Author: RT

US reverses hold on 5mn worth of military aid to Lebanon, praises army’s response to protests A senior US State Department official has lauded the Lebanese Army, hours after Washington reversed a hold on $105 million worth of military aid to Lebanon, the Daily Star newspaper reported. Speaking in Washington, the official, who was not identified, said Lebanon’s Army had responded in “impressive fashion” to the protests that erupted in Lebanon on October 17. The $105 million in military aid from the US to the Army had been held up by checks to ensure the aid didn’t benefit Washington’s “adversaries,” a US Embassy official told the daily on Tuesday. Earlier reports said that Washington had released $105 million in military aid to the Lebanese Army shortly before the Thanksgiving ...

100 London firefighters deployed to battle Travel Lodge blaze, dozens evacuated (PHOTOS, VIDEO) Roughly 100 firefighters from multiple stations across the local area were deployed to a West London hotel as parts of at least five floors were consumed by fire in the early hours of Wednesday morning. Dozens of guests and staff evacuated as at least 15 fire engines and crews from multiple stations were called to the scene at approximately 2:52am local time. They worked tirelessly in what officials described as “challenging conditions” to contain and extinguish the fire. Travelodge Brentford on fire around 2 am, @LondonFire here and took control, not seen a single Travelodge employee, a member of the public ran up n down every corridor on ea...

Iran ‘still ready’ for talks if US lifts sanctions – President Rouhani President Hassan Rouhani said on Wednesday that Iran is still ready for nuclear talks on condition the US first lifts sanctions. “If they are prepared to put aside the sanctions, we are ready to talk and negotiate, even at the level of heads of the 5+1 countries,” Rouhani said on state television. Rouhani has long demanded the lifting of US sanctions for Iran’s return to talks under the auspices of the P5+1 that reached a 2015 nuclear deal - the five veto-wielding permanent members of the UN Security Council plus Germany. “This situation… is a cruel act by the White House. We have no choice but to resist and persevere against those imposers of sanctions,” AFP quoted Rouhani as saying. “At the same time, we ...

Top US general & senior Chinese counterpart speak by phone after Beijing’s Hong Kong ban for ships The top US general and a senior Chinese counterpart spoke on the phone, the US military said. The conversation on Tuesday came a day after China banned US military ships and aircraft from visiting Hong Kong, Reuters reports. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Mark Milley spoke with the People’s Liberation Army of China Chief of the Joint Staff Department General Li Zuocheng, according to the military. “The two military leaders both agreed on the value of a productive dialogue, effectively managing differences, and cooperation on areas of common ground,” the statement added. Top US general & senior Chinese counterpart speak by phone after Beijing’s ...

Netanyahu, Pompeo to meet in Lisbon as Israeli PM needs ‘political boost’ at home Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will meet with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Wednesday in Lisbon, the US State Department said. Pompeo, accompanying President Donald Trump at the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit in London, will be in Lisbon on Wednesday and Thursday. The secretary will meet with Portuguese PM Antonio Costa and Foreign Minister Augusto Santos Silva. The hastily arranged talks with the top diplomat of Israel’s closest ally could be aimed at giving Netanyahu a political boost at home, Reuters said. Israeli politics are in disarray after inconclusive elections in April and September and the failure of Netanyahu and his main challenger, Benny Gantz, to...