killed a man identified by Hezbollah as one of its members after striking a vehicle driving in Nabatieh in the morning of Wednesday, May 14. The same day, the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) reported that Israeli fire hit one of its bases, describing it as the fourth incident of the past weeks, including the harassment of peacekeepers with lasers and drone overflights.
The peacekeeping force said that in recent days, it also “observed other aggressive behavior by the Israeli army towards peacekeepers performing operational activities in accordance with Security Council Resolution 1701. “Yesterday, UNIFIL peacekeepers performing a patrol with the Lebanese Army near Maroun al-Ras reported being targeted by a laser from a nearby Israeli army position. In another incident south of Alma al-Shaab on May 7, laser beams were pointed towards a UNIFIL patrol from two Israeli Merkava tanks. As the patrol began to move, a drone flew approximately five meters above it, following the patrol for about a kilometer. Separately, on the same day, an aerial vehicle repeatedly flew over a UNIFIL position east of Houla,” a statement released by the UN Force read.
UN positions repeatedly came under fire during wartime, including strikes, attributed by UNIFIL to Israeli aggression, that injured peacekeepers and damaged infrastructure.
The ceasefire agreement ended 13 months of war, the last two months of which were marked by a heavy bombing campaign and ground invasion by Israel. According to the terms of the agreement, the Israeli army was supposed to have completed its withdrawal from southern Lebanon by January 26, where only the Lebanese Army and UN peacekeepers were to be deployed. But despite the truce, Israeli troops continue to occupy five positions in Lebanese territory and its air force carries out near-daily strikes against Lebanon, claiming to target infrastructure or Hezbollah members.
Israel’s post-truce attacks have killed more than 150 people, mostly in drone-strike assassinations but also through airstrikes and close-range gunfire. Israel claims to be intervening against Hezbollah’s alleged attempt to rearm and the Lebanese state’s inability to prevent it. The Lebanese Army and the UNIFIL, however, have announced the dismantling of hundreds of Hezbollah’s former military positions in southern Lebanon. At the same time, Lebanon’s President formalized plans to disarm the party by the end of the year.
Villagers against UNIFIL: Residents of Bint Jbeil district’s Jmaijmeh village condemned what they called “repeated violations by UNIFIL,” accusing the peacekeeping force of “entering the area without Lebanese Army coordination and trespassing on private property.” The allegations came in the wake of a confrontation on Friday morning in which UNIFIL said its patrol was “attacked by civilians armed with metal sticks and axes.”
According to a statement released by Jmaijmeh residents: “Following repeated violations by UNIFIL forces, who entered the Jmaijmeh hills for the second time without coordination with the Lebanese Army and trespassed on private property, the residents rushed to inspect their lands and requested that the UNIFIL forces withdraw and refrain from further incursions. However, UNIFIL personnel began arguing with the residents,” the statement continues, “throwing tear gas canisters at them and opening fire. Several injuries were reported as a result of the tear gas.”
UNIFIL, in its own statement, acknowledged that its troops had not been accompanied by the Lebanese Army, but it still insisted that the patrol had in fact been planned with the army’s cooperation. The statement, also released on Friday morning, described the patrol as routine operational activity between the villages of Jmaijmeh and Khirbat Silm, both in Bint Jbeil district, and said this time “it was confronted by a large group of individuals in civilian clothing,” who “attempted to block the patrol using aggressive means, including metal sticks and axes, resulting in damage to UNIFIL vehicles. Fortunately, no injuries were reported.”
UNIFIL confirmed that the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) were immediately informed and promptly arrived at the scene, subsequently escorting the patrol back to base. The peacekeeping mission emphasized that the patrol had been pre-planned and coordinated with the LAF.
On the previous Sunday, dozens of residents of Yater, in Bint Jbeil, expressed their discontent against UNIFIL soldiers, accusing them of operating without being accompanied by the Lebanese Army.
Reassigned: Cabinet decided during a session on Wednesday, May 14, presided over by President Aoun, to remove the governor of North Lebanon, Ramzi Nohra, from his position and reassign him to another yet-to-be-determined position within the Ministry of Interior. The day before, Lebanese election watchdog LADE called for the annulment of Tripoli’s municipal council and mokhtar election over “serious irregularities.”
The move, celebrated by Tripoli residents who took to the streets upon hearing the news, comes two days after Nohra and Interior Minister Ahmad al-Hajjar clashed during a press conference given at the end of election day in the North on Sunday. Nohra reportedly interrupted Hajjar while the former was speaking to the media, pushing back at Hajjar’s statements, which prompted a complaint to be filed against him.
