Antoine Khoury

Israel’s Prime Minister’s Office on Tuesday dismissed as “fake news” a report claiming Benjamin Netanyahu refused to sign a U.S.-mediated security agreement with Syria last September.

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun departed Beirut on Tuesday morning for a two-day official visit to the Sultanate of Oman, responding to an invitation from Sultan Haitham bin Tariq.

Syria’s interim president Ahmed al-Sharaa warned on Saturday that Israel’s insistence on establishing a demilitarized zone in southern Syria places the country in a “dangerous position.” 

Lebanese Foreign Minister Joe Raggi said on Saturday that any handover of Hezbollah’s weapons to the Lebanese authorities ultimately depends on a decision from Iran. 

The Syrian Liberal Party, led by Fahad Al Masri, has issued a strong condemnation of what it describes as horrific crimes committed in Sweida. 

Egypt has intensified its diplomatic engagement in Lebanon as Foreign Minister Badr Abdellaty arrived Tuesday night at Beirut–Rafic Hariri International Airport for a series of high-level meetings, the state-run National News Agency (NNA) reported.

Lebanese lawmaker Samy Gemayel, head of the Kataëb Party, has been elected Vice-President of the Executive Council of the International Alliance of Centrist Democrats, according to a statement released Monday by Lebanon’s National News Agency.

U.S. President Donald Trump said Friday that he may invite Lebanese President Joseph Aoun to the White House. 

With the first anniversary of the Lebanon–Israel ceasefire approaching, the UN Special Coordinator for Lebanon, Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, told the Security Council on Thursday that “the time for dialogue and negotiations is now.”

In a notable diplomatic development, Dr. Anwar Gargash, Diplomatic Adviser to the President of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), met today in Abu Dhabi with Saeed Khatibzadeh, Deputy Foreign Minister of the Islamic Republic of Iran and Head of the Centre for Political and International Studies. 

Syria has secured $28 billion in investments over the past ten months, according to interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa. The announcement was made on Wednesday during his speech at the Future Investment Initiative (FII) conference in Riyadh.

An Israeli drone was reportedly shot down by French peacekeepers from the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) after allegedly displaying "aggressive behavior" near their position in Kfar Kila (Marjeyoun), southern Lebanon.