Bahrain will establish a permanent diplomatic mission in Beirut, King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa has said, as Lebanese President Joseph Aoun visited the Gulf state in a bid to reset relations.
President Aoun arrived in Bahrain on Tuesday for a two-day state visit, the latest stop in a wider push to repair and deepen Lebanon's ties with Gulf Arab countries.
Mr Aoun, accompanied by Foreign Minister Youssef Rajji, met King Hamad on Wednesday to discuss ways to strengthen bilateral co-operation, particularly in political, economic and cultural sectors, the Lebanese presidency said.
“We look forward to resuming full trade exchange between us,” said Mr Aoun.
In comments reported by the Lebanese presidency and Bahrain’s state media, King Hamad said: “On this occasion, we proudly announce our decision to establish a permanent Bahraini diplomatic mission in Beirut.”
On arrival, Mr Aoun said he was looking forward to “productive meetings” with the leadership on collaboration and to exchange views on regional and international developments.
“Lebanon values its rooted ties with Bahrain … and we are working together in a spirit that serves the interests of our peoples amid the region’s complex challenges,” he said.
Since taking office in January, Mr Aoun has put rebuilding Lebanon’s relationships with Gulf countries at the centre of his foreign policy agenda.
The former army chief, elected after more than two years of presidential vacuum, wasted no time in launching a diplomatic charm offensive. His first overseas trip was to Saudi Arabia. He has also visited the UAE, Qatar and Kuwait.
Mr Rajji had previously called on Bahrain to reopen its embassy in Beirut in an interview with Bahraini daily Al Ayyam. In early July, Bahrain's ambassador to Lebanon, Waheed Mubarak Sayyar, said his country was preparing to do so and that work was under way to appoint a resident ambassador.
Bahrain was among several Gulf countries, including Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Kuwait, that withdrew their ambassadors from Beirut in October 2021, following remarks by then information minister George Kordahi, who criticised the Saudi-led military intervention in Yemen.
His comments triggered a diplomatic crisis, reflecting deeper Gulf concerns over Iran’s growing influence in Lebanon through Hezbollah, the powerful Shiite militia that wields military and political power.
Relations remained strained for years. But Gulf engagement has gradually resumed in the aftermath of the war between Hezbollah and Israel, which concluded in November.
The Iran-backed group was severely weakened by the conflict. Israel’s military campaign destroyed much of Hezbollah’s infrastructure, infiltrated its security network and eliminated the group’s leadership and senior commanders.
Lebanon now is under international pressure to disarm Hezbollah. The US ties reconstruction aid and a halt to Israeli army operations to the group's full disarmament around the country.
Battered by war and economic collapse, Lebanon is in urgent need of Arab and international support to begin reconstruction and revive its shattered economy.
As part of the broader thaw, the UAE and Kuwait have lifted travel bans on Lebanon, allowing their citizens to return after years of absence.
Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia and Lebanon have agreed to examine obstacles preventing the resumption of Lebanese exports to the kingdom and are exploring the possibility of restoring travel access for Saudi citizens to Beirut.
COMPANY PROFILE
Initial investment: Undisclosed
Investment stage: Series A
Investors: Core42
Current number of staff: 47
Europe’s rearming plan
- Suspend strict budget rules to allow member countries to step up defence spending
- Create new "instrument" providing €150 billion of loans to member countries for defence investment
- Use the existing EU budget to direct more funds towards defence-related investment
- Engage the bloc's European Investment Bank to drop limits on lending to defence firms
- Create a savings and investments union to help companies access capital
The years Ramadan fell in May
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
Background: Chemical Weapons
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
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Company profile
Company: Rent Your Wardrobe
Date started: May 2021
Founder: Mamta Arora
Based: Dubai
Sector: Clothes rental subscription
Stage: Bootstrapped, self-funded
GOLF’S RAHMBO
- 5 wins in 22 months as pro
- Three wins in past 10 starts
- 45 pro starts worldwide: 5 wins, 17 top 5s
- Ranked 551th in world on debut, now No 4 (was No 2 earlier this year)
- 5th player in last 30 years to win 3 European Tour and 2 PGA Tour titles before age 24 (Woods, Garcia, McIlroy, Spieth)
The Voice of Hind Rajab
Starring: Saja Kilani, Clara Khoury, Motaz Malhees
Director: Kaouther Ben Hania
Rating: 4/5
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The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