Gunfire forbidden: In this regard, the Lebanese Army announced the arrest of 86 individuals who are suspected of firing their guns in the air while celebrating the results of the municipal elections, held throughout the country since the beginning of May. Two people were wounded by stray bullets last Sunday, May 11, one of whom was a journalist and the other, a young man who was in critical condition after being hit.
The army announced the arrests in a statement on Friday, noting that it “continues to monitor the security situation and carry out raids to arrest those responsible and refer them to the competent judiciary.” Those arrested had weapons and ammunition in their possession, which the army said it had seized.
The army said it would “not hesitate to pursue and arrest all those involved across all Lebanese territories,” and reiterated its warnings against firing celebratory shots, “under penalty of legal action.” All firearm permits in the governorates of Beirut, Bekaa, and Baalbek-Hermel have been suspended from May 17 until May 20, covering the day leading up to and the two days following the May 18 election day in those governorates. The army has also deployed special units ahead of these elections, it stated, to “implement exceptional security measures,” which include setting up temporary checkpoints and conducting patrols “with the aim of maintaining security and stability during the electoral process and preventing incidents.”
The Army Command called on citizens to cooperate with these measures to safeguard their security and safety, and to maintain an atmosphere of “freedom and democracy” at the ballot boxes. It also urged them to report any attempts to disrupt security to the nearest military post or by contacting the Army Command Operations Room at 117.
On Thursday, Parliament adopted a text to double the penalties against ‘celebratory’ shootings had been presented by MP Achraf Baydoun, and amended Law No. 71 of Oct. 27, 2016, which criminalizes this kind of shootings, by increasing the penalties incurred. Although illegal, in fact, celebratory shootings are very common in Lebanon. The 2016 law punishes shooters with prison sentences ranging from six months to three years, and 10 years’ hard labor plus a fine if the shooting results in death. Despite these measures, the practice persists: according to the Beirut-based research center Information International, between 2010 and 2021, stray bullets caused an average of seven deaths and 15 injuries per year.
The Cabinet meets: Cabinet also appointed Mohammed Kabbani as head of the Council for Development and Reconstruction (CDR) during its Wednesday session. The appointment of the three members of the CDR was postponed to a future session.
Founder and current CEO of KC Engineering & Industry in Lebanon and Algeria – a Lebanese company specializing in the distribution and transmission of electrical power for industrial, commercial, and residential sectors throughout the Middle East and Africa -, Kabbani is a Lebanese engineer specializing in the electricity and energy sectors with over 37 years of experience in large multinational companies in Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, and Saudi Arabia. A former student of the French Protestant College, he studied in the United States, graduating in electrical engineering from George Washington University before obtaining a Master’s in the same specialty from Cornell University.
During the same session, the Cabinet also officially extended the mandate of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), which expires on August 31, 2025, and approved a request from the Ministry of Labor to determine the contributions of Lebanese journalists to the National Social Security Fund (NSSF).
At the same time, it approved the request from the Ministry of Education to allow Lebanese students studying abroad, as well as Syrian and other nationality students, to take official exams in 2025 under certain conditions. It also approved the Higher Relief Committee’s request to modify the use of the Treasury advance granted under Decree 14056 and to provide housing allowances.
Involvement denied: In a speech delivered from the parliament on Wednesday, Hezbollah MP Hassan Fadlallah denied Hezbollah’s involvement in a recent gold smuggling attempt through the Beirut airport, as reported on Sunday by The Wall Street Journal (WSJ). “We categorically deny any connection between Hezbollah and an attempt to smuggle gold through Beirut International Airport and call on the concerned authorities to announce to the public all the details about this information,” Fadlallah said according to Hezbollah’s television station Al Manar.
Citing a senior security official, American newspaper WSJ reported on Saturday that Lebanese security recently foiled an attempt to smuggle more than 50 pounds of gold to Hezbollah through the airport – after the Shia party has repeatedly been accused of attempting to smuggle funds through the airport, notably leading the Lebanese state to ban flights from Iran after Israel threatened to strike the country’s sole civil aviation facility. On February 17, Lebanon announced the indefinite extension of the suspension of flights to and from Iran after having refused to grant landing permits for two flights of Mahan Air due to Israeli threats to bomb Beirut airport. These bans provoked demonstrations by Hezbollah supporters, who blocked the road leading to the airport. At the end of February, moreover, a suitcase containing $2.5 million in cash was confiscated from a man arriving from Turkey, in the first seizure of its kind, according to a security source quoted by Reuters.
