Source: Reuters
Security & Justice
Captured Hezbollah Operative May Have Been Israeli Double Agent, Report Suggests
The alleged senior Hezbollah operative abducted by Israeli special forces last week in Batroun may have been operating as a double agent, according to a report by The Telegraph.
Monday, November 4, 2024
Lebanon’s Probe into Israeli Raid Expected to Take Days as Security Officials Weigh Theories
Lebanese authorities are ramping up investigations into an Israeli commando raid last week in the northern coastal city of Batroun, during which Imad Amhaz, a Hezbollah official, was snatched.
Monday, November 4, 2024
Opinion
The Emptying of Baalbek Is a Moment to Take Stock
“Large numbers of people continue to flee their homes every day, as Israel’s military operations in Lebanon have been going on unabated.” These disturbing words could be from almost any news report about Israel’s invasion of its northern neighbour over the past month. However, they can be found in a report by the Norwegian Refugee Council’s Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre issued on July 27, 2006.
Saturday, November 2, 2024
A Future Without Hezbollah
At the end of September, when Israel’s campaign to destroy Hezbollah was reaching its height, I met one of the group’s supporters in a seaside café in western Beirut. He was a middle-aged man with a thin white beard and the spent look of someone who had not slept for days. He was an academic of sorts, not a fighter, but his ties to Hezbollah were deep and long-standing.
Thursday, October 31, 2024
Sports
Tottenham Forward Son Heung-min Crowned Asia’s International Player of the Year
Tottenham forward Son Heung-min was crowned as Asia’s International Player of the Year for the fourth time by the Asian Football Confederation at its annual awards ceremony Tuesday.
Wednesday, October 30, 2024
Real Madrid Launch Investigation into Racist Insults After El Clasico Defeat
Real Madrid has launched an investigation into racist insults directed at players during Saturday’s 4-0 home loss to Barcelona in LaLiga, it said on Sunday.
Monday, October 28, 2024
Thursday 14 March 2024 15:33:55
Turkey's Erdogan Warns Against Spreading Ukraine Conflict To NATO, Exacerbating War
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said on Tuesday any steps that would exacerbate the war in Ukraine and possibly spread the conflict to NATO must be avoided, adding he would host Russian President Vladimir Putin after elections later this month.
NATO member Turkey supports Ukraine's territorial integrity. But it also maintains cordial relations with Russia and regularly speaks with both sides in the conflict. It has provided Ukraine with military and political support but also opposes sanctions on Moscow.
Speaking at a Ramadan fast-breaking dinner with foreign ambassadors in Ankara, Erdogan said Ankara would continue to work to revive the defunct Black Sea grain deal it brokered between Moscow and Kyiv with the United Nations.
"While putting forth our support for Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity, we have already said that peace plans excluding Russia will not yield any results," Erdogan said, in a reference to a planned Ukraine peace summit in Switzerland later this year, which Russia will not attend.
"We are working to re-establish navigational safety in the Black Sea and ensure grain trade can be done safely. We believe steps that would exacerbate conflicts in the region, that would spread to NATO as well must be avoided," he added.
Last month, French President Emmanuel Macron said Western allies should not rule out deploying troops to Ukraine. However, most allies and NATO's chief have distanced themselves from the idea.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy visited Istanbul last week and Erdogan offered to host a Ukraine-Russia peace summit. He said on Tuesday that Putin would visit Turkey after elections in March, without elaborating.
The Kremlin has previously said Putin's visit to Turkey will be after Russia elections on March 15-17. Turks will also go to polls on March 31 for nationwide municipal elections.
Turkey hosted peace talks between Russia and Ukraine in 2022 but has since complained that no diplomatic step has been taken to advance these discussions. It has repeatedly offered to host further talks, saying a summit of leaders was needed.
