The Latest Breaking News from Joseph Aoun

The United States announced on Wednesday it would provide $72 million as cash stipends to Lebanon's security forces through a bespoke United Nations program after a currency meltdown slashed salaries. Lebanon's currency has lost about 97% of its value against the dollar since the country's financial system collapsed in 2019,…

Institutional collapse in Lebanon is accelerating in a way that has left the country unable to manage the crises it has been facing for the past three years. Vacuum not only ails the Lebanese presidency or government, but it also threatens vital state positions. For example, the mandate of Central…

Signs of a political clash began to emerge between Lebanon’s Minister of National Defense in the caretaker government, retired Brigadier General Maurice Slim, and Army Commander General Joseph Aoun, over the appointment of an officer who would manage the Army’s General Inspection Authority. The clash could have been avoided had…

The United States condemned in the strongest terms the violent attack on the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) peacekeepers on Wednesday that left one Irish service member dead and three wounded. It called upon the Lebanese government to urgently investigate the attack, hold those responsible accountable, and prevent…

As Lebanon’s political blocs have failed to elect a new president for the country, all attention turns, as usual, to the military institution, which enjoys the people’s trust as the most cohesive authority within the Lebanese state. In addition to MP Michel Moawad, two candidates share the electoral stage; but…

The United Nations' peacekeeping force in south Lebanon on Friday urged Beirut to ensure a "speedy" investigation into an Irish soldier's shooting death near the Israeli border. The peacekeeper's convoy came under fire late Wednesday near the village of Al-Aqbiya, the Irish military said, wounding three other members of the…

The European Union (EU) allocated this year 229 million euros to reinforce much needed reforms and economic development in Lebanon. It identified several priorities for this new financial package. “The European Union continues to support Lebanon and its people during challenging socio-economic conditions,” the EU delegation to Lebanon said in…

Lebanon has been without a president for over a month, its legislators unable to agree on a new head of state. The impasse is holding up a range of initiatives, from putting into place structural reforms for an International Monetary Fund program to allowing the country’s state-owned television channel to…

Lebanon has been without a president for over a month, and its legislators since late September have been unable to vote for a new president

Lebanon faces an indefinite government crisis that further complicates the path out of its financial meltdown, adding to risks of instability as hardship deepens and state institutions teeter on the brink of collapse.

Already mired in political and economic crises, Lebanon is now also without a president after Michel Aoun's mandate expired without a successor. Cheered on by thousands of supporters, Aoun left the presidential palace on Sunday, a day before his term officially ended. His six years at the helm were marred…