“I emphasize our keenness on the security of the airport and applying the laws to everyone and providing a safe environment for this vital facility, and we contributed significantly in helping the security authorities to complete this task,” Fadlallah added.
Hezbollah’s military and financial situation has significantly deteriorated after the fall in December 2024 of Bashar al-Assad’s regime in Syria, his ally, which cut the direct supply line between Tehran and the party. Supply difficulties have been exacerbated by the Lebanese authorities’ reinforced control of land, sea, and air borders following the election of President Joseph Aoun in January and the formation of a new Lebanese cabinet headed by Prime Minister Nawaf Salam in February.
Combating forest fires: Lebanon has signed an agreement with the United Nations to receive support in fighting forest fires and integrating sustainable forest management practices ahead of the summer season, which is often and increasingly marked by uncontrollable fires.
According to the state-run National News Agency, the Ministry of Environment and the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) signed an agreement under the “Community-based Wildfire Risk Management in Lebanon’s Vulnerable Landscapes” project, which was approved in October 2024. The project is managed by the World Bank and funded by a $3.48 million grant from the Global Environment Facility (GEF).
As part of the agreement, UNOPS will support first responders by providing critical equipment, vehicles and communication systems for early warning and rapid response, NNA reports, and help establish joint local operations centers for coordinating fire response efforts. In parallel, technical support will be provided to conduct biodiversity assessments, develop forest and wildfire management plans, and support sustainable forest management practices.
UNOPS representative and Amman Director Mohammed Othman is cited as saying that the agreement will also include working toward the conservation of Lebanon’s forests – which are threatened by logging, fires, and developments – through policy work, cross-sector collaboration and investments in forest management.
In The Region
Assault in expansion: Last Wednesday, May 14, marked 77 years since the forced displacement of nearly 760,000 Palestinians by Zionist militias, massacring and pillaging in British mandatory Palestine, after which Israel declared ‘independence.’ The commemoration – globally known as al-Nakba, the catastrophe, and fallen on May 15 – coincided with looming Israeli threats to invade Gaza’s entirety – after already occupying more than half its territory – and to massively displace its population, potentially materializing “within days,” Israel’s premier said on Tuesday.
During the same day, Israel bombed Jabalia refugee camp, in northern Gaza, killing 25 people among those who had been sheltering there, having been forced from their homes by the war. Four other strikes hit Khan Younis, in the enclave’s south, as the international community continued voicing concern about the famine imposed by Israel’s aid blockade. Later the same evening, Israel threatened impending heavy bombardments on Gaza City.
Within a few days from the tragic commemoration, the Israeli military spokesperson has announced that occupation forces in Gaza have begun the first moves of ‘Operation Gideon’s Chariots’. They have mobilized to occupy territory and expand their assault in an effort to achieve their purported war goals. This comes as Israel has killed at least 115 of Palestinians in less than 24 hours, on Friday, May 16 – another 150 on Saturday – and continues to indiscriminately bombard the Strip.
Only in the morning of Sunday, May 18, Israeli airstrikes killed at least 125 Palestinians, including 36 in the so-called ‘safe zone’ of al-Mawasi, and 43 in the heavily-bombarded northern parts of Gaza. Three journalists were also among the victims. Horrific verified videos from the scene showed many bodies, including some on fire, with the dead and wounded taken to a nearby field hospital and the Nasser Medical Complex. However, Gaza’s Ministry of Health announced in a statement on Sunday that the Israeli army had laid siege to the Indonesian Hospital in the northern Strip, meaning that “a state of panic and confusion has prevailed among patients, the wounded, and medical staff” as a result of the attacks, hindering medical care with very limited resources still available, the statement added.
The death toll has been rising sharply in the past five days, with hundreds massacred as the Israeli military prepares to significantly intensify its ground invasion of the Palestinian territory despite international criticism.
From its side, Hamas said in a statement early on Sunday that the attacks on displaced Palestinians in Khan Younis marked a “brutal crime” that was a flagrant violation of international laws and norms. “By granting the terrorist occupation government political and military cover, the United States administration bears direct responsibility for this insane escalation in the targeting of innocent civilians in the Gaza Strip, including children, women, and the elderly,” the Palestinian group said.
A new proposal: On Sunday, May 18, Israeli and Hamas representatives joined mediators for truce talks in Doha, Qatar, a day after Israel’s push to occupy the enclave began with barreling airstrikes that have since killed more than 200 people. US Envoy Steve Witkoff presented Israel and Hamas with a revised proposal for a Gaza truce agreement, urging both sides to agree to the deal, an Israeli official and a source familiar with the matter told Axios.
