by NPR –Ayesha Rascoe – Entering the White House as a foreign policy novice, Jared Kushner has leaned on his personal rapport with foreign government leaders to help push the Trump administration’s goals. Before joining the White House, Kushner was a real estate investor in New York City, where personal relationships can help cement deals. But […]

  This is an opinion article and does not necessarily represent khazen.org views By Editorial Board washingtonpost.com — Washington Post –SAUDI ARABIA, so far, has tried bluster and bullying to silence the questions about journalist Jamal Khashoggi, who disappeared in the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul two weeks ago Tuesday. On Sunday, a regime statement threatened to […]

by DailyStar.com.lb — Beyond the glitz and the glam, the event also had a social mission: held during Breast Cancer Awareness Month, profits raised from the shows will go toward fight the disease. The first of the 2018 event’s 25 shows was Lebanese fashion house Choueiter’s newest collection, worn by models who wove their way across […]

BEIRUT,(Xinhua) — Lebanese Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri said Tuesday that the new government will be formed very soon, the National News Agency (NNA) reported. “I know that the government formation has taken a very long time but we are very close to forming it,” said Hariri at the closing ceremony of the Summer of Innovation, […]

NPR — Colin Dwyer — Nearly two weeks since Jamal Khashoggi vanished in Istanbul, the shadow of the Saudi journalist’s disappearance continues to loom ever larger. Now, President Trump is threatening “severe punishment” for Saudi Arabia if suspicions of Khashoggi’s murder are confirmed — and Saudis have vowed to retaliate in kind. “The Kingdom also affirms that if it receives any action, it will respond with greater action,” Saudi Arabia’s state-run news agency said Sunday, ominously noting that the country plays “an influential and vital role in the global economy.” Citing an “official source,” the Saudi Press Agency added that Riyadh “affirms its total rejection of any threats and attempts to undermine it.” Rather, if Saudis face “political pressures” such as accusations or sanctions, “the outcome of these weak endeavors, like their predecessors, is a demise.”

The Saudi Embassy in Washington, D.C., later sought to “clarify” those threats on Twitter, noting that “the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia extends it appreciation to all, including the US administration, for refraining from jumping to conclusions on the ongoing investigation.” The comments Sunday follow Trump’s toughest comments yet about the simmering international controversy. Speaking with CBS’s 60 Minutes, the president said that “nobody knows yet” whether the Saudi government ordered the killing of Khashoggi, a frequent critic, as Turkish officials reportedly allege. “It’s being investigated, it’s being looked at very, very strongly,” Trump said. “And we would be very upset and angry if that were the case.” Still, he was careful to hedge his language — as he has been largely since Khashoggi vanished after the journalist’s visit to the Saudi consulate in Istanbul. His administration has been on friendly terms with the Gulf regional power since taking office, supporting the Saudi-led airstrike campaign in Yemen and brokering an arms deal that could be worth $110 billion over the next decade.

During a news conference in the Oval Office on Saturday, Trump responded to a question about his response to the Khashoggi controversy by touting the economic benefits of the weapons sale. “If they don’t buy it from us, they’re going to buy it from Russia or they’re going to buy it from China or they’re going to buy it from other countries,” he said. “From the standpoint of jobs, economic development, a lot of other reasons, I would like to do something where we could maybe look at other things [than canceling the deal].” Nevertheless, the Saudi Stock Exchange plummeted about 7 percent at one point Sunday on fears of economic fallout from the diplomatic dispute, before recovering some of its losses later in the day.

By Lisa Barrington BEIRUT (Reuters) – Dark apartment windows vastly outnumber the lit in the quiet night streets of Beirut’s waterfront and central districts, a reminder of Lebanon’s long economic and real estate slump. Such unsold luxury properties are now being targeted by the country’s first real estate investment fund, which the founders hope will […]

by aawsat.com — The anti-Iran Lebanese Saydet el-Jabal gathering announced on Friday that it was again barred from holding its annual conference. Two weeks ago, it accused the Hezbollah party of preventing it from meeting at Beirut’s Bristol hotel. It attempted to hold its meeting at the Gefinor Rotana hotel, but the hotel management refused […]

BEIRUT (AP) — One of Lebanon’s leading newspapers  An-nahar printed a blank issue Thursday to protest the country’s long-running political gridlock and the failure to form a government five months after elections. “We are ringing the alarm bells,” Nayla Tueni, editor-in-chief of An-Nahar daily, told a press conference at the newspaper’s headquarters in Beirut. The […]

by mprnews.org –– Riham Feshir — One day, photographer Fadi BouKaram was Googling the word “Lebanon,” hoping to browse the web for information about the country he grew up in. Instead, he found Lebanon, Ore. It was one of 47 towns named Lebanon in the United States. It occurred to him to visit them all, taking photographs […]

JERUSALEM (Reuters) – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s wife, Sara, appeared in court on Sunday for the first hearing in the fraud trial against her, in which she is alleged to have misused state funds in ordering catered meals. According to the indictment, Sara Netanyahu, along with a government employee, fraudulently obtained from the state […]