The more information we get about the “Trump economic zone” proposal in southern Lebanon, the worse it seems for the people who live there. The latest reports reveal the plan to totally depopulate the south of the country, to place the whole area under US military...
Israeli Warplanes Pound Southern Lebanon, Sparking Forest Fires
On the day that the Lebanese government is expected to release its plan to fully disarm Hezbollah, Israel carried out yet more attacks against southern Lebanon, targeting the Ali al-Taher and al-Dabsheh forests near Nabatieh al-Fawqa, sparking major fires which civil...
UN Security Council Extends Lebanon Peacekeeper Mandate, But Calls for Its End in 2026
While the Trump Administration had been considering using its veto power to prevent the extension of the UN mandate for the UNIFIL peacekeepers in southern Lebanon, the Security Council ultimately voted once again to extend the mandate through 2026. At the same time,...
US Envoy Barrack Cuts Tour of South Lebanon Short in Face of Protests
US Ambassador to Turkey Tom Barrack continues to make headlines in Lebanon. Yesterday, it was for lambasting Lebanese journalists as “animalistic” at a press conference in Beirut, and today it was during his planned tour of southern Lebanon. Barrack helicoptered into...
US Envoy Barrack Berates Lebanese Reporters, Insists Behavior Is Indicative of Regional Problems
US envoy Tom Barrack has had more than a few unusual exchanges in the course of his visits to Lebanon, but today seemed to spark a higher level of annoyance among the locals by lashing out at the press conference he was attending and berating the reporters as...
Israel Offers to Support Hezbollah Disarmament, May ‘Consider’ Reducing Troop Presence in Lebanon
Last week, US officials requested that Israel stop attacking Lebanon, as is required under the November ceasefire. It appears they’re not doing that, but beyond previously being involved in a proposal to create a depopulated “Trump zone” in southern Lebanon, Israel is...
Lebanese President Hasn’t Been Informed of Planned ‘Trump Economic Zone’ in South
Last week it was reported that the US was asking Israel to stop attacking Lebanon, and that their plan for the region included creating a “Trump economic zone” in southern Lebanon along the border with Israel. Lebanese President Joseph Aoun, however, says he hasn’t...
Israeli Drones Pound Southern Lebanon, One Killed and at Least Seven Wounded
On Thursday, Israel launched a number of airstrikes against southern Lebanon. As they so often do, the IDF claimed they were attacking “Hezbollah infrastructure” in the attacks, a claim reported without scrutiny by Israeli media outlets. The reports suggest that the...
Israel Wants UNIFIL Peacekeepers Gone, US May Push Lebanon for Concessions
The UNIFIL peacekeepers in southern Lebanon have long been a thorn in Israel’s side, both because they tend to find Israeli surveillance devices left in the area and because of international criticism on the numerous times Israeli troops start firing at the...
US Envoy Asks Israel to Comply With Lebanon Ceasefire as Drone Strikes Continue
Last month, US envoy Tom Barrack insisted the US had no business asking Israel to stop attacking Lebanon. In keeping with Barrack’s ongoing inconsistency, he today insisted that Israel should comply with the ceasefire, withdraw from Lebanon and stop attacking them. “I...