Witkoff’s updated proposal reportedly offers the release of 10 hostages in exchange for a 45-60 day cease-fire and the freeing of Palestinian prisoners, similar to previous deals. However, it includes new language ensuring that the ceasefire would mark the start of a broader peace process, with safeguards to prevent Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu from ending the ceasefire unilaterally as he did in March.
Also in the evening of Sunday, Netanyahu’s office announced that his cabinet decided to immediately resume “entry of a basic amount of food for the population in order to prevent the development of a famine crisis in the Gaza Strip.” The statement added that a humanitarian crisis would endanger the Israeli offensive on Gaza. According to Axios, the aid would include food and medicine.
In the occupied West Bank: Meanwhile, the Israeli army has continued its raids, demolitions and displacements in Tulkarem and Nur Shams refugee camps in the north of the occupied West Bank, according to the Wafa news agency. In the past week, Israeli troops demolished at least 20 buildings there, the report said. The Israeli army also continues to tighten restrictions, preventing Palestinians from moving in and out of the two refugee camps and returning to their homes, it added.
Since late February, the Israeli army has conducted a large-scale military offensive across the occupied West Bank, focusing on Jenin, Tulkarem and Nur Shams. Since then, some 40,000 Palestinians remain displaced in the north of the territory, according to the UN.
UN and the two-state solution: The international conference announced by France and Saudi Arabia to revive efforts for a peaceful resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict – centered on the two-state solution – will take place June 17–20 in New York, a French diplomatic source said Friday. The conference will be organized by the UN General Assembly and co-chaired by France and Saudi Arabia, a French diplomat told AFP on condition of anonymity.
A source close to the preparatory work said the event aims to “announce rapid, irreversible actions with deadlines” to broaden recognition of Palestine as a full member state.
Palestine is currently recognized by nearly 150 countries and holds observer status at the United Nations. However, full membership remains blocked without a favorable vote at the Security Council. In May 2024, Ireland, Norway and Spain recognized Palestine, followed by Slovenia in June. France and most Western nations have not yet taken that step.
French President Emmanuel Macron announced in April his intention to convene the conference to encourage a wave of new recognitions of Palestine – and to push for reciprocal recognition of Israel by countries that have yet to do so.
In 2020, the Abraham Accords, brokered by then-US President Donald Trump, led to the normalization of relations between Israel and three Arab nations: the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Morocco. But several Arab states – including Saudi Arabia, Syria and Lebanon – have so far declined to join the process. Since Israel launched the brutal onslaught in Gaza following Hamas’ October 7 attacks, Saudi Arabia has ruled out normalization with Israel without the establishment of a sovereign and viable Palestinian state – a prospect firmly opposed by the government of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Trump’s Gulf tour: US President Donald Trump concluded on Friday a Gulf tour in Abu Dhabi that has seen the securing of multi-billion-dollar deals, a $1.4 trillion investment pledge from the UAE, as well as historic overtures to Syria and renewed optimism over an Iran nuclear deal.
On his first foreign tour of his second term, Trump oversaw a $200 billion order from Qatar Airways for Boeing jets and a $600 billion investment from Saudi Arabia, including nearly $142 billion in weapons, which the White House described as the largest-ever arms deal. The American President also expressed optimism over reaching a new agreement with Iran over its nuclear programme, and in a seismic diplomatic shift, decided to lift decades-long sanctions on Syria.
In Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, Trump was greeted with lavish welcomes and hailed the three Arab leaders. He said that he and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman “liked each other a lot” – in sharp contrast with the frosty Saudi-US relations that marked the start of Joe Biden’s term.
In addition, UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed lauded a strong partnership between the two countries that grew under Trump’s leadership when he vowed to invest $1.4 trillion in the US economy over 10 years. On Friday morning, Trump attended a business roundtable and later toured the Abrahamic Family House, a complex opened in 2023 and housing a mosque, a church and the country’s first official synagogue with the aim of promoting interfaith co-existence in the Muslim nation. In 2020, in fact, the UAE normalised ties with Israel as part of the US-brokered Abraham Accords under Trump’s first administration, which also saw Israel establish diplomatic ties with Bahrain and Morocco. On Thursday, Trump held talks with his counterpart, President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, after touring the opulent Sheikh Zayed Grand mosque.
