BEIRUT: Defense Minister Samir Moqbel issued Thursday a memo outlining the conditions under which gun permits could be renewed for the year 2015. In a statement released by the ministry, the defense minister noted that permits would only be issued to the bodyguards of former or current ministers and MPs, party heads, diplomats and […]

  Prime Minister Tammam Salam expressed ire on Thursday at his 24-member cabinet, considering that the government is hijacked by the political arch-foes as each minister has the right to use the veto power on any decision, including the appointment of cleaning workers. Despite the complications surrounding him, Salam, according to his visitors’ comments in […]

  BEIRUT: U.K. Government Minister at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office Tobias Ellwood arrived in Beirut Wednesday for talks with Lebanese officials on the situation in Lebanon and the Middle East. A source at Beirut airport said Ellwood was greeted upon arrival by British Ambassador to Lebanon Tom Fletcher. Ellwood wrote on his Twitter account […]

A global campaign to name various new Seven Wonders of the World has announced the results of its Cities competition. 

The New7Wonders project was created by Bernard Weber in order to highlight some of the greatest natural and man-made wonders of the world not covered in the original list. The Cities project is the third of Weber’s installments — in 2007, more than 100 million people voted in his New Seven Wonders of the World competition. 

Weber’s latest campaign to find the best cities on Earth aimed to showcase the "cities that best represent the achievements and aspirations of our global urban civilization," according to the New7Wonders website. 

The global competition began with more than 1200 nominees from 220 countries. That list was reduced to 77, since there was a limit of one city per country. Then the 77 remaining cities were narrowed down by a panel of experts headed by Federico Mayor, former director-general of UNESCO, to 28 suggestions. 

Following the announcement of the 28 finalists, the winning seven cities were chosen by voters from around the world. 

The seven winning cities beat out finalists such as Istanbul, London, St. Petersburg, Seoul, Reykjavik, and Chicago. None of the world’s seven winning cities are in Europe or the US. 

Below are the seven cities that have been named the new urban wonders of the world (in alphabetical order): 

1. Beirut, Lebanon

The capital city of Lebanon has been rebuilt several times due to unrest. Beirut’s architecture is a stunning mix of modern, Ottoman, and colonial French. 

The Middle Eastern hub is often referred to as "The Paris of the Mediterranean."

BY: Abraham Rabinovich

JERUSALEM—A super-mole working in the upper ranks of Hezbollah on behalf of the Israeli Mossad has been exposed, according to a Lebanese website, El Nashra, citing informed sources.

The man, whose initials were given as M. Sh., was identified as a Lebanese businessman who traveled widely abroad on special missions for Hezbollah. He was said to be a senior official in Hezbollah’s Unit 910, responsible for “external operations against specific Israeli targets.” On one of M. Sh.’s trips to a western Asian country, he was recruited by the Mossad and agreed to provide top-secret information about Hezbollah operations and personnel, said the report.

According to the website, he was instrumental in thwarting a number of attempts by the organization to carry out retaliatory attacks for the assassination in 2008 of its top military figure, Imad Mughniyeh. A headrest in Mughniya’s car was replaced with one carrying explosives while he was visiting his mistress in Damascus. When he returned to the vehicle, the bomb was detonated remotely, killing him. Hezbollah accused Israel of the assassination and vowed revenge. Israel has never claimed responsibility.

  BEIRUT: Labor Minister Sejaan Azzi issued Tuesday a decision outlining the professions confined solely to Lebanese nationals, with certain exceptions applicable. According to a statement released by the Labor Ministry, the decision comes at a time when the Lebanese workforce is witnessing fierce competition. The decision also seeks to show the key role that […]

  U.S. Ambassador to Lebanon David Hale highlighted on Tuesday the international support for Lebanon in the security field and in coping with the burden of Syrian refugees. He said: “With such broad support, there should be no question that the Lebanese can and should elect a president, away from foreign agendas or interference.” He […]

  BEIRUT: France and Lebanon signed an agreement Tuesday aimed at improving higher education in the fields of technology and sciences through a French soft loan and a grant to the Lebanese Higher Institute for Economic and Applicable Sciences. A French Embassy statement said the convention, under which Lebanon would get a 21 million euro […]

Supporters of the governments of Egypt and Turkey have become adept at telling the world that under presidents Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and Recep Tayyip Erdogan respectively, these countries are making progress toward more open and just political systems. In reality, they are nothing more than tin-pot dictatorships.

Over the weekend, Egyptian authorities detained, questioned, and deported Carnegie Endowment for International Peace scholar Michele Dunne as she sought to enter Egypt at the invitation of the Egyptian Council for Foreign Affairs. Michele, who is the most well-respected Egypt analyst in Washington, has not been shy in her criticism of the Egyptian government.

Not to be outdone, yesterday the Turks arrested 27 people including journalists, TV producers, and police commanders on terrorism charges. All of the detainees are either members or suspected members of the Gulen movement.

  The families of captive servicemen burned tires on Monday near the Grand Serail in Beirut’s Riad Solh Square after receiving threats from Islamist gunmen. The relatives of the soldiers and policemen, who were taken hostage by al-Qaida-affiliate al-Nusra Front and the Islamic State group, said that they received a phone call from the abductors […]