BY TOUFIC BAAKLINI, OPINION CONTRIBUTOR – THE HILL Today, over 1 billion Christians worldwide celebrate the death and resurrection of their Savior Jesus Christ, remembering that Jesus was ridiculed and persecuted in his life. Celebrants this week should remember that their brothers and sisters throughout the Middle East are joining in Christ’s suffering to this very […]

More than half the world’s economies bar women from the same jobs as men, The Wall Street Journal says. Citing a World Bank report, the newspaper said that women are often prohibited from entering higher-wage fields, sealing their economic fates. But as countries increase legal protections for women — such as enabling them to apply […]

By Yaroslav Trofimov —wsj.com DUBAI—If you want to see what a tangle of geopolitical conflicts the Middle East has become, just look at its convoluted air routes. The Qatar Airways flight from Doha to Khartoum, Sudan travels in a semicircle and takes 5½ hours. A year ago it took two hours less and flew straight across Saudi […]

PHILIP ISSA Associated Press BEIRUT (AP) — The world’s largest passenger jet landed at Beirut’s international airport on Thursday, bringing with it hopes of a sustained revival to Lebanon’s tourism and travel sectors. The one-off Emirates Airbus A380 flight from Dubai was a nod to the substantial passenger traffic between Lebanon and Gulf nations, where […]

U.S. Army Central (ARCENT) Deputy Commander Major General Terrence J. McKenrick has concluded his visit to Lebanon, the U.S. embassy said on Thursday. During his visit, he met with Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) Commander General Joseph Aoun and other senior LAF officials, accompanied by U.S. Ambassador to Lebanon Elizabeth H. Richard. In his meetings, McKenrick […]

By Osama Habib, The Daily Star BEIRUT – Central Bank Governor Riad Salameh Wednesday brushed off calls for a managed devaluation of the Lebanese currency, warning that such a step would be detrimental to the national economy. “We are not considering any devaluation because we believe that it will be detrimental to confidence, detrimental to […]

BEIRUT (Xinhua) — Cyprus announced Wednesday the donation of more than 15 million euros (18.55 million U.S. dollars) in aid to the Lebanese army. Cypriot Foreign Minister Nikos Christodoulidis announced the donation following the meeting with his Lebanese counterpart Gebran Bassil at the Boustros Palace in Beirut, the Daily Star reported on its website. “We […]

by Roger Field – businessweekme.com – The media unit of Lebanese conglomerate Group Murr is preparing to launch a pan-Arab newspaper and website this year, the company’s Group CEO, Elias El Murr, told Bloomberg Businessweek Middle East. Group Murr, which successfully relaunched Lebanese daily newspaper Al Joumhouria in 2011, is making an initial investment of about $40 million […]

BEIRUT, March 28 (Xinhua) — Visiting Estonian Prime Minister Juri Ratas lauded Lebanon on Wednesday for hosting the Syrian refugees, the National News Agency (NNA) reported. According to NNA, Ratas held separate talks Wednesday with President Michel Aoun and Prime Minister Saad Hariri. Speaking to reporters from the Grand Serail, Ratas said his country fully […]

Ben Blanchard, Shu Zhang, Christine Kim BEIJING/SEOUL (Reuters) – North Korean leader Kim Jong Un was part of a secretive delegation that arrived in Beijing by train on Monday and left on Tuesday, according to a source familiar with the matter and foreign media reports. The visit, which would be Kim’s first known journey abroad […]