Earlier in the trip, the White House said that Saudi company DataVolt will invest $20 billion in artificial intelligence-related sites in the United States, while tech firms including Google will invest in both countries. On the same matter, English-language Emirati newspaper The National has reported that the US and UAE were working on announcing an AI and tech partnership during Trump’s visit. As the UAE is seeking to become a leader in technology and especially artificial intelligence to help diversify its oil-reliant economy, on Friday, Trump announced that the two countries had agreed to create a path for Abu Dhabi to buy some of the most advanced artificial intelligence semiconductors from US companies.
Trump also became the first US president in 25 years to meet a Syrian leader, Ahmed al-Sharaa, after removing sanctions on the war-torn country following appeals from Saudi Arabia’s Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
There was, however, no announcement of a breakthrough on the Gaza war, which Qatar has been a key mediator, with Trump repeating claims that Washington should ‘take’ Gaza and turn it into a ‘freedom zone’. But Trump said a deal was close on Iran’s nuclear program that would avert military action, sending oil prices tumbling. He said the trip had resulted in securing trillions of dollars, but the Gulf leaders’ largesse also stirred controversy, with Qatar offering Trump a luxury aircraft ahead of his visit for presidential and then personal use, in what Trump’s Democratic opponents charged was blatant corruption.
Syria’s sanctions and the Abraham Accords: Syria’s interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa, according to a statement from his American counterpart Donald Trump, answered a proposal to join the Abraham Accords once the country’s situation is “resolved” with, “yes, but we have a lot of work to do.” The meeting in Saudi Arabia, initially announced by Washington as brief and informal, actually lasted about thirty minutes, specifically from 10:07 to 10:40 local time, according to the White House. According to the official Turkish news agency, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan joined the conversation online. Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman also participated, according to a photo published by the official Saudi news agency, which shows a handshake between the American president and the new Syrian head of state.
The meeting in Riyadh came a day after Trump announced the lifting of decade-old sanctions targeting the Assad regime, ahead of talks joining both leaders with Turkey’s president. Since the blitz ouster of former President Bashar al-Assad, Syria’s new authorities have made promises of equitable governance in an attempt to rekindle international ties atrophied by the previous regime, holding strong to their promise of fairness and denouncing waves of sectarian violence targeting Alawite and Druze community members in Syria over the past months.
Trump stated that this strong gesture would “give Syria a chance for greatness,” alluding to his famous slogan ‘Make America Great Again.’ Syrian diplomacy rejoiced, calling it a “decisive turning point,” after the European Union, the United Kingdom, and Canada had already eased their own sanction regimes, and Sharaa met with France’s president during his first trip to Europe last week.
This reversal could have been facilitated by Trump’s regional partners. On the previous Sunday, Sharaa notably spoke by phone with the Crown Prince and de facto ruler of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman, as well as with the Emirati president, Mohammad bin Zayed, who in turn hosted Trump on Thursday. The next day, the Republican billionaire stated to the press that he might relax punitive measures taken against Damascus, adding that the Turkish president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, had recently asked him about the issue.
At the same time, the World Bank (WB) announced on Friday the relaunch of its aid programs in Syria following the payment by Saudi Arabia and Qatar of a remaining debt of $15.5 million owed by the country to the institution. WB specified in a statement that its first program will focus on access to electricity and plans to “gradually” increase its aid to the Syrian government “in order to meet urgent needs and invest in its long-term development.”
A new currency for Syria: In another sign of deepening ties between Damascus’ new rulers and Abu Dhabi, Syrian officials began considering the option of printing currency in Germany and the UAE earlier this year, with momentum building after the European Union relaxed some sanctions on Damascus in February. Syrian authorities are in fact in advanced negotiations with UAE-based company Oumolat for a currency-printing agreement. The talks follow a visit by Syria’s Central Bank governor and Finance Minister to the company during a trip to the UAE earlier this month.
In Germany, the state-backed firm Bundesdruckerei and the private company Giesecke+Devrient have expressed interest, though it remains unclear which of them might ultimately handle the printing.
At the same time, Damascus signed on Thursday an $800 million initial deal with the UAE’s DP World to develop Tartus port – the first such deal since President Donald Trump’s surprise announcement on Tuesday that US sanctions on Syria would be lifted.
