English LCCC Newsbulletin For Lebanese, Lebanese Related, Global News
& Editorials
For June 14/2026
Compiled & Prepared by: Elias Bejjani
#elias_bejjani_news
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Bible Quotations For today
Blessed are the eyes that see what you see! For I tell you that many prophets
and kings desired to see what you see, but did not see it, and to hear what you
hear, but did not hear it.
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Luke 10/21-24:”At that same hour
Jesus rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and said, ‘I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven
and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and the
intelligent and have revealed them to infants; yes, Father, for such was your
gracious will. All things have been handed over to me by my Father; and no one
knows who the Son is except the Father, or who the Father is except the Son and
anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.’ Then turning to the disciples,
Jesus said to them privately, ‘Blessed are the eyes that see what you see! For I
tell you that many prophets and kings desired to see what you see, but did not
see it, and to hear what you hear, but did not hear it.”’
Titles For Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related
News & Editorials published on
13-14 June/2026
Gebran Bassil and Walid Jumblatt are
enemies of Lebanon and are Trojan-horse mercenaries working for Hezbollah
Dhimmi, shortsighted, and ignorant of the concepts of Wilayat al-Faqih is
anyone who equates Israel on one hand, with Iran and Hezbollah on the
other./Elias Bejjani/June 12/2026
Lebanon says death toll from Israeli attacks since March 2 rises to 3,756
Lebanese army soldier injured in Israeli drone strike in Nabatieh area
Lebanon reports Israeli strikes in south after evacuation warning
Israeli warning urges evacuation of Lebanon villages amid military activity
Diplomatic sources: Lebanon insists on separate negotiation track from Iran, US
supports official channel only
Heavy shelling and evacuations mark Israeli push toward Ali al-Taher hill: here
is what we know
Israel strikes south after warning 20 towns in Nabatieh, Jezzine districts
Hezbollah says it confronted Israeli troops advancing in south Lebanon
Report: Aoun asks Hezbollah for written ceasefire proposal
Lebanon rules of engagement shift under US-Iran framework, Israel guidance
changes
US official says Iran war deal 'includes Lebanon'
Vatican envoy's aid convoy stopped by Israeli forces in south Lebanon
Lebanon conflict holds echoes of 1982 — and Israeli failure/Yossi Mekelberg/Arab
News/June 13, 2026
Walid Jumblatt – and the Relationship with Al-Azhar/Nadim Barakat/ X Platform/
June 13/2026
Trump says Iran peace deal to be signed Sunday, opening Hormuz
Iran says signing of Islamabad memorandum will not take place on Sunday
Trump says US will get Iran's enriched uranium when 'all is calm'
Pakistan PM says US-Iran peace deal signing expected within 24 hours
Senior Trump administration official outlines deal Iran agreed to, Vance plays
down rumors
Iran FM says draft US deal to be signed 'remotely', possibly in 'coming days'
US says downed multiple Iran drones as both insist deal closer
Tanker struck by unknown projectile six nautical miles east of Oman, UKMTO says
Funeral for Iran’s late Supreme Leader Khamenei to begin July 4, burial set for
July 9
Migrants deported from US, including an Iranian woman, arrive in Central African
Republic
Ukraine drone strikes kill one, sparks fire at Russian port of Temryuk
UAE denies media reports alleging transfer of funds to Iran
Iranians endure war fatigue and soaring prices as conflict deepens domestic woes
Titles For The Latest
English LCCC analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published
on
13-14 June/2026
Iran's Regime Is Irreformable: Time to End It Once and For All/Dr. Majid
Rafizadeh/Gatestone Institute/June 13, 2026
Geography of wealth ties Sudan’s feuding factions together/Hafed Al-Ghwell/Arab
News/June 13, 2026
Global focus shifts to hot spots beyond Iran/Andrew Hammond/Arab News/June 13,
2026
What if Europe loses access to its climate data?/Bertrand Badre and Stephane
Voisin/Arab News/June 13, 2026
Selected Face Book & X tweets on 13 June/2026
on
13-14
June/2026
Gebran Bassil and Walid Jumblatt are
enemies of Lebanon and are Trojan-horse mercenaries working for Hezbollah.
Elias Bejjani/June 13, 2026
Gebran Bassil has been, still is, and will remain tied by the neck and tongue to
the humiliating ropes of the Party of Satan (a derogatory reference to
Hezbollah). His continued presence as a politician is an insult to free people,
the martyrs, and history.
Walid Jumblatt, a man of abandonment and opportunistic transformations—an
opportunist, a chameleon, and a submissive figure—is alienated and estranged
from the Druze community (Bani Ma‘ruf), their values, pride, patriotism,
dignity, and honor.
Dhimmi, shortsighted, and ignorant of the concepts
of Wilayat al-Faqih is anyone who equates Israel on one hand, with Iran and
Hezbollah on the other.
Elias Bejjani/June 12/2026
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/2026/06/155244/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tjmYqJxPX9Y
The State of Israel is liberating Lebanon from the
occupation of the Iranian and its jihadist Hezbollah, not out of love for
Lebanon or the Lebanese, but because Iran and Hezbollah poses an existential
threat to its entity and its people… Its interests transitionally align with the
interest of Lebanon… Therefore, no equivalence should be made between a
liberator (the State of Israel)—despite all its violence and destructive
capacity—and a barbaric, jihadist, terrorist, and criminal occupier that
destroyed Lebanon, seized its governance, and holds absolute control over its
rulers, while hijacking the Shiite community, stripping it of its Lebanese
identity, taking it hostage, displacing it, destroying its areas, and killing
its youth in the futile wars of the Mullahs. Wisdom, reason, logic, and
foresight dictate that all free people of Lebanon and friendly countries should
not miss the golden opportunity that Israel offers, but should welcome it and
support it by all available means, while at the same time freeing themselves
from the complexes, illusions, hallucinations, and daydreams of the Nasserists,
the nationalists, the rotten left, and the merchants of the lie of resistance.
Dhimmi, shortsighted, and
ignorant of the concepts of Wilayat al-Faqih is anyone who equates Israel on one
hand, with Iran and Hezbollah on the other.
Elias Bejjani/June 12/2026
The State of Israel is liberating Lebanon from the occupation of the Iranian and
its jihadist Hezbollah, not out of love for Lebanon or the Lebanese, but because
Iran and Hezbollah poses an existential threat to its entity and its people...
Its interests transitionally align with the interest of Lebanon... Therefore, no
equivalence should be made between a liberator (the State of Israel)—despite all
its violence and destructive capacity—and a barbaric, jihadist, terrorist, and
criminal occupier that destroyed Lebanon, seized its governance, and holds
absolute control over its rulers, while hijacking the Shiite community,
stripping it of its Lebanese identity, taking it hostage, displacing it,
destroying its areas, and killing its youth in the futile wars of the Mullahs.
Wisdom, reason, logic, and foresight dictate that all free people of Lebanon and
friendly countries should not miss the golden opportunity that Israel offers,
but should welcome it and support it by all available means, while at the same
time freeing themselves from the complexes, illusions, hallucinations, and
daydreams of the Nasserists, the nationalists, the rotten left, and the
merchants of the lie of resistance.
Introduction: Defining Friend and Foe (00:00)
Greetings from Canada, Friday, June 12, 2026. Today’s commentary is titled: "Who
is the Enemy, Who is the Friend, Who is the Occupier, and Who is the Liberator?"
We must look at this without emotions, illusions, or the outdated ideologies of
Pan-Arabism or Political Islam (both Sunni and Shia). Free Lebanese seeking
liberation must identify who occupies our country today and who is actually
trying to free it.
01:07 | The Danger of Political Islam and the "Wilayat al-Faqih" Project
The true enemy is Political Islam. This includes the Iranian regime’s
project—not the Iranian people, but the "Wilayat al-Faqih" system that seeks to
export its revolution and impose a dictatorship through proxies like Hezbollah,
the Houthis, and the PMF. Simultaneously, Sunni Political Islam, represented by
Erdogan’s ambitions in Lebanon and Syria, poses a similar threat. The reality is
that Iran and Hezbollah are the ones currently occupying Lebanon.
02:51 | Hezbollah’s Practices and Tunnel Infrastructure
Hezbollah acts as Iran’s "assassination machine." It has turned Lebanon into a
honeycomb of tunnels, acting like a "mole" that destroys the land from beneath.
From Beirut to the mountains and the South, they have dug tunnels under homes,
schools, hospitals, and even historic sites like the Beaufort Castle (Qala'at
al-Shaqif). This proves this occupier has no respect for Lebanese heritage or
the safety of its citizens.
04:15 | The Shia Community as a Hostage to Iran’s Futile Wars
The Iranian occupier has taken the Shia community hostage, using its youth as
"sacrifices" on the altar of the Iranian regime's futile regional wars. These
fighters are victims of a project that does not serve Lebanon.
04:39 | Israeli Peace Messages and the Legacy of the Cairo Agreement
The Israeli Prime Minister has recently messaged the Lebanese people, stating
they want peace and cooperation, similar to the era before the 1969 Cairo
Agreement. That agreement brought chaos by allowing foreign armed groups
(Palestinian, then Syrian, then Iranian) to control Lebanon. Now, even Turkey is
attempting to exert influence through certain local politicians.
