At Five: The Pope in Lebanon and 'Fiery Messages'... Israeli Incursion in Syrian Beit Jinn

The Lebanese arena is witnessing numerous diplomatic movements to avert the dangers of igniting a war between Lebanon and Israel, with Paris being one of the countries seeking through its communications with international and regional parties to prevent the military escalation occurring in Lebanon. In this context, the official spokesperson for the French Foreign Ministry, Pascal Confavreux, presented the official French position on the developments in Lebanon during the weekly press conference.

During the visit of Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi to his French counterpart Jean-Noël Barrot last Wednesday, the two sides reviewed the latest developments in Lebanon. Confavreux clarified that "the Lebanese file was part of the discussions and was indeed a very in-depth discussion in terms of substance." He pointed out that the issue of disarming "Hezbollah" was raised within the context of regional issues. He continued: "As you know, we see that within the framework of the ceasefire issued on November 27, 2024, Hezbollah's weapons should be disarmed, and the Lebanese armed forces should be able to deploy southward and impose the full sovereignty of the Lebanese state in the south of the country."

The Secretary-General of "Hezbollah," Sheikh Naim Qassem, is set to appear this afternoon amid rising pressures and the heated Israeli messages directed at the party and Lebanon, which continue to call for the disarmament of Hezbollah and its handover to the Lebanese army. The party is practicing a "brinkmanship" policy a year after the ceasefire agreement, which Israel has not adhered to for 365 days, as it continued its operations, resulting in the destruction of homes in more than 30 border towns and the assassination of at least 350 people, most of whom were members of "Hezbollah," in addition to a number of civilians.

This topic will certainly occupy a space in Qassem's speech to present himself before the Lebanese public first and the concerned parties abroad, foremost among them the American administration, in another attempt to overlook Israel's violations of the ceasefire agreement. Meanwhile, discussions are ongoing within the leadership of "Hezbollah" regarding how to cope with these storms of challenges, as the Israeli and Western propaganda machine is waging a psychological war against the party and its environment, blaming it for this stagnation if it does not indeed proceed to hand over its weapons not only in southern Litani but across all Lebanese territories, a stance adopted by several political and parliamentary Lebanese factions. The President of the Republic, Joseph Aoun, and Prime Minister Nawaf Salam are not outside this atmosphere, as they both insist, albeit in their own ways, on restricting all weapons under the umbrella of the military institution.

A historic visit by all standards, a message of peace to the land of peace, and a precious opportunity for the Lebanese and the Easterners not to waste it, but it is required to seize it and build on it to establish the foundations of peace and love in this troubled region. "The Pope in Lebanon," a file in which "An-Nahar" presents testimonies of the first foreign visit of Pope Leo XIV, who chose to go to Lebanon, the land of the message and Christian-Muslim partnership, in line with the papal path.

The Israeli incursion into the Syrian town of Beit Jinn early this Friday sparked Arab and international condemnations, resulting in the death of 13 civilians and the injury of 25 others, including women and children, in addition to a widespread displacement of residents.

The Qatari Foreign Ministry stated that it condemns "in the strongest terms the incursion of Israeli army forces into the Damascus countryside, accompanied by shelling that led to civilian casualties, and we affirm our full solidarity with Syria."

For its part, Jordan condemned the Israeli army's incursion and shelling of Beit Jinn in the Damascus countryside and its "blatant" aggression against the town's residents, considering in a statement issued by the Jordanian Foreign Ministry that "the Israeli aggression on Beit Jinn in the Damascus countryside is a flagrant violation of Syria's sovereignty and territorial integrity and a blatant breach of international law."

The Jordanian electronic space ignited with heated battles following writer Nivin Al-Ayasa's call for polygamy in the kingdom, which is witnessing a notable increase in young men's reluctance to marry for financial reasons, alongside a rise in the rates of unmarried women.

Al-Ayasa called for "opening the door for men to marry a second or third wife under certain regulations, allowing a large number of women the opportunity to form a family," warning at the same time that "the continued rise in the rates of singlehood among both genders could increase crime and drug rates."

However, Al-Ayasa, whose statements were published in the Jordan News electronic newspaper, confirmed that "polygamy without real financial capability will not contribute to the solution but may lead to early family disintegration and to fragile homes that stand on the brink of collapse from the very first moment."