Source: Al Jazeera
Lebanon has stepped up efforts to secure the extradition of Russian national Igor Grechushkin, owner of the ship RHOSUS that carried the ammonium nitrate linked to the 2020 Beirut port explosion, dispatching Judge Mirna Kallas of the Public Prosecution Office at the Court of Cassation to Bulgaria to provide formal assurances that he will not face the death penalty if returned to Lebanon.
Monday, October 6, 2025
Fadel Shaker, a Lebanese pop singer turned wanted militant, surrendered to the military intelligence service on Saturday, more than a decade after fleeing justice over his alleged role in deadly clashes between militants and the Lebanese army in 2013.
Monday, October 6, 2025
Nearly a year after the end of Syria’s civil war and the fall of the Assad dictatorship, the country has embarked on a long and complex reconstruction process. The destruction is staggering: entire neighborhoods lie in rubble and basic infrastructure (roads, power grids, and water systems) has collapsed, and public institutions are dysfunctional. Millions of Syrians remain displaced inside and outside the country, schools and hospitals are incapacitated, and what remains of the economy is crippled by unemployment, inflation, and the lingering impact of sanctions (even as many have lately been eased). Ongoing sectarian violence and a deepening humanitarian disaster, with more than 14.5 million Syrians facing food insecurity, compound the crisis. As the international community re-engages in Syria, reconstruction will require many hundreds of billions of dollars in aid and investment as well as assistance to restore governance, security, and stability.
Thursday, September 25, 2025
Recently, during the session of a Lebanese parliamentary committee on a new election law, two of the country’s Shiite parliamentarians, one from Hezbollah and the second from the Amal Movement, floated an idea the government in Beirut should examine closely. The two MPs, Ali Fayyad and Ali Hassan Al Khalil, called for reform of the political system and full implementation of all the stipulations of the Taif Accord of 1989 – the agreement that ended Lebanon’s civil war and sought to update its confessional political model.
Wednesday, September 24, 2025
Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola says the club expects to learn the outcome of the hearing into its 115 charges of alleged Premier League financial rule breaches "in one month".
Saturday, February 8, 2025
Former Brazil and Real Madrid defender Marcelo has announced his retirement from football, bringing the curtain down on a trophy-laden career that included five UEFA Champions League triumphs.
Friday, February 7, 2025
Tuesday 29 October 2024 12:15:26
The United Nations and countries across the globe have denounced Israel after its parliament passed two laws that brands the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) a “terror” group and bans the humanitarian organisation from operating on Israeli soil.
The legislation, approved on Monday, would – if implemented – prevent UNRWA from providing life-saving support to Palestinians across Israeli-occupied Gaza and the West Bank.
UNRWA was created by the UN General Assembly in 1949 to support Palestinian refugees expelled from their homes during the creation of Israel and it remains the main organisation providing humanitarian services in Gaza, and supports millions of Palestinians refugees in the occupied West Bank, Lebanon, Jordan and Syria.
Here’s a round-up of the global reaction to Israel’s move:
The Palestinian presidency rejected and condemned the Israeli legislation.
“We will not allow this. The overwhelming vote of the Knesset reflects Israel’s transformation into a fascist state,” said Nabil Abu Rudeineh, a spokesman for the presidency in Ramallah.
Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called UNRWA’s work “indispensable” and said there is “no alternative” to the agency.
“The implementation of the laws could have devastating consequences for Palestine refugees in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, which is unacceptable,” he said, urging Israel to “act consistently with its obligations under the Charter of the United Nations and its other obligations under international law”.
UNRWA chief Philippe Lazzarini, meanwhile, said the Knesset move set a “dangerous precedent” as it “opposes the UN Charter and violates the State of Israel’s obligations under international law”.
“These bills will only deepen the suffering of Palestinians, especially in #Gaza where people have been going through more than a year of sheer hell,” he wrote on X.
Fu Cong, the Chinese envoy to the UN, called the Israeli move “outrageous”.
“We are firmly opposed to this decision. As I said, this is an outrageous decision and we do believe that UNRWA has played a key role in maintaining a lifeline for the Palestinian people in Gaza,” he told reporters in New York.
Vasily Nebenzia, Russia’s UN ambassador, described Israel’s UNRWA ban as “terrible” and said it worsens the situation in Gaza. He also called on Israel’s main ally, the United States, to “pay their dues to UNRWA to demonstrate their commitment to the agency”.
The US had withdrawn funding from UNRWA after Israel accused some of the agency’s staff of taking part in Hamas’s October 7 attacks on southern Israel – a move by the US that critics have labelled disproportionate.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer expressed grave concern and said the Israeli legislation “risks making UNRWA’s essential work for Palestinians impossible”. He described the humanitarian situation in Gaza as “simply unacceptable” and said Israel must ensure sufficient aid reaches civilians in the enclave.
“Only UNRWA can deliver humanitarian aid at the scale and pace needed,” he said.
Jordan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs “strongly condemned” the Israeli move, describing it as a “flagrant violation of international law and the obligations of Israel as the occupying power” in Palestine. He warned that the Israeli campaign “aimed at assassinating UNRWA politically” would have “catastrophic consequences”.
The governments of the four European countries – all of which have recognised Palestinian statehood – issued a joint statement condemning the Knesset’s targeting of the agency.
“UNRWA has a mandate from the United Nations General Assembly,” the statement noted. “The legislation approved by the Knesset sets a very serious precedent for the work of the United Nations and for all organizations of the multilateral system.”
Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong said UNRWA does life-saving work and her government opposes the Israeli Knesset’s decision to “severely restrict” the agency’s operations.
“Australia again calls on Israel to comply with the binding orders of the [International Court of Justice] to enable the provision of basic services and humanitarian assistance at scale in Gaza,” she wrote on X.
Belgian Foreign Minister Hadja Lahbib urged Israeli authorities to let UNRWA carry out its UN General Assembly-ordered mandate across the Middle East. Lahbib said the agency provided “life-saving services in Gaza, the West Bank – including East Jerusalem – and across Lebanon, Syria and Jordan”.
“UNRWA is crucial to regional stability,” she wrote on X.
The Swiss Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a post on X that it is “concerned about the humanitarian, political and legal implications” of the Israeli laws banning cooperation with UNRWA.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said UNRWA has been an “irreplaceable lifeline” for the Palestinian people for the past seven decades.
“UNRWA was created by the UN member states. Today’s decision by the Israeli parliament barring UNRWA from its life-saving and health-protecting work on behalf of millions of Palestinians will have devastating consequences,” he said in a post on X.
“This is intolerable. It contravenes Israel’s obligations and responsibilities, and threatens the lives and health of all those who depend on UNRWA.”
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