05:28 | Historic Intersection of Interests to Liberate Lebanon
Today, a unique opportunity exists. Israel is not dismantling Hezbollah out of
"charity" for Lebanon, but because Hezbollah and Iran pose an existential threat
to Israel. However, Israeli interests now perfectly align with the interests of
free Lebanese. While Israel uses force, it has shown in the past (such as the
2000 withdrawal) that it has no territorial ambitions in Lebanon. Only those
stuck in the past or fueled by the hatred of Political Islam claim otherwise. We
must recognize Israel as a liberator from Iranian hegemony.
08:03 | Criticism of "Dhimmi" Politicians, Media, and Clergy
Many "subservient" (Dhimmi) journalists and politicians—products of Syrian and
Iranian influence—claim there are "two occupations": Iranian and Israeli. This
is false. Israel is acting in self-defense and has stated it wants peace once
the Hezbollah threat is removed. Many religious leaders are also criticized here
for prioritizing their personal interests over the long-term vision of a free
Lebanon.
09:44 | The Error of Demanding Israeli Withdrawal Before Disarmament
It is foolish for Lebanese leaders to demand an Israeli withdrawal while
Hezbollah is still armed. If Israel leaves now, who will stop Hezbollah? The
current political class is largely compromised or controlled by Hezbollah
through fear and manufactured legal files. The President’s recent interviews
suggest he is still mentally shackled by the "resistance" culture.
11:20 | Refuting Historical Distortions in President Aoun's Interview
The claim that Hezbollah was merely a "result" of Israeli occupation is a
fabrication. Many of Hezbollah's own founders have admitted the group was
created as an Iranian military arm to project power to the Mediterranean.
Claiming Israel is the "aggressor" ignores the fact that Hezbollah initiated the
current conflict to support Gaza and Iran.
13:55 | The Role of Arab States and the "Islamic" vs. "National" Cause
Waiting for the Arab League or other Arab nations to save Lebanon is
unrealistic. Most of these countries have already made their own peace deals
with Israel (officially or unofficially) to serve their own interests. For
Political Islam, the "Palestinian Cause" is a religious issue, not a national
one. Lebanon must prioritize its own national interest, which lies in peace and
normalization.
14:50 | A Historic Opportunity Through the Abraham Accords
Free Lebanese should view the US-led Abraham Accords and Israel as the path to
stability. Our "friends" are those who want peace. Our "enemies" are the Iranian
occupiers and those (like certain regional players) who want to keep Lebanon as
a "battlefield" for their proxy wars. We have gained nothing from decades of
"resistance" slogans except destruction.
18:08 | The Real Distinction: Occupier vs. Liberator and Lebanon’s Future
In summary, we cannot equate Israel with Iran. There is only one occupation
(Iran) and one force currently dismantling it (Israel). Israel’s military
actions are a reaction to attacks launched from Lebanese soil. A responsible
Lebanese official should stop calling for Israeli withdrawal until the
existential threat of Hezbollah is completely dismantled. Lebanon’s future
depends on being free from both Sunni and Shia Political Islam and joining the
regional trend of peace and stability.
Long live Lebanon, freed by its true friends.
Lebanon says death toll from
Israeli attacks since March 2 rises to 3,756
LBCI/13 June ,2026
Lebanon's Health Ministry said the cumulative toll from Israeli attacks between
March 2 and June 13 has risen to 3,756 people killed and 11,632 wounded. The
figures were released by the ministry's Public Health Emergency Operations
Center, which said the numbers reflect the overall casualties recorded during
the period.
Lebanese army soldier injured in Israeli drone strike in
Nabatieh area
LBCI/13 June ,2026
The Lebanese army said Saturday that a soldier was injured in an Israeli drone
strike in southern Lebanon. According to the army, the soldier was first
targeted while passing near the al-Najdeh Hospital in Nabatieh but escaped
without injury. He was later struck again on the Kfar Roummane–Nabatieh road,
where he sustained serious injuries.
Lebanon reports Israeli strikes in south after evacuation warning
Al Arabiya English/13 June ,2026
Lebanon reported Israeli strikes on the country’s south on Saturday as the
Israeli army issued evacuation warnings for more than 20 locations including the
city of Nabatieh ahead of raids there. The state-run National News Agency (NNA)
said Israeli airstrikes hit several areas covered by the warning, including the
villages of Rihan and Sujud, located not far from Nabatieh, and other areas not
mentioned in the evacuation notice. It said an Israeli strike killed a local
official in Rihan, located in the southern region of Jezzine. An AFP
correspondent in Nabatieh said the city was almost deserted and also reported
artillery shelling there and in nearby areas overnight and on Saturday. A day
earlier, the NNA reported explosions and artillery shelling near the Ali Taher
hills overlooking the city. The Israeli army warned residents in 24 locations,
both in and around Nabatieh and nearer to the coast, to “evacuate your homes
immediately and move to the north of the Zahrani River,” around 45 kilometers
(28 miles) from the southern border with Israel. Last month it declared all
areas south of the river “combat zones,” and has been heavily striking the area.
Israel’s military also said its air force on Saturday “intercepted a suspicious
aerial target that crossed from Lebanon into Israeli territory.” Israel and
Hezbollah have been at war since early March when the Iran-backed group drew
Lebanon into the Middle East conflict with rocket fire at Israel to avenge the
killing of Iran’s supreme leader in US-Israeli strikes.Iran insists that Lebanon
must be part of any agreement to end the wider Middle East war, and a senior US
official said Friday that a peace deal with Iran “includes Lebanon.”
‘Test’
Neither Israel nor Hezbollah have respected a ceasefire announced in April, and
a conditional truce deal announced this month after a fourth round of direct
Lebanese Israeli negotiations in Washington has also failed to halt the
fighting. Lebanon says Israel’s massive campaign of airstrikes and ground
invasion have killed more than 3,700 people.Hezbollah has rejected the direct
talks and the conditional agreement, which requires it to cease attacks but
makes no mention of Israel doing so or withdrawing troops from Lebanon.
Lebanon’s leaders have instead accused Tehran of treating the country as a
“bargaining chip.” Hezbollah lawmaker Ali Fayyad on Saturday urged Lebanon to
take advantage of any deal to end the Iran war that includes the country. “We
want the Lebanese state to negotiate for itself, and nobody is suggesting
forfeiting this role,” Fayyad said, “however, the state must abandon the policy
of being crushed in the face of the Israelis and submission to the
Americans.”Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said in a statement on X on Saturday
that Lebanon faces “a fateful test.”“Either its people unite around a sovereign
state that monopolizes weapons, upholds the law and protects citizens
irrespective of their affiliation or position, or it remains hostage to the
logic of militias,” the statement said. Further Israel-Lebanon talks are
scheduled for later this month. With AFP
Israeli warning urges evacuation of Lebanon villages amid
military activity
LBCI/13 June ,2026
The Israeli military issued Saturday a warning to residents in several Lebanese
villages, urging them to evacuate immediately in light of ongoing military
operations. According to the warning, the areas included Ghassaniyeh, Zrariyeh,
Mazraat Kauthariyet el-Rez, and Sir el-Gharbiyeh. Residents were instructed to
leave their homes without delay and move north of the Zahrani River. The Israeli
military said it is acting in response to what it described as violations of the
ceasefire arrangement by Hezbollah, and stressed that its operations are not
directed against civilians. It added that individuals remaining near Hezbollah
members, facilities, or military assets would be exposing themselves to
significant risk.
Diplomatic sources: Lebanon insists on separate negotiation
track from Iran, US supports official channel only
LBCI/13 June ,2026
Diplomatic sources said Lebanon is firmly committed to keeping its negotiation
track separate from any Iran-related talks, describing this approach as
increasingly aligned with positions within the U.S. administration, particularly
the State Department. According to the sources, the official Lebanese state
remains the only legitimate party authorized to conduct negotiations, without
any parallel or overlapping channels. They added that Washington is concerned
about suggestions that alternative negotiation tracks could be endorsed or
capable of producing agreements, warning that such narratives create confusion
around the official process. The sources said these claims are seen as attempts
to undermine Lebanon’s formal negotiations and weaken the state’s position. They
also emphasized that the United States deals exclusively with Lebanese state
institutions and recognizes the official Lebanese delegation in Washington as
the sole authorized body handling the negotiations. On regional dynamics, the
sources noted that Washington is exerting pressure on Israel to achieve tangible
progress in negotiations, while also indicating that Iranian interference is
complicating efforts to reach a ceasefire agreement.
