Al Mayadeen English

  • Ar
  • Es
  • x
Al Mayadeen English

Slogan

  • News
    • Politics
    • Economy
    • Sports
    • Arts&Culture
    • Health
    • Miscellaneous
    • Technology
    • Environment
  • Articles
    • Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Blog
    • Features
  • Videos
    • NewsFeed
    • Video Features
    • Explainers
    • TV
    • Digital Series
  • Infographs
  • In Pictures
  • • LIVE
News
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Sports
  • Arts&Culture
  • Health
  • Miscellaneous
  • Technology
  • Environment
Articles
  • Opinion
  • Analysis
  • Blog
  • Features
Videos
  • NewsFeed
  • Video Features
  • Explainers
  • TV
  • Digital Series
Infographs
In Pictures
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Asia-Pacific
  • Europe
  • Latin America
  • MENA
  • Palestine
  • US & Canada
BREAKING
Israeli media: Yemeni Armed Forces have launched an additional drone toward "Israel," and it was intercepted.
Occupied Palestine: The IOF spokesman announced the Air Force intercepted an unmanned aircraft from the east.
Head of the Russian delegation to the talks in Turkey: The Russian-Ukrainian talks yielded good results.
Al Mayadeen's correspondent in occupied Palestine: Martyrs and wounded after an IOF aircraft bombed a house in Tal al-Zaatar, north of the Gaza Strip.
Libya: The Libyan Ministry of Health declares a state of maximum emergency in all hospitals to support medical staff working in Tripoli and its suburbs.
Libya: Demonstrations in several Libyan cities demand the overthrow of the Dbeibah government.
Italian Foreign Ministry: We are following developments in Libya with concern and reiterate our call for all parties to return to calm and dialogue.
Libya: Demonstration in Bani Walid calls for the overthrow of the Dbeibah government and holding it accountable.
Libya: Sabratha Municipal Council supports the overthrow of the Dbeibah government and calls on it to leave.
Al Mayadeen's correspondent in occupied Palestine: The IOF is carrying out massive bombing operations in the northern Gaza Strip.

21K+ flee Syria violence, Lebanese delegation Damascus visit postponed

  • By Al Mayadeen English
  • Source: Al Mayadeen + News websites
  • 26 Mar 2025 12:36
  • 1 Shares
3 Min Read

The Lebanese Defense Minister's visit to Syria has been postponed at the request of the Syrian side.

Listen
  • x
  • Syrian families cross a river marking the border between Syria and northern Lebanon in Heker al-Daher village in Akkar province, Tuesday, on March 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)
    Syrian families cross a river marking the border between Syria and northern Lebanon in Heker al-Daher village in Akkar province on March 11, 2025 (AP)

The visit of Lebanese Defense Minister Michel Menassa and his accompanying delegation to Syria has been postponed at Syria's request, sources revealed to Al Mayadeen on Wednesday.

A Lebanese official had told AFP on Monday that Menassa would visit Syria on Wednesday to discuss recent tensions along the border between the two countries.

"The defense minister will head a security delegation to Damascus to meet with his counterpart, Marhaf Abu Qasra," the official said.

The aim of the visit was to "discuss ways to manage the situation at the border, strengthen bilateral coordination and prevent cross-border aggression," the official added.

Prime Minister Nawaf Salam had also announced that Menassa and his security delegation were scheduled to visit Damascus on Wednesday.

 21,000 people flee sectarian violence in Syria

Yesterday, the United Nations refugee agency reported that over 21,000 people have fled sectarian violence in Syria this month, seeking refuge in neighboring Lebanon.

Related News

Gunmen raid Sayyida Zeinab, Idlib, detain civilians, torch homes

ISIS attacks al-Sharaa over Trump meeting, Syria political transition

The surge in displacement follows days of intense violence in the coastal region starting on March 6, during which hundreds of Alawite civilians were killed in what observers have described as sectarian assaults and "field executions".

Many families fleeing the violence are crossing rivers and unofficial border points on foot, arriving in Lebanon exhausted and traumatized, the UN agency highlighted.

"The hostilities... in early March continue to displace people on a steady daily basis" into northern Lebanon, the UNHCR statement said, reporting "21,637 new arrivals from Syria," citing figures provided by Lebanese authorities and the Lebanese Red Cross.

Additionally, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that at least 1,500 civilians, mostly Alawites, were killed, with fingers pointed at security forces and allied groups for their roles in "field executions, forced displacement, and burning of homes."

The UNHCR statement noted that "fleeing families are continuing to cross unofficial border crossing points including through rivers on foot, and are arriving exhausted, traumatised, and hungry."

The agency also pointed to "ongoing reports of insecurity hindering people's movements before they reach Lebanon." It further noted that around 390 Lebanese families were among the new arrivals.

On another note, the US Office of the Director of National Intelligence reported that massacres in western Syria are attributed to both Syrian interim government forces and armed groups.

In its 2025 Annual Threat Assessment report released on Tuesday, the agency stated that forces from the HTS-led interim government, along with elements of Hurras al-Din and other armed groups, were involved in violence and extrajudicial killings in northwestern Syria in early March 2025, primarily targeting religious minorities, leading to the deaths of at least 1,500 people, including Alawite and Christian civilians, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

The report also highlighted that the power shift in Syria has fostered conditions for prolonged instability, which could aid in the resurgence of the Islamic State (ISIS) and other extremist terror groups.

  • Syria
  • Damascus
  • United Nations
  • Lebanon

Most Read

Two F-35 jets arrive at it's new operational base Wednesday, Sept. 2, 2015, at Hill Air Force Base, in northern Utah. (AP)

F-35 near-misses over Yemen signal new risks for 'Israel': Forbes

  • Politics
  • 14 May 2025
Palestinians pray over bodies of people killed in the Israeli bombardment who were brought from the Shifa hospital before burying them in a mass grave in the town of Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, Wednesday, Nov. 22, 2023. (AP )

Gaza casualty figures mask a much bigger horror, new study shows

  • Politics
  • 11 May 2025
Gaza and the logic of necropolitics: Sovereignty measured by killing

Gaza and the logic of necropolitics: Sovereignty measured by killing

  • Politics
  • 15 May 2025
Abu Obaida

Abu Obeida posts shortly after Israeli reports about his assassination

  • Palestine
  • 15 May 2025

Coverage

All
Gaza prevails against genocide

Read Next

All
Israeli media: Yemen may push 'Israel' towards ceasefire in Gaza
MENA

Israeli media: Yemen may push 'Israel' towards ceasefire in Gaza

Palestinians struggle to get donated food at a community kitchen in Khan Younis, Gaza Strip, Friday, May 16, 2025 (AP)
Politics

Trump administration planning to send 1 million Palestinians to Libya

President Donald Trump greets Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House, Monday, April 7, 2025, in Washington. (AP)
Politics

'Israel' concerned, says US withholding info about indirect Iran talks

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during the annual ceremony at the Yad LaBanim Memorial in occupied al-Quds on Tuesday, April 29, 2025 (AP)
Politics

Netanyahu cancels Vatican visit over fears of ICC arrest

Al Mayadeen English

Al Mayadeen is an Arab Independent Media Satellite Channel.

All Rights Reserved

  • x
  • Privacy Policy
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Authors
Android
iOS