From Sharaa to Trump: To woo the unpredictable American leader, Sharaa is said to have recently brandished a series of concessions. According to several sources close to the matter cited by the Reuters agency, the interim president has proposed to build a Trump Tower in Damascus, allow US access to Syrian oil and gas or even promote detente with Israel. Following a ‘special operation’ conducted by the Israeli army and Mossad, Tel Aviv announced on Sunday it had retrieved in Syria the body of a sergeant engaged in Israel’s army and disappeared in Lebanon in 1982, although the new authorities reportedly did not take part in the operation, according to the Jerusalem Post.
Contrary to the rhetoric previously adopted by Israel against the Syrian transitional government, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar nevertheless stated the same day to the press that his country sought to “have good relations” with Damascus, specifying that it still had “security concerns.” These comments follow indirect discussions reported a few days before between the two rivals, under the mediation of the United Arab Emirates, according to some reports, later confirmed by Sharaa. These aimed to “ease tensions and prevent the situation from becoming uncontrollable for all parties concerned,” he said after Israeli airstrikes conducted in the country, including one near the presidential palace in Damascus in early May.
Moreover, the Syrian leader has also multiplied in recent days tokens of goodwill towards the Trump administration, addressing several demands made in March by Washington in exchange for a two-year sanction waiver. According to a confidential US list then transmitted by diplomat Natasha Franceschi to the Syrian foreign minister, two of these conditions concern the creation of a committee to investigate the fate of missing American citizens as well as cooperation with the US and other countries in the ongoing fight against the Islamic State (ISIS). Meanwhile, Qatar revealed on Monday that it had found 30 bodies of ISIS victims in Syria during a search carried out under American investigators’ instructions: a mission conducted “in full coordination with the Syrian government,” which reportedly provided “everything necessary” to facilitate the searches, said Doha.
The big absent: The same day, Syrian official media also announced that the interim President would not have participated in the Arab League summit to be held over the weekend in Baghdad to discuss, among other things, the Palestinian issue, preferring to send his Foreign Minister, as his invitation sparked criticism from pro-Tehran groups. The armed wing of Islamic Jihad and a Syrian official also reported at the end of April that Damascus authorities had arrested two senior cadres of the Palestinian faction in the country – another demand on the American requirement list.
Ahead of the 34th Arab League Summit, scheduled for Saturday in the Iraqi capital, Arab foreign ministers gathered in Baghdad on Thursday for a preparatory meeting. Delegates were set to review the summit agenda and draft key resolutions to be presented to Arab heads of state and government, with Israel’s war on Gaza, post-Assad Syria’s fate, and reconstruction of Lebanon topping the agenda. Ministers from Jordan, Egypt, Yemen, Bahrain, Somalia, Palestine, Sudan and Comoros attended, along with Qatar’s Minister of State for Foreign Affairs and representatives from several other Arab states.
The session opened with remarks by Bahraini Foreign Minister Abdullatif Al Zayani, who outlined the outcomes of the 33rd Arab Summit held previously in Manama on May 16, 2024. He formally handed over the rotating presidency of the Council of Arab Foreign Ministers to Iraq’s Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein. In his address, Hussein reaffirmed Iraq’s commitment to Syria’s stability and described Palestine as “our central cause.” Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit followed with strong criticism of Israel’s regional policies, warning that “the occupation’s ambitions are not limited to Palestine, but extend to Syria and Lebanon.”
A closed-door working session followed, during which ministers discussed draft resolutions and strategic policy papers. According to Iraqi Foreign Ministry sources, Israel’s ongoing war on Gaza and post-Assad Syria were expected to feature prominently in the summit’s final communiqué.
The Arab League summit: Arab leaders have urged the international community to fund their plan to rebuild the Gaza Strip after United States President Donald Trump reiterated a proposal to take over the Palestinian territory. The Arab League summit held on Saturday, May 17, in Baghdad said in its final statement that it urged “countries and international and regional financial institutions to provide prompt financial support” to back its Gaza reconstruction plan.
“This genocide has reached a level of ugliness unparalleled in all conflicts in history,” Iraq’s Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani said in his opening speech at the 34th Arab Summit, which was dominated by Israel’s genocide in Gaza. He said Iraq backed the creation of an “Arab fund to support reconstruction efforts”, adding that Iraq will contribute $20 million towards the fund and another $20 million for Lebanon, which has also been in conflict with Israel. The Iraqi Prime Minister added that Baghdad rejects “the forced displacement of Palestinians”, calling for an end to “the massacres in Gaza, the attacks on the West Bank and the occupied territories.” “We have called, and continue to call, for serious and responsible Arab action to save Gaza and reactivate the UNRWA,” he said, referring to the UN body for Palestinian aid.