Heavy shelling and evacuations mark Israeli push toward Ali al-Taher hill: here
is what we know
LBCI/13 June ,2026
Israeli forces are attempting to advance toward Ali al-Taher hill. So far,
troops have reached only the base of the hill as developments continue on the
ground. Israeli forces have been gradually advancing inside Kfar Tebnit, south
of the hill, amid gunfire from Hezbollah fighters. The advance has been met with
heavy shelling, which has caused widespread destruction in the area. As the
advance continued, Israeli troops reached the eastern junction leading to the
road toward the hill. The movement suggests efforts to secure the exposed route
before continuing the operation, likely by establishing earthen berms to protect
troops from potential attacks from surrounding areas, particularly Nabatieh al-Fawqa
to the west, and Jarmaq, Mahmoudiyeh, Aaichiyeh, Aaramta, and Sejoud to the
east. What reinforces the assessment that Ali al-Taher is the current objective,
beyond the advance itself, are evacuation warnings issued for surrounding towns
in multiple directions. These include villages to the west and northwest, such
as Deir el-Zahrani, Nmairiyeh, Doueir, Harouf, Habbouch, Kfarjoz, Zebdin,
Nabatieh al-Tahta, and Nabatieh al-Fawqa; to the east, Mahmoudiyeh and Jarmaq;
and to the north and northeast, Sejoud, Rihan, Aaramta, Kfar Houneh, Mlikh, al-Lwaiza,
Jarjouaa, and Arab Salim. The Israeli army appears to be attempting to evacuate
these villages and disrupt Hezbollah activity within them. It has already begun
shelling Kfar Houneh, Rihan, Sejoud, and Mahmoudiyeh as part of preparatory fire
typically preceding a ground advance. The strategic importance of Ali al-Taher
lies in its direct oversight of Nabatieh and its surroundings. If Israel were to
take control of the hill, it would be able to impose artillery and armored fire
control over Nabatieh and nearby villages. Hezbollah has not been heavily
engaged on Ali al-Taher itself, possibly preparing instead for confrontation in
the broader Nabatieh area. The terrain of the hill, lacking forests, valleys, or
dense structures, makes defensive or positional warfare more difficult. Ali al-Taher’s
importance is not only geographic but also military, as it is believed to
contain infrastructure and tunnel networks linked to Hezbollah. Gaining control
of the area would therefore represent both a blow to the group’s military assets
and a step closer to Nabatieh, a city considered a key stronghold in southern
Lebanon. For this reason, a potential battle for Nabatieh is expected to be
particularly difficult, and any further advance could potentially prompt the
group to carry out strikes inside Israel.
Israel strikes south after warning 20 towns in Nabatieh,
Jezzine districts
Agence France Presse/13 June ,2026
Lebanon reported Israeli strikes on the country's south on Saturday shortly
after the Israeli army issued an evacuation warning for 20 locations including
the city of Nabatieh ahead of raids there. The state-run National News Agency (NNA)
said Israeli airstrikes hit several areas covered by the warning, including the
villages of Rihan and Sujud, located not far from Nabatieh. The Israeli army
warning urged residents to "evacuate your homes immediately and move to the
north of the Zahrani River", around 45 kilometers (28 miles) from the southern
border with Israel. The Israeli army last month declared all areas south of the
river "combat zones", and has since been striking the area. The NNA late Friday
reported explosions and artillery shelling near the Ali Taher hills overlooking
Nabatieh. On Friday Hezbollah, which has kept up attacks on Israeli troops who
have invaded south Lebanon, said its fighters had confronted Israeli forces
advancing towards the town of Majdal Zoun. Israel and Hezbollah have been at war
since early March when the Iran-backed group drew Lebanon into the Middle East
conflict with rocket fire at Israel to avenge the killing of Iran's supreme
leader in U.S.-Israeli strikes. Israel launched a massive campaign of airstrikes
and a ground invasion, killing more than 3,700 people in Lebanon, authorities
say. Neither Israel nor Hezbollah have respected an April ceasefire, and a
conditional truce deal announced this month after the fourth round of direct
Lebanese-Israeli negotiations in Washington has also failed to halt the
fighting. Hezbollah has rejected the direct talks and the conditional agreement,
which requires it to cease attacks but makes no mention of Israel doing so or
withdrawing troops from Lebanon. Iran insists that Lebanon must be part of any
agreement to end the wider Middle East war, and a senior U.S. official said
Friday that a peace deal with Iran "includes Lebanon". But Lebanon's leaders
have accused Tehran of treating Lebanon as a "bargaining chip".Hezbollah
lawmaker Ali Fayyad on Saturday urged Lebanon to take advantage of any deal to
end the Iran war that includes the country. "We want the Lebanese state to
negotiate for itself, and nobody is suggesting forfeiting this role," Fayyad
said, "however, the state must abandon the policy of being crushed in the face
of the Israelis and submission to the Americans."President Joseph Aoun said in a
statement on X on Saturday that Lebanon faces "a fateful test"."Either its
people unite around a sovereign state that monopolizes weapons, upholds the law
and protects citizens irrespective of their affiliation or position, or it
remains hostage to the logic of militias," the statement said.
Hezbollah says it confronted Israeli troops advancing in
south Lebanon
Agence France Presse/13 June ,2026
Hezbollah said on Friday its fighters had confronted Israeli forces advancing
towards a southern Lebanese town, as Israel pressed on with its strikes in
Lebanon. In a statement, Hezbollah said its fighters first targeted Israeli
troops advancing towards Majdal Zoun, around five kilometers (three miles) from
the western side of the border, on Thursday evening "with repeated rocket
barrages, forcing them to retreat".It then said it engaged with an advancing
force there on Friday "engaging them with light and medium weapons and rockets".
The group also claimed other attacks on Israeli troops in southern Lebanon. The
Israeli military meanwhile issued an evacuation warning for three southern
Lebanese villages. Lebanon's state-run National News Agency reported a series of
strikes across the south, including on areas not included in the Israeli
warning. The NNA later reported large explosions and artillery shelling near the
Ali Taher hills, which overlook the southern city of Nabatieh. An aid convoy
organized by the Vatican envoy to Lebanon that was headed for southern Christian
villages, whose residents remained despite the conflict, was stopped by the
Israeli military and forced to change course, a convoy member told AFP on
Friday. Lebanon was dragged into the Middle East war on March 2, when Hezbollah
fired rockets at Israel in retaliation for the killing of Iran's supreme leader
Ali Khamenei. Israel has since carried out a massive campaign of strikes and a
ground invasion that have killed more than 3,700 people in Lebanon, while
occupying a large chunk of the country's south. An April ceasefire in Lebanon
was never observed, and the fighting has continued despite a new conditional
truce deal announced last week after Lebanese-Israeli talks in Washington.
Hezbollah rejected the conditional agreement, which requires it to stop
launching attacks but makes no mention of Israel having to cease attacks or
withdraw its troops from Lebanon. Iran insists that Lebanon must be part of any
agreement to end the wider Middle East war.
Report: Aoun asks Hezbollah for written ceasefire proposal
Naharnet/13 June ,2026
President Joseph Aoun, through private channels, has asked Hezbollah, for the
first time, to submit a written proposal for its vision for ending the war with
Israel, a political source close to the Shiite Duo said. "This document is
essential for discussion and feedback; otherwise, we will remain stuck in the
same cycle," the source told al-Joumhouria newspaper. The source anticipated
progress in the coming hours, linked to the progress achieved in
Islamabad.Moreover, al-Joumhouria learned that the meetings held yesterday by
Saudi envoy Prince Yazid bin Farhan with Aoun, Berri, PM Nawaf Salam and several
prominent political figures resulted in narrowing the differences regarding the
negotiating points and priorities.
Lebanon rules of engagement shift under US-Iran framework,
Israel guidance changes
LBCI/13 June ,2026
The terms of the agreement with Iran, along with a phone call between U.S.
President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, have
established new rules of engagement in Lebanon. Under these rules, the political
leadership instructed the military to avoid operations that could violate the
agreement and to limit actions to targeted strikes. The call reportedly included
limited input from Netanyahu, but Trump was understood to have been clear about
implementing the agreement, a development that is raising concern among security
agencies, particularly regarding the balance of power in Beirut, Nabatieh, and
Tyre. Regarding the U.S.-Iran agreement clause related to an Israeli withdrawal
from Lebanon, Israeli officials say the issue will be addressed at a later
stage, as Tel Aviv seeks to maintain a security buffer zone until guarantees are
secured to weaken Hezbollah’s capabilities. So far, according to a military
official, Israel has not received any request to withdraw its forces from
Lebanon, but the situation could change later. This would require the army to
prepare a plan ensuring strong military capability for the future, a scenario in
which Washington may not necessarily stand shoulder to shoulder with its
traditional ally.
US official says Iran war deal 'includes Lebanon'
Agence France Presse/13 June ,2026
The United States is "80 to 85 percent" confident of signing a peace deal with
Iran in the coming days, a senior official in President Donald Trump's
administration said Friday. The deal would involve "significant" sanctions
relief and the unfreezing of Iranian assets, in exchange for Iran agreeing to
dismantle its nuclear program and hand over its nuclear material, the official
said. "I feel very good about the deal. I think the president has gotten to a
very good spot," the senior official told reporters in a call, speaking on
condition of anonymity. "We're not quite at the finish line yet, but we are very
close," A location and date for any deal signing had not yet been decided
although Europe, which Trump had suggested, was a possibility, the US official
said. "We do expect us to be signing this agreement over the next few days. I
can't give you an exact date," the official added. "If I were to give you a
confidence that we were going to be signing this agreement, I maybe would have
said 75 percent this morning, it's probably more like 80-85 percent now, but
it's not 100 percent." The path to a deal began to clear as Iran agreed to
"specificity" on how its enriched uranium would be disposed, the official said.
