Source: Reuters
Security & Justice
State Action Signals Change in Tackling Longstanding Illegal Land Grabs in Jbeil District
For years, the serene villages of Jbeil's highlands have been far from peaceful. Ghabat, a Maronite village nestled between the predominantly Shiite towns of Afqa and Lassa, has become a focal point of growing tensions due to territorial disputes.
Friday, December 20, 2024
Mawlawi Ensures Strict Monitoring for Wanted Syrian Regime Figures at Beirut Airport
Caretaker Minister of Interior, Bassam Mawlawi, conducted an inspection tour of Rafic Hariri International Airport in Beirut to review the security arrangements and measures implemented by the Airport Security Apparatus ahead of the holiday season.
Thursday, December 19, 2024
Opinion
Lebanon After the Assads
The United States has important equities in Lebanon, including a desire for a generally friendly government’s economic and political stability; security cooperation; long-standing relations with the large Christian community in Lebanon and Lebanese diaspora in the United States; and ultimately peace between Israel and Lebanon within a broader regional settlement. Achieving these objectives will require navigating a tumultuous period in the country’s history following a war between Hezbollah and Israel that has devastated a large part of the country, exacerbating Lebanon’s already challenging economic conditions. But perhaps the most important dynamic will be how a likely Sunni-dominated state of uncertain composition in Syria will differ in its intentions toward Lebanon from the previous Alawite-led minoritarian Assad regime.
Thursday, December 19, 2024
Europe’s Syrian Dilemma
The news of the sudden and unexpected demise of Bashar al-Assad’s regime in Syria has met a mixed response in Europe. The jubilation that a murderous dictator and close ally of Russia and Iran has fallen is not just good for the Syrian people but serves as a morale booster for Eastern Europeans wondering whether Russia can be defeated
Wednesday, December 18, 2024
Sports
Cristiano Ronaldo Unveils New Private Jet Worth $73 Million
Cristiano Ronaldo, one of the richest global athletes, has unveiled his upgraded private jet reportedly worth $73 million. With its top-notch design, exceptional speed and range of 7500 nautical miles, the Gulfstream G650 is among the fastest jets in the world.
Monday, December 16, 2024
Guardiola Accepts Man City May Need to Sign More Players to Cope with Schedule
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola believes he will need a bigger squad to handle soccer’s ever-expanding fixture schedule.
Saturday, December 14, 2024
Monday 19 August 2024 10:13:01
Israel’s July Strikes on Yemen’s Hodeidah Port a ‘Possible War Crime’, HR Watch Says
Israeli airstrikes on Yemen’s Hodeidah port last month appeared to be an indiscriminate or disproportionate attack on civilians which may amount to a war crime, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said on Monday.
Israel said on July 20 its warplanes struck Houthi military targets near Hodeidah.
The attack targeted oil facilities and a power station and HRW said it killed at least six people and wounded at least 80.
It took place a day after a Houthi drone hit Israel’s economic hub Tel Aviv, killing one person, which HRW said also may constitute a war crime.
The retaliatory Israeli airstrikes on Hodeidah hit more than two dozen oil storage tanks and two shipping cranes in the port, as well as a power plant in the province’s Salif district, Human Rights Watch said.
“The attacks appeared to cause disproportionate harm to civilians and civilian objects. Serious violations of the laws of war committed willfully, that is deliberately or recklessly, are war crimes.”
Analyzed satellite imagery found that the oil tanks burned for at least three days, posing environmental concerns, according to the HRW report.
There was no immediate comment from the Israeli foreign ministry.
Hodeidah, which has been under Houthi control since 2021, is critical for delivering food and other necessities to the Yemeni population, who depend on imports.
About 70 percent of Yemen’s commercial imports and 80 percent of its humanitarian assistance passes through the port.
The Houthis have launched missiles and drones at Israel and disrupted global trade through the Red Sea in response to Israel’s assault on Gaza, further destabilising the Middle East as war in the Palestinian enclave rages on after 10 months.
Israel says the Houthis have launched 200 attacks against it since the Gaza war began, many of them intercepted and most of them not deadly.
But a rare Houthi drone strike on July 19 that hit Tel Aviv prompted Israel to announce its first strikes against the group the next day.
The Houthi movement, known formally as Ansar Allah, said it would continue to attack Israel in response.
