Iraq has officially called for Syria s return to the 22-member Arab League after its 2011 expulsion, just as countries rebuild diplomatic ties to President Bashar al-Assad.
Energy-rich Qatar has given Lebanon's cash-strapped armed forces $60 million, the foreign ministry in Doha announced Thursday."The announcement comes within the framework of the State of Qatar's firm commitment to support the Republic of Lebanon," the ministry said in a statement.Lebanon is grappling with an unprecedented financial crisis, branded by the World Bank as one of the planet's worst since the 1850s.
An election in crisis-hit Lebanon appears to have dealt a setback to the biggest bloc, led by the Iran-backed Shiite Muslim Hezbollah party, and boosted reformists, provisional results showed Monday.Counting was ongoing and official results were only available for 99 of the 128 seats up for grabs a little before midnight (2100 GMT), fuelling opposition fears of foul play in some of the closest races.