Author: Qatar News

Lebanon and Israel are holding first direct talks in decades.Israel agreed to the 10-day pause in attacks against Lebanon but has refused to withdraw its troops from the south.The ceasefire was announced after officials met in person in Washington, DC – the first direct talks since 1993.Now, there is hope for an agreement to end Israel’s invasion and air strikes.The Iran-aligned armed group Hezbollah remains the main stumbling block.Israel says any deal must include the dismantling of the group, while Hezbollah says it will not lay down its weapons.So, is a lasting peace agreement possible?And how much influence does Iran…

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Published On 17 Apr 202617 Apr 2026⁠Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola ⁠has called Sunday’s Premier League clash with leaders Arsenal a final, saying defeat would end his side’s title hopes before the much-anticipated showdown at the Etihad Stadium.City trail Arsenal by six points but have a game in hand, ⁠and victory would cut the gap while ramping up the pressure as the race enters its decisive phase.Guardiola, however, said there was little room for error, acknowledging that anything less than three points would leave his team facing too steep a climb.“Yes, obviously,” the Spaniard added on whether he sees ⁠the…

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Myanmar pardons former leader Win Myint, while lawyer for Aung San Suu Kyi says her jail sentence has been reduced.Published On 17 Apr 202617 Apr 2026Thousands of prisoners in Myanmar have been granted amnesty or had their sentences reduced. The pardon order by Min Aung Hlaing is one of his first official acts since the coup leader became president this month.The move comes as the lawyer for jailed former leader Aung San Suu Kyi told the Reuters news agency that her sentence has been reduced. Former president Win Myint, detained since the 2021 coup, was also pardoned of his convictions,…

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NewsFeedAbed Abou Shhadeh, a political commentator based in Israel, says the ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon is ‘extremely problematic, not only for Netanyahu, but for the Israeli public who were promised for two and a half years now, absolute victory’.Published On 17 Apr 202617 Apr 2026Click here to share on social mediashare-nodesSharegoogleAdd Al Jazeera on Googleinfo Source link

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NewsFeedAl Jazeera’s Justin Salhani spoke to displaced Lebanese citizens in Beirut who said they are taking a cautious approach to the ceasefire reached between Israel and Lebanon, saying they will wait to see if it holds before returning to their homes in the south.Published On 16 Apr 202616 Apr 2026Click here to share on social mediashare-nodesSharegoogleAdd Al Jazeera on Googleinfo Source link

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United States Pentagon Chief Pete Hegseth has said the military blockade of Iran’s ports will continue “as long as it takes”, saying Washington remained “locked and loaded” to attack Iran’s energy facilities.The US Pentagon chief spoke on Thursday as a tenuous pause in fighting agreed to last week has continued. On Monday, President Donald Trump announced the military would blockade Iran’s ports in the Strait of Hormuz and the Persian Gulf after US-Iran talks in Pakistan failed to reach a breakthrough.Hegseth struck an aggressive tone as he maintained the US military was monitoring Iran’s military movements during the pause in…

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NewsFeedVideo shows Israeli forces firing stun grenades towards journalists who were reporting on the army’s raid of Nablus. Palestinian media outlets say soldiers accompanied an Israeli settler incursion to Joseph’s Tomb, in Area A of the occupied West Bank, under full PA control.Published On 16 Apr 202616 Apr 2026Click here to share on social mediashare-nodesSharegoogleAdd Al Jazeera on Googleinfo Source link

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New pressures on a straining industryStill, tobacco remains Cuba’s top export, and in 2024, its government reported record revenue from its sale: nearly $827m.Lloyd Smith explained that the demand is linked to prestige. Around the globe, Habanos are considered a symbol of luxury.“A lot of people, when they think of the cigar, they automatically think of Cuban cigars,” he said.That reputation for exclusivity has been bolstered, in part, by the fact that Cuban cigars are illegal in the US due to a longstanding embargo.The trade restrictions were largely a response to the 1959 Cuban Revolution, which ushered in the island’s…

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