Iraq has only recently regained a semblance of normalcy after decades of devastating conflict and turmoil, and its leaders view the summit as an opportunity to project an image of stability. This is in fact the first time the summit has been held in Iraq since 2012, and Iraq takes it as a credit to regain its rule as a player to bridge the gap between member states of the Arab League.
United Nations chief Antonio Guterres and Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez – who have sharply criticised Israel’s genocide in Gaza – were guests at the summit. “We need a permanent ceasefire now, the unconditional release of the hostages now, and the free flow of humanitarian aid ending the blockade now,” Guterres said. Spain’s Sanchez said the humanitarian crisis in Gaza must end “immediately and without delay.” “Palestine and Spain are working on a new draft to be presented to the United Nations, where we are demanding Israel to end the unjust humanitarian siege laid to Gaza and to allow for the unconditional delivery of relief aid into Gaza”, he said, adding that there must be “more pressure on Israel to end the carnage unfolding in Gaza by all the conceivable means, namely the tools available under the international law,” and announcing that Spain will present a proposal to the General Assembly for the International Criminal Court to examine Israel’s compliance with the delivery of relief aid into Gaza,” the Spanish Prime Minister added.
Saturday’s summit also came amid Iran’s ongoing nuclear talks with the US, after Trump has pursued diplomacy with Iran as he seeks to stave off a threatened military strike by Israel on Iran, a desire shared by many of the region’s leaders. Besides Gaza and Iran, Arab officials also discussed the situation in Syria, which only six months ago entered a new chapter in its history after the fall of longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad.
Iran’s nuclear deal: US President Donald Trump said on Friday that Iran has his administration’s proposal and knows it needs to move quickly, a day after saying Washington and Tehran were close to a nuclear deal amid ongoing high-level negotiations, Reuters reported. “They have a proposal. More importantly, they know they have to move quickly or something bad is going to happen,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One after leaving the UAE to return to Washington after a four-day Gulf tour.
Trump’s remarks represent the first time he has acknowledged an American proposal with Tehran after multiple negotiations between US Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, who told journalists at the Tehran International Book Fair on Thursday that Iran had not received any proposals from the Americans yet.
Negotiations have gotten into the “expert” level, according to the Washington Post, meaning the two sides are trying to see if they can reach any agreement on the details of a possible deal. But one major sticking point remains Iran’s enrichment of uranium, which Tehran insists it must be allowed to do and the Trump administration increasingly insists the Islamic Republic must give up.
Araghchi criticized what he called conflicting and inconsistent statements from the Trump administration, describing them as either a sign of disarray in Washington or a calculated negotiation strategy. “We are hearing many contradictory statements from the United States – from Washington, from the President, and from the new administration,” Araghchi said, claiming that “sometimes we hear two or three different positions in a single day.”
Israel strikes Yemen: Yemen’s movement Ansar Allah reported on Friday new Israeli strikes on ports in the Hodeida province, which the Iran-backed group controls in the south of the country. It was the group’s television network, Al-Massirah, to announce an Israeli aggression on the ports in the cities of Hodeida and Salif. Following the attack, Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu threatened it was just the beginning. “We will not stand idly by and allow the Houthis to harm us. We will strike them with greater force, including at their leadership and all the infrastructure that enables them to attack us,” he said in a statement posted on the government’s social media account. He further described the movement as “just a tool,” saying Iran was “behind them”.
At the same time, the Israeli Defence Minister, Israel Katz, is threatening the leader of the group, saying that they are willing to give him the same fate as the heads of Hezbollah and Hamas assassinated by Israel in Gaza, in Beirut and even in Tehran. He said the Israelis are not going to back down, that the Houthis – as Ansar Allah is commonly known – are going to suffer painful blows as long as they continue to fire missiles towards Israeli territory. Since Israel broke the ceasefire in Gaza back in March, in fact, the Houthis have launched 34 different projectiles, one of which most notably – just a couple of weeks ago – made a significant impact right outside of Ben Gurion Airport, in Tel Aviv.
The Israeli military carried out airstrikes then as well, and in response, earlier on Wednesday, it had called to evacuate three ports controlled by the Iran-backed group in Yemen, which it claimed were used for “terrorist activities.” In a post on his X account, Israeli Army spokesman in Arabic, Avichay Adraee, ordered all Yemenis to evacuate the seaports of Ras Isa, Al-Hudaydah, and Salif, “until further notice.” The Israeli army had issued a similar evacuation order on Sunday, later claiming that they had intercepted three missiles fired from Yemen.
