The LAF has cleared over 9,800 pieces of explosive ordnance from more than 80 locations The American general tasked with monitoring the Hezbollah-Israel ceasefire deal on Friday praised the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) after touring a region in southern Lebanon. Maj. Gen. Jasper Jeffers visited LAF soldiers in the South Litani Area, including a stop in Khiam,…
Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations issued on Monday what he called a final warning to Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi militants to halt their missile attacks on Israel, saying they risked the same “miserable fate” as Hamas, Hezbollah and Syria’s Bashar al-Assad if they persisted. The ambassador, Danny Danon, also warned Tehran that Israel has the ability to…
Russian air defense systems may have brought down an Azerbaijani airliner this week , a US official said Friday after an Azerbaijani minister also suggested the plane was hit by a weapon, citing expert analysis and survivor accounts. Friday’s assessments by Rashan Nabiyev and White House national security spokesman John Kirby echoed those made by…
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan discussed on Friday the need for continued efforts to counter any resurgence of ISIS in Syria following the fall of Bashar-al Assad. “Our countries worked very hard and gave a lot over many years to ensure the elimination of the territorial caliphate of ISIS,…
President-elect Donald Trump said on Saturday the US should not be involved in the conflict in Syria, where opposition forces are threatening the government of President Bashar al-Assad. “Syria is a mess, but is not our friend, & THE UNITED STATES SHOULD HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH IT. THIS IS NOT OUR FIGHT. LET IT PLAY…
The top US military officer, Air Force General C.Q. Brown, spoke by phone with Russia’s Chief of General Staff Valery Gerasimov last week, the US military said on Wednesday, the first time Brown spoke with his Russian counterpart. “The leaders discussed a number of global and regional security issues to include the ongoing conflict in…
US President Joe Biden said on Sunday he had pardoned his son, Hunter Biden, a reversal after pledging to stay out of legal proceedings against the younger Biden who pleaded guilty to tax violations and was convicted on firearms-related charges. “Today, I signed a pardon for my son Hunter. From the day I took office, I said…
Lebanon’s Prime Minister Najib Mikati met the US military general tasked with monitoring the Hezbollah-Israel ceasefire on Monday after a truce was agreed last week between the two. US Ambassador to Beirut Lisa Johnson introduced Maj. Gen. Jasper Jeffers to Mikati during a meeting at the premier’s office. “General Jeffers will advance the ceasefire agreement by assessing…
US President-elect Donald Trump said on Saturday he discussed the border, trade and energy in a “very productive” meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau amid fears of a trade war. Trudeau paid an unannounced visit to Florida on Friday evening and had dinner with Trump at his Mar-a-Lago residence, days after Republican Trump pledged to impose…
The United States on Saturday said Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad lost control of Aleppo because of his reliance on Russia and Iran. Syria’s “reliance on Russia and Iran,” along with its refusal to move forward with a 2015 peace process outlined by the UN Security Council, “created the conditions now unfolding,” National Security Council spokesman Sean Savett…
The US State Department has approved the potential sale of spare parts for F-16 jets and radars to Taiwan for an estimated $385 million, the Pentagon said on Friday, a day before Taiwan President Lai Ching-te starts a sensitive Pacific trip. The United States is bound by law to provide Chinese-claimed Taiwan with the means…
Russian Defense Minister Andrei Belousov met with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and agreed to boost military cooperation between the two nations, Pyongyang state media said Saturday. The US and South Korea have accused the nuclear-armed North of sending more than 10,000 soldiers to help Russia fight Ukraine, with experts saying Kim is eager to gain…
The Russian Foreign Ministry said on Wednesday that an idea reportedly being floated in the West that Washington should give Ukraine nuclear weapons was “insane” and that preventing such a scenario was one of the reasons why Moscow went into Ukraine. The New York Times reported last week that some unidentified Western officials had suggested US…
Canada’s federal government and the premiers of the 10 provinces agreed to work in a united and coordinated way against a threat by US President-elect Donald Trump to impose tariffs on Canadian imports, Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland said on Wednesday. “We agreed that we need to be smart, strong and united in meeting this challenge,” Freeland told…
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin stressed that the United States was dedicated to a diplomatic resolution in Lebanon and urged Israel to improve “dire” conditions in Gaza, in a call Saturday with his Israeli counterpart. Austin “reiterated US commitment to a diplomatic resolution in Lebanon that allows Israeli and Lebanese civilians to return safely to their…