Washington also believed that Iranian control over the critical Strait of Hormuz
had weakened, added the official. Lebanon would also be included in the deal, a
key issue that has threatened to unravel the process in the past as Israel
continued to strike Iran's Hezbollah allies there. "It includes Lebanon, it
includes Iran, it includes the Gulf Coast countries, and includes Israel," the
official said.
Vatican envoy's aid convoy stopped by Israeli forces in south Lebanon
Agence France Presse/13 June ,2026
An aid convoy organized by the Vatican envoy to Lebanon that was headed for
Christian villages in the country's south was stopped by the Israeli military
and forced to change course, a convoy member told AFP. A number of
Christian-majority villages near the border have been caught up in the fighting
between Israel and Hezbollah but many residents have refused to leave. "While
approaching the village of Debl on Thursday, we got face-to-face with several
Israeli tanks" who stopped the convoy, a member of the convoy told AFP on
condition of anonymity. "There were several tank and machine gun shots towards
rear positions that we could not identify... which caused panic," he added. The
person said it was not clear "whether they wanted to intimidate us or they were
targeting Hezbollah positions". Contacted by AFP, the Israeli military and the
Vatican did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The convoy, led by
the Apostolic Nuncio Paolo Borgia, included 25 trucks and several cars
transporting residents wanting to return home. The route was coordinated with
U.N. peacekeepers through an international committee created to monitor a
ceasefire that sought to end the 2024 Israel-Hezbollah conflict. After being
halted for over an hour, the convoy took another longer route to reach their
destination after 12 hours, the member said. Vincent Gelot, head of Catholic
organization Oeuvre d'Orient which regularly takes part in aid convoys, told AFP
that the people who chose to remain in their villages "are completely isolated
from the rest of the country". "They are deprived of resources because most of
them are farmers. They do not have access to their fields."The villages are
surrounded by areas and localities Israel has warned to evacuate, with Gelot
saying they are "threatened to disappear". On Tuesday, the association of
Christian border villages in southern Lebanon urged authorities to "immediately
open safe humanitarian and medical corridors to ensure the access of citizens,
aid and medical and relief teams to the affected and isolated villages". On June
2, an Israeli drone strike killed a student alongside her father and brother as
she was returning to her border village after sitting for university exams in
Beirut.
Lebanon conflict holds echoes of 1982 — and Israeli failure
Yossi Mekelberg/Arab News/June 13, 2026
It was Mark Twain who famously said that “history doesn’t repeat itself, but it
often rhymes.” In other words, events rarely recur in exactly the same way, but
the similarities can be striking, and often painfully so. The direction in which
the war between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon is heading, frighteningly,
reminds me of what Israel calls the “First Lebanon War of 1982,” as well as
several other Israeli military incursions into its northern neighbor, which
ended with significant losses and no lasting political achievements.
Back in 1982, under the guise of pushing Palestinian militants away from the
Israeli-Lebanese border, Israel fell into the trap of using the attempted
assassination of its ambassador to the UK, Shlomo Argov, as a pretext to launch
a preplanned regime-change operation in Lebanon. The plan had been concocted in
coordination with right-wing Christian factions in the country. It took Israel
18 years to leave Lebanon, and by then the genie was out of the bottle:
Hezbollah, a Shiite movement allied with Iran, had emerged not only as a major
political force but also as a formidable military one, and has posed a constant
threat to communities in northern Israel ever since. Forty years ago, the
decision to embark on what was initially described as an “operation” and later
became a full-scale war was taken by the first Likud Prime Minister, Menachem
Begin, and his hawkish Defense Minister, Ariel Sharon. Together with Mossad,
Sharon was the mastermind behind a wide-ranging plan to destroy the PLO’s
infrastructure in Lebanon, force Syria out of the country, and install a
friendly Christian-dominated government led by Bashir Gemayel, who would then
sign a peace treaty with Israel. At least in theory, it all appeared neat and
carefully thought through, a strategy designed to translate military superiority
into political triumph.
It did not take long, however, for the rapid military advance to Beirut and the
occupation of large parts of Lebanon to collide with the reality of the
country’s deeply fragmented political landscape. Although Gemayel was elected
president as the sole candidate, his assassination marked the beginning of the
end of this grand fantasy and the start of a long nightmare.
To make matters worse, Israel allowed Christian Phalangist forces to enter the
Palestinian refugee camps of Sabra and Shatila in Beirut, where they carried out
a horrific massacre. The episode severely tarnished Israel’s international
reputation and led to widespread condemnation. What followed were 18 years of
the Israeli military struggling in Lebanon’s quagmire. Although Yasser Arafat
and the PLO leadership were forced into exile, the vacuum they left behind paved
the way for Hezbollah, which would prove to be a far more challenging adversary.
More than 40 years later, Israel is once again occupying much of the Lebanese
territory south of the Litani River and, following the recent capture of
Beaufort Castle, has expanded its ground offensive even further. But to what
end?
Weakening Hezbollah, particularly as a military force, is as much in Lebanon’s
interest as it is in Israel’s. This convergence of interests should encourage
Israel to make it easier for its counterpart in Beirut to negotiate a long-term
ceasefire agreement.
Israel has legitimate security concerns regarding Hezbollah, which has attacked
northern Israel and dug tunnels suggesting an intention to infiltrate the
country, potentially enabling elite units to carry out attacks similar to those
perpetrated by Hamas on Oct. 7, 2023. Hezbollah’s close relationship with Tehran
— its principal financial, military, and political backer — makes it a
significant threat to Israeli security.
However, Israel’s response carries the unpleasant scent of the 1982 war. It
appears to be operating under the same false assumption that military force is
the only way to guarantee security and, with it the creation of a permanent
security zone, which would require seizing and holding large areas of territory
without a clear exit strategy. At the same time, this is also being done by
continuing to devastate villages and neighborhoods in southern Lebanon,
displacing more than one million people and repeatedly bombing Hezbollah
strongholds in Beirut. This has resulted in substantial civilian casualties.
According to the Lebanese health minister, almost 3,700 people have been killed
during the conflict, reflecting an approach that failed to provide long-term
security for northern Israel in the past and is likely to also fail in the
future.
What makes the current situation even more dangerous is the presence of the most
right-wing government in Israel’s history, some elements within which appear to
operate with few moral constraints, and even less strategic understanding, are
already contemplating the permanent occupation and settlement of parts of
southern Lebanon, in a move that is linked with the inability to reach an
agreement with Iran and the fast deteriorating situation there, too. On the
Lebanese side, Hezbollah is a different proposition from the PLO. It is fighting
not only to survive Israel’s assault but also to maintain its relevance in
Lebanese politics by presenting itself as the standard-bearer of resistance to
Israel.
There is little doubt that Hezbollah’s close ties to the Iranian regime are
complicating efforts to find a solution. Yet they also create a shared interest
of both the Israeli and Lebanese governments in reducing the threat posed by
Hezbollah and, by extension, Iran. The current Lebanese government, and much of
Lebanese society, is exhausted by being caught in the crossfire between these
opposing forces and is paying a heavy price for a war in which it has little
interest.
Weakening Hezbollah, particularly as a military force, is as much in Lebanon’s
interest as it is in Israel’s. This convergence of interests should encourage
Israel to make it easier for its counterpart in Beirut to negotiate a long-term
ceasefire agreement. Such an agreement could see the Lebanese Armed Forces
deployed all the way to the internationally recognized border, the complete
withdrawal of Israeli forces, and the strengthening of the UN peacekeeping
mission to ensure that Hezbollah does not operate south of the Litani River.
But by relying on overwhelming force, causing significant civilian casualties
and inflicting widespread destruction, Israel has adopted a strategy that
recalls aspects of its conduct in Gaza. This leaves little political space for
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun to negotiate with Israel. Were he to engage
directly with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, let alone reach an
agreement, he could easily be accused of capitulation or even treason, while
Hezbollah portrays itself as the last force to resist occupation and
destruction.
With a general election a pproaching, Netanyahu and his government appear
unlikely to prioritize diplomacy, let alone compromise, unless compelled to do
so by Washington. Instead, there are growing fears that Israel will entrench its
occupation of southern Lebanon while continuing strikes in Beirut. This evokes a
chilling sense of a 1982 deja vu. What would begin as a limited and rapid
military operation could evolve into a prolonged occupation, accompanied by an
enduring resistance movement that would inflict pain on both sides while further
weakening the Lebanese state.
The question, for now, is who has both the capability and the will to stop it.