Ansar Allah has targeted ships passing through the Red and Arabian seas, the Bab al-Mandab Strait, and the Gulf of Aden since November 2023 in solidarity with Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, bringing about expensive detours and additional costs for shippers based in countries with links to Israel. In 2024 alone, the group’s activity inflicted an estimated $200 billion in economic damage globally, significantly disrupting maritime trade.
Sudan, the forgotten war: After more than two years of brutal conflict, Sudan’s civil war appears to have entered a bone-breaking phase, marked by intensified attacks and a hardening of rival power structures. The Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) are now fighting not only for territory, but for political legitimacy, as both sides escalate military operations across the country.
Fighting has recently surged in key strongholds, especially in Darfur and Kordofan, where the RSF is pressing ahead with plans to form a parallel government. Both sides are deploying drones, air raids, intelligence units, and special forces in increasingly aggressive operations, particularly in Nyala – capital of South Darfur and a strategic RSF centre- and Port Sudan, the current seat of the SAF-aligned administration. The SAF has in fact launched sustained airstrikes on military installations in Nyala in recent days, with a focus on the city’s international airport. Meanwhile, the RSF has carried out near-daily drone attacks on military and civilian targets, as part of what observers describe as a strategy to dismantle the SAF’s claims to legitimacy.
The government in Port Sudan accuses the United Arab Emirates (UAE) of supporting the fragmentation of Sudan, while the RSF claims that SAF is backed by Iran, Russia, and other so-called rogue states, alongside the Sudanese Muslim Brotherhood.
At the same time, in South Darfur, the RSF has consolidated control and is preparing to declare a new civilian government, aiming to supplant the Port Sudan-based administration. This follows the formation of the Foundation Alliance, a coalition of political and armed groups- including the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement–North (SPLM–N) led by Abdulaziz al-Hilu – announced in Nairobi, Kenya. On its Telegram channel, the RSF has circulated images and videos purporting to show life returning to normal in Nyala, with markets open, worshippers attending mosques, and football matches taking place. It has also highlighted tribal reconciliation events and military training camps under RSF supervision.
This happens amidst an unprecedented humanitarian crisis in the war-torn country, that António Guterres, UN Secretary General, described in commenting on the Global Report on Food Crises 2025, as “more than a systemic crisis: it is a failure of humanity.” In July 2024, for the first time since 2017, famine was officially declared in the Zamzam refugee camp in Darfur. Since then, five other areas of Sudan have fallen into extreme famine, and as many as seventeen are at imminent risk. According to the UN, more than 13 million Sudanese have been forced to flee their homes due to the conflict between the two military factions, while more than 30 million are now in need of urgent humanitarian assistance.
What We’re Reading
BDL independence at crossroads: While the law grants different forms of independence, the political environment has historically eroded functional independence. The central bank’s governor, Riad Salameh, who held office for 30 years until 2023, became a symbol of this ambivalence – accused of corruption yet wielding vast autonomous powers. Maan Barazy analyzed this delicate balance between autonomy and oversight, which will shape Lebanon’s capacity to implement effective banking reforms, restore macroeconomic stability, and regain public trust.
A new trio: Trump’s historic meeting with Syria’s new leader Ahmed al-Sharaa, following the lifting of US sanctions, signals a dramatic and controversial shift in American policy toward post-Assad Syria, Dana Hourany reported.
Sanction lift, shifting maps: The US just lifted sanctions on Syria: not out of principle, but out of pragmatism. As Gulf powers rush in, Syria could become the region’s next frontier. Where does that leave Lebanon? On the edge of opportunity or irrelevance? The opinion of Ramzi Abou Ismail.
Follow the money: Oghenochuko Ojiri, an art dealer who featured on the popular BBC show ‘Bargain Hunt’, appeared in a London court last Friday for selling art to suspected Hezbollah financier Nazem Ahmad, already sanctioned in 2019 by the United States for money laundering to the Shia party. But this is no surprising, Valeria Rando wrote, as artwashing is a common practice, especially in cash-based systems like the Lebanese one, and ethics a virtue that the art market has globally given up on.
Lebanon +
In Al-Jazeera’s The Take latest episode, ‘On Nakba Day, Trump tours the Gulf as Gaza starves The Take’, host Malika Bilal interviewed correspondent Youmna El-Sayed to question Trump’s Gulf tour and Gaza’s famine. As Palestinians mark 77 years since the Nakba, families are still shelled, cut off from aid, and struggling to survive. With US President Donald Trump visiting the Gulf, what will it take to bring relief to Palestinians?
