Lebanon
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Hajjar says Lebanon in contact with ceasefire committee over municipal polls

Interior Minister Ahmad al-Hajjar revealed Monday that “there are diplomatic contacts with the ceasefire monitoring committee in order to secure holding the municipal elections in a proper manner.”

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UN coordinator says Dahieh strike sparked fear of renewed violence

The United Nations special coordinator for Lebanon, Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, appealed to all sides to halt any actions that could further undermine the ceasefire, after an Israeli airstrike targeted a hangar in Beirut’s southern suburbs.

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Aoun stresses decision to monopolize arms already taken

Limiting weapons to the hand of the Lebanese state is “a decision that has been taken and it is unacceptable to return to the rhetoric of war,” President Joseph Aoun reiterated on Monday.

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Netanyahu says Dahiyeh not safe haven for Hezbollah after strike on 'precision missiles'

Israel said it targeted a Hezbollah store of "precision-guided missiles" in a southern Beirut suburbs air strike on Sunday that prompted President Joseph Aoun to call for French and U.S. intervention.

"Under the instruction of Prime Minister (Benjamin) Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz, the (military) has strongly attacked infrastructure in Beirut where Hezbollah's precision-guided missiles were stored," a statement from Netanyahu's office said.

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Aoun urges US and France to act after Israeli strike on Dahieh

President Joseph Aoun condemned the Israeli airstrike that targeted a hangar in Beirut's southern suburbs on Sunday afternoon, urging the U.S. and France to take action.

"The United States and France, as guarantors of the cessation of hostilities agreement, must assume their responsibilities and compel Israel to immediately cease its attacks," Aoun said in a statement.

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Israeli jets strike hangar in Dahieh after evacuation warning

Israeli jets struck a hangar in Beirut's southern suburbs Sunday after the Israeli army issued a warning about an hour earlier, marking the third Israeli strike on the area since a ceasefire took effect in late November.

A huge plume of smoke billowed over the area after the strike. There were no immediate reports of casualties.

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Israeli drone strike on south Lebanon kills one

Lebanon's health ministry said an Israeli drone strike on a border town Sunday killed one person, the latest attack despite a ceasefire that ended a war between Israel and Hezbollah militants.

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Geagea and Bassil call for Hezbollah disarmament

The leaders of the two biggest Christian parties have both called for the state's monopoly on weapons after Hezbollah was left badly weakened by more than a year of hostilities with Israel.

"We've been missing a real state for 35 years," Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea, a harsh critic of Hezbollah, said Saturday, calling for the state to have monopoly on arms and to be the sole decision maker in the country.

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Why has Hezbollah escalated its rhetoric on arms?

The issue of Hezbollah’s arms is “present on the table of indirect dialogue between President Joseph Aoun and Hezbollah’s leadership” and Speaker Nabih Berri is following up on the matter, the PSP’s al-Anbaa news portal quoted “credible sources” as saying.

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Bitar questions ex-PM Hassan Diab in Beirut port blast case

Former prime minister Hassan Diab appeared Friday before Judge Tarek Bitar for interrogation in the case of the 2020 catastrophic blast at Beirut’s port.

Diab arrived from abroad for the questioning and he reportedly met with Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdul Latif Daryan, who “advised” him to appear before Bitar in order not to be accused of obstructing the investigation.

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