• Yossi Mekelberg is a professor of international relations and an associate
fellow of the MENA Program at Chatham House. X: @YMekelberg
Arabism
and the Palestinian Cause Were Used as Weapons to Destroy the Druze, Their
Institutions, and Their Identity – The Connection Between the Criminal Arabist
Approach of Gamal Abdel Nasser and the Criminal Arabist Approach of Walid
Jumblatt – and the Relationship with Al-Azhar
Nadim Barakat/ X Platform/ June 13/2026
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/2026/06/155265/
Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser systematically employed the Al-Azhar
institution to legitimize his socialist policies, relying on a comprehensive
legal restructuring of the institution that enabled the regime to integrate
religious discourse with the state’s economic and social policies.
Here we see a similarity between what Abdel Nasser did to the state and what
Jumblatt did to Druze institutions such as property holdings, religious
endowments (waqf), and the sectarian council. In this way, he transformed the
office of the Sheikh al-Aql into a position that merged religion with politics
for the purpose of destroying the Druze, through laws supported by the
“terrorist” Nabih Berri.
It should be noted that all of Jumblatt’s sheikhs attended Al-Azhar and continue
to do so. They received religious education there, and the Sheikh al-Aql, Al-Azhar
projects, and their suspicious associations remain active in Lebanon, as does
cultural exchange with Al-Mahdi schools and the Iranians.
This utilization was carried out through specific mechanisms and religious
rulings (fatwas), including the following aspects:
Legal Engineering and the Nationalization of the Al-Azhar Platform
Before beginning its ideological deployment, the regime sought complete
administrative and financial control over the institution.Al-Azhar Organization
Law No. 103 of 1961—exactly like the law governing the Druze Sectarian Council
and the Sheikh al-Aql: This law abolished Al-Azhar’s historical independence and
made it subordinate to the executive authority (the Ministry of Religious
Endowments). Under it, the President of the Republic directly appointed the
Grand Imam of Al-Azhar, turning the institution into part of the state’s
official apparatus. Jumblatt placed the Sheikh al-Aql and the religious
endowments under his personal control.
Confiscation of Endowments (Awqaf):
Al-Azhar was stripped of its private endowments, which had provided financial
independence from rulers. Religious scholars became state employees paid from
the public treasury, making religious rulings subject to the prevailing
political orientation. The Sheikh al-Aql became a state employee, and Jumblatt
stripped him of all his powers.
Legitimizing Major Socialist Laws
The Al-Azhar sheikhs of that era (such as Sheikh Mahmoud Shaltut) issued fatwas
and statements declaring socialist policies to be a genuine application of the
spirit of Islam. Among the most prominent examples:
Jumblatt allegedly ordered people to return to Islam and formed an alliance with
the Al-Nusra Front and the Muslim Brotherhood in 2014.
Agrarian Reform Laws and Land Seizures
To justify taking land from large landowners, Al-Azhar issued fatwas stating
that private property in Islam is not absolute but rather restricted by the
public interest. These rulings relied on the legal principle that “the ruler may
restrict what is otherwise permissible” and on measures taken by Caliph Umar ibn
al-Khattab during the Year of Ashes, arguing that expropriation with
compensation achieved justice and prevented monopolies.
He allegedly seized mountain lands through forgery, restrictive construction
permit laws, extortion, Ministry of Agriculture projects, cooperatives, and
other suspicious activities, with Nora Jumblatt allegedly playing the largest
role.
Nationalization Laws
The nationalization of factories and major companies was justified as protecting
the people’s livelihood from “capitalist greed.” Essential means of production
were considered public benefits that individuals could not monopolize, based on
the prophetic saying: “People are partners in three things: water, pasture, and
fire.”
This is linked to Siblin, hospitals, institutions, and obstructing development
projects.
Establishing the Concept of Islamic Socialism
Al-Azhar’s role went beyond issuing temporary fatwas and extended to creating a
complete jurisprudential foundation for the Nasserist project under the slogan
Socialism is the essence of Islam.
The Druze Sectarian Council and the Sheikh al-Aql allegedly became offices of
the Socialist Party promoting Islamization.Official Al-Azhar publications (such
as Al-Azhar Magazine) were mobilized to publish studies claiming that Islam had
anticipated Marxism in formulating a just socialist system, but that it
surpassed Marxism because it represented a “faith-based socialism” that
preserved spiritual values and conditional, non-exploitative private ownership.
Jumblatt: Al-Duha newspaper and Al-Anbaa newspaper.
Invoking History and Heritage
Al-Azhar’s discourse focused on figures such as Abu Dharr al-Ghifari, portraying
him as the first socialist in Islam. Zakat and social solidarity were presented
as early forms of progressive taxation and wealth redistribution implemented by
the modern state.
Confronting Political and Ideological Opponents
The regime used Al-Azhar’s fatwas as a religious shield and justification in its
political battles.
Likewise, the Sheikh al-Aql was allegedly used as a tool and cover for political
conflicts, with religion and “taqiyya” employed in the battles of Idlib and
Suwayda, fearmongering about Shiites during the 2022 elections, and other
matters.
“Mukhtara under red seal!” (an expression implying closure, condemnation, or
being officially shut down
The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published
on
13-14
June/2026
Trump says Iran peace deal to be signed
Sunday, opening Hormuz
LBCI/13 June ,2026
U.S. President Donald Trump said a long-awaited deal to end the war in the
Middle East is scheduled to be signed on Sunday, paving the way for the opening
of the strategic Strait of Hormuz. "The Deal is scheduled to get signed
tomorrow, and immediately after it is signed, the Hormuz Strait is OPEN TO ALL,"
Trump said in a post on his Truth Social platform on Saturday. Trump's
statement, however, ran counter to Iran's foreign ministry, which indicated
earlier in the day that the deal would not be signed on Sunday, according to
state media reports. AFP
Iran says signing of Islamabad memorandum will not take
place on Sunday
Reuters/13 June ,2026
The exact timing of the signing of the Islamabad memorandum will not be on
Sunday, Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said, according to
state media on Saturday.
Baghaei said the possibility of signing the Islamabad memorandum in the coming
days could not be ruled out but added that caution was needed regarding any
comment on the signing date due to the hesitation of the other side.
Trump says US will get Iran's enriched uranium when 'all is
calm'
LBCI/13 June ,2026
President Donald Trump said the United States would find and destroy Iran's
enriched uranium when the region is calmer, as he announced that a deal to end
the war would be signed on Sunday. "When all is calm, we will go in and get the
Nuclear Dust, buried deep under the powerful sunken granite mountains, thanks to
our beautiful B-2 Bombers and their brilliant pilots, and downblend and destroy
it, whether in Iran, or the United States," he said on social media Saturday.
AFP
Pakistan PM says US-Iran peace deal signing expected within
24 hours
Reuters/13 June ,2026
Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said on Saturday that the United States
and Iran have agreed to a framework for a peace deal that would end the
months-long conflict in the Middle East, with a final text of the deal reached.
Pakistan is now preparing for an electronic signing expected within the next 24
hours followed by technical level talks next week, Sharif added.
Senior Trump administration official outlines deal Iran
agreed to, Vance plays down rumors
Al Arabiya English/13 June ,2026
US VP hit back at critics in an apparent swipe at Republican lawmakers and
commentators who have publicly criticized President Donald Trump’s pursuit of a
deal US Vice President JD Vance on Friday played down recent reports on the
potential Iran deal, saying that Tehran would not receive any cash and no funds
would be released “for simply signing a deal or attending a meeting.”In a post
on X, Vance said the deal was structured so that Iran would gain economic
benefits if it met “its obligations.”The vice president also hit back at critics
in an apparent swipe at Republican lawmakers and commentators who have publicly
criticized US President Donald Trump’s pursuit of a deal “People who (rightly)
said Donald Trump was a historic president a month ago now criticizing a deal
based on unconfirmed media reports,” Vance said. “The president is going to get
us a good outcome, one way or the other,” he added.Meanwhile, a senior Trump
administration official told Al Arabiya English the details about what Iran has
agreed to:
Nuclear material will be destroyed and removed
Nuclear program will be dismantled
None of their money released until they perform
Strait of Hormuz will be open
No Iran funding of terrorist groups
“This is what they have agreed to. This is a performance-based deal,” the
official said.
Iran FM says draft US deal to be signed 'remotely',
possibly in 'coming days'
Agence France Presse/13 June ,2026
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said that upon finalization, a draft
deal with the United States would be signed "remotely", which could happen "in
the coming days." "As soon as the final stages of our negotiations are
completed, this agreement will be signed and announced. The signing will
initially take place digitally. Each side will sign remotely. After that, it
will be announced that this memorandum of understanding has been signed by both
parties," said Araghchi in an interview with state television. "This could
happen in the coming days. I am very hopeful."Araghchi had earlier said that a
framework dubbed the "Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding" aimed at ending the
war with the United States which broke out on February 28 "has never been
closer." On Thursday, U.S. President Donald Trump said he had called off planned
strikes on Iran and claimed a deal to end the war could be signed soon. In his
interview, Araghchi said he would announce details of the framework once it was
"concluded and finalized" and that going into details now would risk "jeopardising
the signing of the deal."He said the draft deal included ending the U.S. naval
blockade of Iranian ports, in place since April 13, and arrangements on managing
the strategic Strait of Hormuz. Traffic through Hormuz, a vital global shipping
route, has come under Iranian control since the outbreak of war with the United
States and Israel on February 28. Iran, which has only allowed a trickle of
ships to pass through the strait, has insisted that vessels obtain permission
from its armed forces before transiting. The naval blockade must be completely
lifted. That is the first point mentioned in the agreement," Araghchi said.
