Lebanon

Thousands flee including from village hosting at least 2,500 displaced people, one day after Hezbollah rejects ceasefireThousands fled their homes after Israel issued forced evacuation orders for nine villages in southern Lebanon before strikes that killed six people on Friday, a day after the Hezbollah militant group rejected a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Lebanon.Hundreds of families left Anqoun, a village hosting at least 2,500 displaced people, after the Israeli military said it would soon operate against what it said were Hezbollah targets there, ordering residents to leave. The roads leading to Sidon, the closest large city, were choked with cars as families sought shelter. Continue reading...

• US-Iran war talks remain clouded by uncertainty as both Washington and Tehran issue conflicting messages regarding the status of negotiations. • In Lebanon, fighting persists between Israel and Hezbollah, indicating that the fragile ceasefire agreement is failing to hold. • Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited Shlomi in northern Israel on Thursday, reaffirming his commitment to border security while emphasizing a diplomatic approach of flexibility and firmness.

In today’s newsletter: ​Global powers​ are focused on oil markets and elections​ but those living through conflict in the Middle East feel abandonedGood morning. It’s been another week of brinkmanship via Truth Social and ceasefires broken before they’ve been announced.While US president Donald Trump claims an agreement with Iran could happen soon, for those living in the Middle East it does not feel like peace is anywhere near. People have seen more bombs dropped in Lebanon this week; and the death toll continues to rise, national economies falter, and displacement abounds.UK politics | Andy Burnham has signalled he would begin transforming the broken social care system this year if he became prime minister, he has said in an interview with the Guardian, accusing Westminster of “flinching away” from tackling difficult policy problems.Environment | Humanity can raise living standards, reduce inequality and keep global heating within a 2C rise, according to a sweeping vision for planetary survival.Ukraine | The Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, has called for face-to-face negotiations in a public letter addressed directly to the Russian president, Vladimir Putin.England news | The poorest and most nature-deprived communities in England will be further left behind in their access to green spaces if proposed changes to planning laws go ahead, a report finds.UK news | Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor received private income from subletting three cottages on his Windsor Royal Lodge estate while paying a “peppercorn rent” to the crown estate, a report into royal property arrangements has revealed. Continue reading...

Lebanese government agrees ceasefire but Israeli drone strikes continue. Plus the story of the man who launched Cuba’s first independent magazineGood morning.Israel and Lebanon have agreed to implement a ceasefire to end hostilities, the Trump administration has announced – but it comes with caveats. Not only is the deal contingent on a complete cessation of fire from the Iran-aligned Hezbollah armed group, and on the evacuation of all its fighters from the area south of the Litani River – but Hezbollah have not been part of the talks.Where has Israel been targeting? William Christou in Beirut reports that three hospitals in southern Lebanon have been attacked by Israel in under a week, wounding more than 150 people and killing nine. Analysts and human rights experts have said the attacks on healthcare facilities were aimed at degrading the conditions for life in south Lebanon.What did Israel say about it? The military said it had struck “Hezbollah infrastructure in the area of Tyre” and acknowledged a hospital was “affected incidentally”. It accused Hezbollah of “taking over” one of the hospitals it struck.Is that number significant? Yes, the 90-day threshold is important because the 1973 War Powers Resolution lays down that a president must seek congressional approval to continue waging war after hostilities have continued that length of time. Trump’s White House has rejected that argument, citing a temporary ceasefire that has been in place since 8 April – although it has been broken several times by the US, Israel and Iran. Continue reading...

The country’s defence minister said the IDF will not withdraw from southern Lebanon and will not allow the ‘return of the population’Israel and Lebanon agree to renew ceasefire as Trump seeks to overcome barriers to Iran dealIsrael Katz said the US-brokered ceasefire agreement between Israel and Lebanon was a “great achievement in Lebanon, on the ground and also on the diplomatic level”.“We promised security to the residents of the north and we delivered,” the Israeli defence minister said in a statement, according to the Times of Israel. Continue reading...

The US said the ceasefire was contingent on a complete cessation of fire from the Iran-aligned Hezbollah militiaIsrael and Lebanon have agreed to implement a ceasefire to end hostilities, the Trump administration has announced, as the US looks to overcome one of the largest barriers to reaching a broader deal to end the war with Iran.The Israel-Lebanon ceasefire is contingent on a complete cessation of fire from the Iran-aligned Hezbollah militia and the evacuation of all its operatives from the country’s south, a joint statement released by the US state department said after negotiations in Washington. Continue reading...

• Israeli strikes in Lebanon have resulted in at least 1,070 deaths and 2,966 injuries, according to the Ministry of Public Health. • The conflict has displaced over one million people, representing approximately one-fifth of Lebanon's total population. • This mass displacement has triggered a severe humanitarian crisis, compounded by the fact that nearly 25% of the population are already refugees from the Syrian civil war.