BEIRUT, LEBANON -- A restaurateur and his wife discovered a wealth of surprises while dining on oysters: a cluster of some 26 pearls, the Associated Press reported. The oyster was one of about 200 that were cooked at Raymond Salha's Al-Fanar restaurant that day. Salha said that when his...
TYRE, Lebanon AFP — Six Israeli jets flew over south Lebanon and broke the sound barrier twice over the port city of Tyre on Wednesday, a security official said. "Six Israeli warplanes flew all over southern Lebanon and the city of Tyre at low altitude for more than an...
AKKAR, Lebanon AFP — An imam was killed and five people wounded in a gunbattle between rival communities in a village in northern Lebanon on Sunday, a security official said. The shooting erupted between Sunni Muslims and Alawites in the village of Sheikhlar in the northern region of Akkar,...
BEIRUT AFP — The finger of blame was being pointed at Lebanon's Shiite Muslim Hezbollah movement on Friday over the downing of an military helicopter that left an army officer dead. First Lieutenant Samer Hanna, 25, was killed when his helicopter was hit by gunfire on Thursday during a...
BEIRUT AFP — General Jean Kahwaji was on Friday appointed chief of the Lebanese army to replace Michel Sleiman, who was elected president in May, Information Minister Tareq Mitri announced. "The Council of Ministers decided to appoint General Jean Kahwaji to the post of chief of the Lebanese army,"...
BEIRUT AFP — Lebanon has issued an arrest warrant for Libyan leader Moamer Kadhafi over the disappearance 30 years ago of a senior Shiite Muslim cleric after a visit to Libya, officials said on Wednesday. Kadhafi was also indicted for allegedly "inciting the abduction" of Imam Mussa Sadr, the...
BEIRUT AFP — A former Lebanese security chief detained over the murder of ex-premier Rafiq Hariri is suing a former UN investigator in the case, his lawyer said on Wednesday. General Jamil Sayyed, the former head of the general security department, filed the lawsuit in France against Detlev Mehlis,...
BEIRUT AFP — Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas will begin a two-day visit to Lebanon on Thursday, a government official said on Sunday. "The visit has two aspects to it. It will address Lebanese-Palestinian relations and inter-Palestinian relations," the official told AFP of the country's large refugee community. Abbas,...
BEIRUT AFP — Lebanese Foreign Minister Fawzi Salukh dismissed as "ravings" on Thursday Israeli threats to target the country's civilian infrastructure if the government gives greater legitimacy to the Shiite militant group Hezbollah. "Who says the government is giving legitimacy to Hezbollah? ... These are just ravings conjured up...
JERUSALEM AFP — Israel has warned the Lebanese government against giving greater legitimacy to the Shiite militant group Hezbollah, saying it would make the entire country a target in any future war. "The moment the Lebanese government confers legitimacy on Hezbollah, it must understand that the entire Lebanese state...
TRIPOLI, Lebanon AFP — The Lebanese army opened fire early Monday after a homemade bomb was thrown in an area of the northern city of Tripoli that has seen bloody clashes since May between two rival factions, an army spokesman told AFP. "The army fired at the place from...
CAIRO AFP — The 22-member Arab League on Friday hailed the decision by Syria and Lebanon to establish diplomatic relations as an important historical step. "This agreement, which puts Syrian-Lebanese relations back on track... is an important historical step," league chief Amr Mussa said in a statement. Demarcating...
CAIRO AFP — Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak is to meet the heads of state of Saudi Arabia, Lebanon and Oman over the next three days to discuss regional developments, the state-owned press reported. The meetings will all take place in the Mediterranean city of Alexandria, according to the daily...
AMMAN AFP — Four Jordanian prisoners released by Israel last year to complete their life sentences in the kingdom will be freed next week, police said on Thursday. The prisoners were sentenced to life in jail in Israel for killing two Israeli soldiers in November 1990, four years before...
BEIRUT AFP — The US commander in Iraq, General David Petraeus, held talks with President Michel Sleiman during a surprise visit to Beirut on Wednesday, offering further military support to Lebanon. Petraeus also met acting army chief Shawki al-Masri and discussed how to "strengthen the army's defensive capabilities, training...
BEIRUT, AFP — Lebanon's President Michel Sleiman will visit Damascus next week for talks with Syrian counterpart Bashar al-Assad, as the two neighbours move to establish diplomatic ties, an official said on Tuesday. "The summit will be held on August 13," an official from the presidential palace told AFP....
BEIRUT AFP — Lebanese President Michel Sleiman will visit Damascus next week for talks with Syrian counterpart Bashar al-Assad, as the two neighbours move to establish diplomatic ties, an official said on Tuesday. "The summit will be held on August 13," an official from the presidential palace told AFP....
AINAB, Lebanon AFP — More devastating forest fires hit Lebanese villages on Tuesday, putting dozens of houses at risk in the latest blazes to hit the country's dwindling green areas, officials said. A Lebanese Civil Defence official told AFP that fires struck forests in Ainab, southeast of Beirut as...
BEIRUT AFP — Several hundred suspected members of an Islamist group involved in a deadly 15-week standoff with the Lebanese army last year have launched a prison hunger strike, a security official said on Tuesday. "Detainees in Rumieh prison went on hunger strike on Monday to protest at the...
BEIRUT AFP — Lebanon's national unity government on Monday adopted a manifesto that affirms the authority of the state over all matters, including the weaponry held by Hezbollah, a minister said. "The document was approved unanimously," Information Minister Tareq Mitri said at the end of a cabinet meeting chaired...