"Iran has made a firm decision that the administration of Strait of Hormuz will
no longer be the same as before," he noted, adding that discussions were ongoing
with Oman on the matter. He said Hormuz was among Iran's "main instruments of
deterrence". He confirmed that details of Iran's nuclear programme including its
stockpile of highly enriched uranium -- contentious issue for Washington --
would be discussed during a 60-day period following the signing of the
framework. "Our position has always been that the only way to deal with the
stockpile of enriched material is to dilute it inside Iran," said Araghchi.
During the interview, he warned against attempts to sabotage the potential deal
especially by Israel. "I must frankly say that this agreement has enemies, the
foremost of which is the Zionist regime, who are looking for pretexts to derail
it," he said.
US says downed multiple Iran drones as both insist deal
closer
Agence France Presse/13 June ,2026
The United States said it downed multiple Iranian drones targeting commercial
ships in the Strait of Hormuz early Saturday, hours after both sides said a deal
to end the Middle East war was closer than ever. The interception came after
weeks of halting talks between Tehran and Washington, mediated by Pakistan, that
have been marked by threats and exchanges of fire despite a fragile truce agreed
in April. U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM), which oversees operations in the
region, posted on X that Iran had "launched multiple one-way attack drones in an
attempt to strike commercial ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz". "U.S.
forces have downed all of them in recent hours as traffic flow through the
strait continues unimpeded," it said. CENTCOM added that the Strait of Hormuz --
a key maritime trade route for oil and gas from the Gulf -- "remains open for
transit", despite an Iranian-enforced blockade since the start of the war.
Disagreements between the two sides have persisted, with Iranian state media
publishing a breakdown of what was purportedly on the table that was at odds
with Washington's account.
"The Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding has never been closer," Iran's
foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, wrote in a social media post, referring to the
Pakistani capital that hosted previous U.S.-Iran talks. Trump -- who on Friday
morning accused the Iranians of negotiating in bad faith and misrepresenting the
terms that had been agreed -- posted a screenshot of Araghchi's message on his
own feed just hours later. But state broadcaster IRIB reported Araghchi as
saying that until a complete agreement was reached on all issues, "it cannot be
said with certainty that an understanding has been achieved with the United
States".Araghchi provided some details on the agreement in an interview with
state television, saying it calls for the lifting of the U.S. naval blockade of
Iran's ports and unspecified changes to the administration of the Strait of
Hormuz. He also said the only way to deal with the country's enriched uranium --
which Washington alleges is part of a nuclear weapons programme -- "is to dilute
it inside Iran".
'Not 100 percent' -
Disputing Trump's "bad faith" accusation, Iranian foreign ministry spokesman
Esmaeil Baqaei said an agreement had now been reached with Washington "on most
points". Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, whose country has been a key
mediator since the initial talks, confirmed that "a final, agreed-upon text of
the peace deal has been reached". "Peace has never been as close as it is now,"
Sharif said, while acknowledging "incessant misinformation" surrounding the
deal. A senior U.S. official also voiced optimism that the parties would be
"signing this agreement over the next few days". "If I were to give you a
confidence that we were going to be signing this agreement, I maybe would have
said 75 percent this morning, it's probably more like 80-85 percent now, but
it's not 100 percent," the official told reporters in a call. The Swiss foreign
ministry on Friday said it had been in contact with both the United States and
Iran, and had "proposed Switzerland as the venue for a possible signing, should
the parties agree to it". But Araghchi said that upon finalization, a draft deal
with the United States would be signed "remotely", adding that this could happen
"in the coming days". U.S. ally Israel has said that Trump had promised it that
any agreement would see Iran stripped of its enriched nuclear material, but
Tehran's official IRNA news agency said this was not even on the table.
'Benefits will flow'
According to IRNA's account, after an initial agreement is signed, Iran and the
United States would hold 60 more days of talks and "Iran's right to enrich
uranium and the retention of enriched material... will be emphasised with a view
to their inclusion in the final agreement".
Beyond this, according to IRNA, Iran would insist on managing traffic through
the Strait of Hormuz, which Tehran has blockaded since the outbreak of the war,
causing major disruptions to the global economy. On Friday, Iran's Mehr news
agency, quoting a source close to the country's negotiating team, said the deal
would also see the release of $24 billion in frozen Iranian assets. But those
details clashed with a summary offered by a senior White House official, who
told AFP Iran had agreed to dismantle its nuclear program, destroy its enriched
uranium stockpile and reopen the strait -- and that Tehran would not see any of
its frozen funds returned until it had honored these commitments. U.S. Vice
President JD Vance likewise said Iran was "not receiving any cash, and no funds
are being released for simply signing a deal or attending a meeting". But, he
added, if "Iran meets its obligations, then economic benefits will flow to them
and to the entire region".
Tanker struck by unknown projectile six nautical miles east
of Oman, UKMTO says
Reuters/13 June ,2026
A tanker was struck by an unknown projectile in its port bow off the coast of
Oman, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said on Saturday.
UKMTO said the incident had occurred on Friday, 6 nautical miles east of Oman.
The crew were reported safe and there was no reported environmental impact,
while the tanker was continuing to its next port of call.
Funeral for Iran’s late Supreme Leader Khamenei to begin
July 4, burial set for July 9
Al Arabiya English/13 June ,2026
The funeral for Iran’s late Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei will begin in Tehran on
July 4 and conclude with his burial in his hometown, the northeastern city of
Mashhad, on July 9, state media reported on Saturday. Khamenei was killed on the
first day of Israeli and US airstrikes against Iran on February 28. The
86-year-old cleric had been at the helm of the Islamic Republic for 36 years.
The funeral arrangements will include ceremonies on July 7 in the holy city of
Qom, south of Tehran, media said. During his rule, Khamenei built Iran into a
powerful anti-US force, spreading its military sway across the Middle East
through proxy forces such as Hezbollah in Lebanon, while using an iron fist to
crush outbreaks of unrest at home. Khamenei remained a strong critic of the
United States throughout his rule, while successive US administrations tried
unsuccessfully to resolve a dispute with Iran over its nuclear program. The
airstrike that killed him pulverized his central Tehran compound. His
56-year-old son Mojtaba, who also lost his wife in the airstrike and was himself
injured, succeeded his father as Supreme Leader. Pakistan’s Prime Minister
Shehbaz Sharif said on Saturday that Iran and the United States had agreed on a
framework for a peace deal after more than three months of war and are expected
to sign the initial deal in the next 24 hours.
Migrants deported from US, including an Iranian woman, arrive in Central African
Republic
The Associated Press/13 June ,2026
A flight carrying at least two dozen migrants, including an Iranian woman facing
persecution in her home country, landed in the Central African Republic on
Friday. It is the latest example of the Trump administration’s widely criticized
deals with African and Latin American nations to take third-country deportees.
The Central African Republic, a deeply impoverished country plagued by conflict,
is one of at least nine African nations with this type of agreement. Under a
series of often-secret agreements that are part of a broad US crackdown on
immigration, the Trump administration has deported thousands of people to nearly
two dozen countries that are not their own, advocates say. The Trump
administration uses deportations to third countries as a legal loophole to
indirectly force asylum seekers back to their home countries, immigration
lawyers said. It was unclear exactly how many migrants were on the deportation
flight that left Louisiana late Thursday on the way to the Central African
Republic’s capital, Bangui. Some of the migrants are temporarily staying at a
firefighters’ base near the US Embassy compound under construction in Bangui,
while others will be housed at other locations, according to a source close to
the embassy. The source, who spoke on condition of anonymity as they were not
allowed to speak publicly on the matter, also said women and men were separated
upon arrival. Among those set to be deported Thursday were people from Iran,
Jordan, Armenia, Turkey, Georgia and Afghanistan, according to Ali Rahnama,
interim executive director of the Iranian American Legal Defense Fund, who has
been in touch with some of the migrants. Three Iranian women in the US were
originally scheduled to be sent to the Central African Republic, according to
Sahar Jalili Pawelski, one of their immigration lawyers, who said two of them
received emergency court orders temporarily stopping their deportation while
judges reviewed whether the government was acting legally.
All had been granted court protection against deportation to Iran after judges
ruled they faced credible fears of persecution, Rahnama said.“Despite being
granted withholding of removal, these individuals are being removed from the
United States and abandoned in a country where they have no status, no
connection and no support network. We fear they will ultimately be forced to
return to the countries they originally fled,” Emily Trostle, an attorney
representing two of the women, said Friday. The US Department of Homeland
Security on Thursday would not comment on the case, saying it would not confirm
future removal operations for security reasons. US Immigration and Customs
Enforcement did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The Central
African Republic has been plagued by years of conflict between pro-government
forces and armed groups and is one of the poorest countries in the world.
Despite vast reserves of gold, one in three people live on less than $2 a day.
