Mena Today

Direct negotiations between Israel and Lebanon will begin next week, a senior Israeli official has confirmed, a landmark development that marks the first formal talks between the two countries in decades.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday that he has given an instruction for Israel to begin peace talks with Lebanon that would also include the disarming of Hezbollah.

Lebanon's cabinet took a landmark step Thursday, formally tasking the army and security forces with establishing a monopoly on weapons in Beirut, with the explicit goal of declaring the capital a "Hezbollah-free weapons zone."

Let us dispense with diplomatic courtesy. The demand by France, Spain and their European partners to include Lebanon in the US-Iran negotiations is not statesmanship. 

The U.S. and Iran are set to hold peace talks in Pakistan, which has been mediating, but remain deeply divided on key issues, even though President Donald Trump has said proposals presented by Tehran were a "basis" for talks.

An Iranian delegation will arrive in Pakistani capital Islamabad on Thursday night for talks to resolve conflict with the U.S. and Israel, Iran's ambassador to Pakistan said on Thursday.

Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said on Wednesday it would be unacceptable for ships to have to pay a fee to cross the Strait of Hormuz as Iran has suggested, and such a move would set a dangerous precedent for freedom of navigation.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said on Thursday that restoring freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz was of vital interest for her country and the European Union, as she pledged to work with partners to achieve that ai

U.S. President Donald Trump vowed to retain military assets in the Middle East until a peace deal with Iran is reached and warned of a major escalation in fighting if it failed to comply, as oil prices rose on concerns over supply and restrictions in the Strait of Hormuz.

The Israeli army announced Thursday the elimination of Ali Youssef Horchi, personal secretary, adviser and nephew of Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem, in a strike on Beirut's Tallet el-Khayat neighbourhood.

Vice President JD Vance on Wednesday said Tehran's negotiators thought the U.S.-Iran ceasefire agreed to on Tuesday included Lebanon, but the U.S. had in fact not agreed to that.

The Israeli military took an unusual step on Wednesday, addressing the Lebanese people directly through a message delivered by Avichay Adraee, spokesperson for the Israel Defense Forces to Arab media.