It also is one of the countries where Wagner, a Russian mercenary group, was
first active in Africa. The group has been responsible for President
Faustin-Archange Touadera’s security and fighting rebel groups. The country
remains one of Russia’s closest allies in Africa, despite recent tensions
between Touadera and Moscow over Russia’s push to replace Wagner with the
state-controlled Africa Corps. Rahnama of the Iranian American Legal Defense
Fund expressed concerns about an Iranian asylum seeker being sent to the Central
African Republic, noting Russia’s influence in the country and Moscow’s close
security ties with Iran. The International Organization for Migration, a
UN-affiliated agency, will “provide post-arrival humanitarian assistance” to the
migrants at the request of the Central African authorities, a spokesperson said.
The US earlier this year awarded $85 million to the IOM for operations in the
Central African Republic to provide “assistance to migrants” and promote
“community stabilization.”
Ukraine drone strikes kill one, sparks fire at Russian port
of Temryuk
Reuters/13 June ,2026
A Ukrainian drone attack killed one person and sparked a fire at a sea terminal
in the southern Russian port of Temryuk, in the Krasnodar region, Governor
Veniamin Kondratiev said on Saturdayon the Telegram messaging app. Ukraine’s
military and the SBU security service said that Ukrainian drones hit several
targets in Russia during overnight attacks – the oil and gas terminal in the
Russian Krasnodar region and also an oil processing and pumping facility in the
Volgograd region. Ukraine continues to pummel Russia’s energy infrastructure as
peace talks to resolve the four-year Ukraine war have stalled. Ukrainian drones
hit the Tamanneftegaz oil and gas terminal in the Russian Krasnodar region,
striking five fuel tanks and also two oil loading stands, the SBU security
service said. It said fires were burning in the area of the Tamanneftegaz
freight transport depot and its storage facilities.Temryuk was previously
targeted by Ukrainian drones in late May, when Kyiv’s security service said it
had struck a gas terminal there. A separate strike on Saturday sparked a fire in
an industrial area of the Kotovo district in the Volgograd region, regional
authorities said, citing Governor Andrei Bocharov. Bocharov did not disclose
details of the damage or identify the facilities affected. The Ukrainian General
Staff said that its troops hit the oil processing and pumping facility near the
town of Kotovo in the Volgograd region, causing a fire. It said that the
facility handles processing, transportation, and pumping of oil via pipelines to
Russian oil refineries and its export infrastructure. On June 1 Reuters reported
that the Lukoil-owned Volgograd oil refinery in Russia’s south has suspended oil
processing since May 29 following a Ukrainian drone attack.
UAE denies media reports alleging transfer of funds to Iran
WAM/June 13, 2026
ABU DHABI: The UAE has categorically denied reports published by certain
international media outlets alleging the transfer of funds from the UAE to the
Iran, including allegations concerning $3 billion. In a statement, the Ministry
of Foreign Affairs affirmed that these allegations are entirely false and
unfounded, stressing that no frozen Iranian funds have been released,
transferred, or facilitated through the UAE. The Ministry also called on media
outlets to exercise accuracy, rely on official sources, and refrain from
publishing or circulating unverified information and unfounded allegations.
Iranians endure war fatigue and soaring prices as conflict deepens domestic woes
AP/June 13, 2026
CAIRO: Iranians are living between confusion and exhaustion as the country and
its economy are squeezed between war and multiplying crises at home. US
President Donald Trump said Thursday that he called off fresh strikes on Iran as
he claimed a deal to end the war was imminent. Back-and-forth strikes earlier
this week pushed a shaky ceasefire to the edge of collapse, which, if it
happens, would inflict more havoc on Iran’s battered economy. Strikes on steel
and petrochemical industries and energy infrastructure earlier in the war have
spurred a wave of business closures and job losses in Iran, where people now
struggle to afford groceries in the face of triple-digit food inflation.
Many Iranians are desperate for peace
Along with the cratering economy, the spectre of war has left many people
desperate for an end to the turmoil and deeply anxious about the future. Huraz
Ahmadi, a 19-year-old street vendor in the capital of Tehran, said he feared
renewed fighting. “I don’t think they will reach an agreement, given the way
things are going. But I hope they make a deal. An agreement is much better than
war,” Ahmadi said. “In wars, innocent and good people die. I personally lost a
relative.”In the past year, Iranians have faced two wars – first Israel’s 12-day
war in 2025 against Iran followed by a joint assault with the US that began on
Feb. 28. Both attacks were launched in the middle of talks about Iran’s nuclear
program. Fresh US strikes on Monday sowed confusion in Iran’s capital following
growing optimism that Tehran and Washington were nearing a deal. One Tehran
resident in his late 20s said the echo of explosions and air defenses in the
capital triggered “maybe a half hour of panic.” Long lines formed at gas
stations, but people returned within hours to “living normally,” he said.
“War is also becoming normal. And that is very upsetting,” the resident said,
speaking on the condition of anonymity out of security fears. “Everybody is
stressed out for a thousand reasons,” he added. “Our lives are constantly in
this political game where we can’t plan anything or know what’s going to
happen.”
A country ‘tired of instability’
A critical demand in talks for Iranian negotiators is that the US deliver some
kind of sanctions or economic relief, besides lifting a naval blockade that has
throttled Iran’s oil exports as well as imports of raw materials and other
goods. Many business owners are struggling to survive, a member of a council
representing Iranian industrialists said. “The main concern of many
industrialists and entrepreneurs is the survival of their businesses and
production. The concern is about the disruption of the supply chain of raw
materials, parts and machinery due to the cruel US blockade,” Mehdi Bostanchi
said. Tehran-based Bostanchi, who owns a company that makes ventilation systems,
is part of a trade group for factory owners across Iran. Its members include
textile, food and metal producers and printing firms. Bostanchi said uncertainty
over any deal to end the war is stifling the ability of businesses to plan ahead
and look toward any kind of recovery. “Society is tired of instability and does
not want a wider war to break out,” he added. Iran’s rial currency has also lost
over half its value in the past year. Exchange rates have crashed to around 1.8
million rials to the dollar, compared with 41,600 rials 10 years ago.
Economic woes stoke unrest and fear
The deepening economic problems have stoked unrest in Iran. In January, security
forces shot thousands of anti-government protesters in the streets. Arrests of
protesters and those expressing support for them has continued through the war.
Alongside fear of their own leaders, Iranians who oppose the government also
fear a return to open war, said a social media influencer and therapist who
lives in central Tehran and has participated in past anti-government protests.
“The war isn’t anything but destruction for us. And in reality, the attacks that
happened killed a number of ordinary people and destroyed a number of homes and
residential buildings,” she said, speaking on the condition of anonymity out of
fear of retribution. Residents contacted by The Associated Press also expressed
worries that renewed conflict would lead Iranian authorities to cut Internet
service again. Repeated blackouts since the January protests have crippled what
was a strong digital economy and stoked job losses. A partial restoration has
seen a limited uptick in connectivity.
Next steps are unclear
A few hours after threatening to launch further attacks, Trump posted on social
media that significant points in the negotiations “have been brought to the
highest level of Iranian leadership and approved.” But a spokesperson for the
Iranian Foreign Ministry, Esmail Baghaei, said in a live phone call on state
television that mediators were active and nothing had been finalized to end the
conflict. Iran’s ability to withstand US-Israeli assaults and to close the
globally strategic Strait of Hormuz has also rallied the Islamic Republic’s
hard-liner base. Authorities have organized nightly rallies in past weeks as
they try to project popular support for a tough stance in US talks. Hamid Reza
Bani Ebrahimi, a 47-year-old merchant, said he opposed any agreement that would
limit what he sees as Iran’s right to enrich uranium and develop nuclear
technology. Israel and the US have repeatedly struck sites and figures linked
with the country’s atomic program. “Our scientists worked so hard to acquire
this technology, and then they came and martyred them,” Bani Ebrahimi said.
Abdullah Hosseini, a 45-year-old university professor in Tehran, said Iranian
strikes on Gulf states and Jordan this past week were part of an effort to deter
further attacks. “I don’t like war. I am extremely worried about people and
children being killed,” Hosseini said. “But sometimes war is necessary, and now
is the time for Iran to stand against its enemy.”But Tehran-based analyst Rahman
Ghahremanpour said the back-and-forth strikes this week had deepened concerns in
Iran that the conflict “could turn into a crisis without end and in reality make
running the country more difficult” in the face of economic pressures. “Both
America and Iran are looking for a way out of this situation with honor and
claiming victory so they can strengthen their own domestic situation,” he said.
on
13-14
June/2026
Iran's Regime Is Irreformable: Time to End
It Once and For All
Dr. Majid Rafizadeh/Gatestone
Institute/June 13, 2026
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/2026/06/155267/
Iran's rulers might sign a piece of paper -- as Palestine Liberation
Organization (PLO) Chairman Yasser Arafat did with Israeli Prime Minister
Yitzhak Rabin with the 1993 Oslo Accord – but, like the PLO, its fundamental
goals will not change.
The regime cannot abandon "Death to America" or "Death to Israel" without
dissolving its own reason for being. Leaving it in place only ensures that it
will dig its hooks in even deeper -- especially after President Donald J. Trump
leaves office and his successor possibly turns to interests more enjoyable than
"enforcement."
Iran's regime will not change -- especially not for "infidels." Deals simply buy
time for the regime to rebuild its power. Deals do not alter core behavior.
If the regime wanted reform, it could easily have renounced those slogans and
stopped sponsoring terrorism. Any negotiations or deals that leave the current
system intact simply grant it "oxygen," resources, and time to rebuild
capabilities aimed at annihilating its perceived enemies, foreign and domestic.
The West's -- particularly the United States' -- most important decision is
recognizing that the Iranian regime simply cannot be reformed. No deal will
essentially alter it. It will continue its objectives, its terrorism, and its
oppression. We should not be deceived by tactical "moderates" fronting for the
IRGC.
The regime's revolutionary identity has brought only suffering -- for Americans,
for Iran's neighbors in the Gulf, for Israelis, and especially for the Iranian
people. Ending this regime is the only path to peace.
Iran's regime cannot abandon "Death to America" or "Death to Israel" without
dissolving its own reason for being. Leaving it in place only ensures that it
will dig its hooks in even deeper -- especially after President Donald J. Trump
leaves office and his successor possibly turns to interests more enjoyable than
"enforcement."
We have seen in the last few weeks — and for the last 47 years — that Iran's
regime is not one with which any responsible actor should seek a deal. Iran's
rulers might sign a piece of paper -- as Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO)
Chairman Yasser Arafat did with Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin with the
1993 Oslo Accord – but, like the PLO, its fundamental goals will not change.
Iran's regime is fundamentally revolutionary. It seized power in 1979 with an
identity rooted in anti-Americanism, anti-Semitism, and the suppression of
Iranians seeking liberty. This identity defines it. Even if individual figures
shift or new "moderates" appear at the negotiating table, the underlying
revolutionary structure endures. The regime cannot abandon "Death to America" or
"Death to Israel" without dissolving its own reason for being. Leaving it in
place only ensures that it will dig its hooks in even deeper -- especially after
President Donald J. Trump leaves office and his successor possibly turns to
interests more enjoyable than "enforcement."
For 47 years, through multiple U.S. administrations and various agreements,
chants of "Death to America" and "Death to Israel" have continued, as have, to
this day, repression and mass executions inside Iran. Past deals, such as the
JCPOA in 2015, empowered Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) to grow
stronger and expand the terrorism of its regional proxies.
Its anti-Americanism, its hatred toward Israel -- and its hatred toward the
Iranian people who yearn for freedom -- remain, in the minds of their rulers,
the very reason for the country's existence ever since it began its reign by
holding 66 Americans hostage, most of them for more than a year. The regime will
pursue its goals as long as the core system of the Supreme Leader and the IRGC
remains in place.
Despite efforts, including Trump's, to pursue diplomatic deals and avoid broader
war, the Iranian regime has continued its belligerent actions, including the
recent downing of a U.S. helicopter and strikes on targets linked to U.S.
interests in Bahrain, Kuwait, and Jordan.
Iran's regime will not change -- especially not for "infidels." Deals simply buy
time for the regime to rebuild its power. Deals do not alter core behavior.
If the regime wanted reform, it could easily have renounced those slogans and
stopped sponsoring terrorism. Any negotiations or deals that leave the current
system intact simply grant it "oxygen," resources, and time to rebuild
capabilities aimed at annihilating its perceived enemies, foreign and domestic.
We have witnessed so-called moderates or negotiators making promises, while the
IRGC directs policy, launches attacks, and consolidates power.
Half-measures and endless negotiations have failed – for nearly half a century.
Any new policy should rest on four pillars:
First, unwavering solidarity with Israel. As a frontline state sharing the same
existential threats -- but even more immediately -- from the regime, Israel
possesses unparalleled intelligence networks within Iran and a profound
understanding of its operations. The US and Israel share aligned strategic
interests against a common adversary that views both countries as enemies to be
destroyed.
Second, any attempts by the regime to rebuild nuclear energy or missile
capabilities should be met with immediate, decisive force to degrade those
assets.
Third, intensify economic pressure. Sanctions, blockades, and targeted financial
restrictions must remain robust and, where possible, expand. By denying the
regime revenue from oil and other resources, its ability to fund nuclear and
missile development, terrorist proxies, and domestic security forces can be
curtailed. Economic isolation will weaken the pillars that sustain the
theocracy's hold on power.
Finally, genuine support for the Iranian people themselves offers the most
promising lever for change. Millions of Iranians reject the fundamentalist rule
and long for freedom, but face a heavily armed, crushing apparatus that mows
down protesters and stifles dissent. Empowering these voices that seek freedom
through material assistance, weapons, communications support, and defensive
capabilities help the population -- once armed and organized -- to successfully
challenge its oppressive regime, just as in America's founding fathers' struggle
against British colonial rule. The Iranian people, however, need to be
generously aided with the tools to level the playing field.
The West's -- particularly the United States' -- most important decision is
recognizing that the Iranian regime simply cannot be reformed. No deal will
essentially alter it. It will continue its objectives, its terrorism, and its
oppression. We should not be deceived by tactical "moderates" fronting for the
IRGC.
The regime's revolutionary identity has brought only suffering -- for Americans,
for Iran's neighbors in the Gulf, for Israelis, and especially for the Iranian
people. Ending this regime is the only path to peace.
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/22598/iran-regime-is-irreformable
*Dr. Majid Rafizadeh is a political scientist, Harvard-educated analyst, and
board member of Harvard International Review. He has authored several books on
the US foreign policy. He can be reached at dr.rafizadeh@post.harvard.edu
Follow Majid Rafizadeh on X (formerly Twitter)
© 2026 Gatestone Institute. All rights reserved. The articles printed here do
not necessarily reflect the views of the Editors or of Gatestone Institute. No
part of the Gatestone website or any of its contents may be reproduced, copied
or modified, without the prior written consent of Gatestone Institute.
on 13
June/2026
Nadim Koteich
Iran’s MP threatens to wipe Baku off the map in “3-4 hours.”Keep
talking, clowns. The world is done with your lunatic regime. The map is being
redrawn, and soon the regime in Tehran will get erased. Your collapsing
theocracy is next.
Jonathan Elkhoury- جوناثان الخوري
From Tel Aviv to Beirut , our rainbow is stronger than
fear, louder than hate, and bigger than any border. As an Israeli-Lebanese gay
man, I carry two homes in my heart: Lebanon and Israel.Today I walked alongside
@Noatishby at Tel Aviv pride holding the Lebanese flag and Israeli flag with a
clear message From Tel Aviv to Beirut: Our rainbow stretches across the
Mediterranean, serving as a bridge between our two peoples. We are people. We
are families, citizens, dreamers, and builders of peace. As Lebanon and Israel
engage in peace talks, I believe that only peace can protect the diversity of
our region and allow all its people to live, love, be safe, and prosper.
And yes, WE WANT PEACE!
Not as a slogan.
Not as a dream.
But as a future we build together.
Happy Pride, Tel Aviv.
Happy Pride, Beirut.
Tom Harb
It is now time to elevate the negotiating team to the Foreign
Ministers level, involving Lebanon’s FM @YoussefRaggi , Israel’s FM @gidonsaar ,
and U.S. Secretary @SecRubio Their direct engagement will expedite the process
and help put forward acceptable solutions to achieve the objectives.
Barak Ravid
President Trump will hold a separate bilateral meetings with
leaders of Qatar, UAE and Egypt on Tuesday on the sidelines of the G7 summit,
U.S. official says. Netanyahu is not expected to attend
Hussain Abdul-Hussain
Shout out to two dear friends and staunch proponents of peace in
the Middle East:
@MorganOrtagus and Antoun Sehnaoui. Morgan is a force of nature who wrote the
foreword to my book, The Arab Case for Israel. Antoun has been at the forefront
of pushing for Lebanese-Israeli peace.
Hussain Abdul-Hussain
Lebanon’s Druze chief Jumblatt told Al-Jazeera that “a Lebanese
group in Washington is more Israeli than the Israelis.” Hezbollah spun his
comments and made it an attack on the Lebanese government delegation engaged in
direct talks with its Israeli counterpart. Jumblatt then clarified that he
didn’t mean the delegation because he supports direct talks, and that he only
meant “political activists who work at American think tanks in Washington and
put Israel’s interests ahead of the interests of Lebanon and its people.”Not a
long time ago, Jumblatt said he wanted to go back to being an Ottoman (Turkish)
citizen. He then accuses think tankers like me, who insist on Lebanese-Israeli
peace, of being against Lebanon.
Shehbaz Sharif
We are closer to a peace deal than ever before. With finalisation
likely expected in the next 24 hours, Pakistan is preparing for the electronic
signing of the peace deal immediately after, followed by technical level talks
next week. We would like to thank United States of America and Islamic Republic
of Iran for their ongoing commitment during the negotiations, and we extend our
sincere appreciation to our brothers in the region for their support. We are
confident that this historic peace deal will form a strong foundation for
lasting peace.