The World from PRX

Beirut

Israel-Hamas war
Amid a war in Lebanon, a photographer and her subject reconnect almost 20 years later
5:21
Israel-Hamas war
Exclusive: Lebanon’s foreign minister says his country doesn’t want a war with Israel
7:56
museum reopening
Arts, Culture & Media
Beirut museum damaged by blast reopens
A Lebanese policeman stands guard next to a bank window that was broken by depositors to exit the bank after attacking it trying to get their money, in Beirut, Lebanon
Economics
‘We are forced to be bank robbers,’ desperate Lebanese citizens say amid financial crisis
view of the city
Energy
Solar power is the ‘only business that’s booming’ amid financial and electricity crises in Lebanon, experts say
woman near a machine
Abortion
‘They’re hurting themselves’: In Lebanon, women risk their lives to get an abortion illegally 
A migrant domestic worker holds a placard during a march demanding basic labor rights as Lebanese workers in Beirut, May 3, 2015. More than 200,000 workers mostly women from Asia and Africa work as maids in a country of 4 million people, many also come fr
Justice
Could a court case in Lebanon shift attitudes toward migrant domestic workers?
Workers prepare meals at the Matbakh El Kell Community Kitchen in Beirut. The kitchen was set up in response to the Aug. 4 Beirut port explosion, and it now serves 2,500 free meals a day to those in need.
Economics
‘We need a rescue plan’: Hunger in Lebanon surges amid economic crises
Lawyer and activist Hussein El Achi helped found a group called Minteshreen that wants an end to Lebanon’s sectarian political system.
Conflict & Justice
These activists want to end sectarian politics in Lebanon
Twenty-four-year-old Abdel Ghani Ali Ghanoum works at a paper factory on the outskirts of Beirut. The economic crisis in Lebanon and the recent Saudi ban on Lebanese imported goods means he faces an uncertain future. He is considering taking a boat to Tur
Business, Economics and Jobs
‘We live paycheck to paycheck’: Workers at a paper factory in Beirut worry about making ends meet in a dire economy
Diala Attieh Younes, 39, washes dishes under candlelight in her kitchen in Beirut. She said her generator-supplied electricity bill has increased six folds since last year.
Lebanon’s electricity crisis means life under candlelight for some, profits for others
Lebanese teachers react to the sounds from nearby armed clashes as they flee their school under the protection of Lebanese soldiers after a clash erupted along a former 1975-90 civil war front line between Muslim Shiite and Christian areas at Ain el-Ruman
Conflict & Justice
Tensions rise over Beirut blast investigation
Three men are show wearing white traditional clothing and standing amidst broken glass from a mosque in the background.
Top of The World
Suicide bombings kill at least 37 at a mosque in Afghanistan
A police officer is shown bending down to walk under yellow caution tape outside of a set of glass doors.
Top of The World
Bow-and-arrow suspect arrested in attack that killed 5 in Norway
Wide shot of Lebanese parliament
Finance
Lebanon’s political class ‘ripped off’ the country’s potential, ‘Pandora’ investigator says
A Syrian grocery shop in Istanbul sells brands that are familiar to Syrian customers, such as canned meats and condensed milk.
Migration
Syrian refugees and migrants in Turkey face a difficult decision to return home 
In a church about a mile from Beirut’s port, Sunday mass occurs with just a few dozen worshipers in the massive hall.
Conflict & Justice
Beirut blast one year later: No justice, no hope
A large gavel made of metal is shown in the near ground hammering a sign that reads "Act for Justice" with a bombed out grain silo in the distance.
Conflict & Justice
Mired in crises, Lebanon marks 1 year since horrific blast
Several people are shown in a street throwing items at a tank and other armored vehicles.
Conflict & Justice
Riots in Lebanon as West calls for quick Cabinet formation
Lebanese army soldiers deploy on Lebanon's side of the Lebanese-Israeli border in the southern village of Kfar Kila
Military
Lebanon’s financial crisis is so bad that soldiers can’t feed their families
Three women health care workers in uniform, wearing headscarves and masks, stand and listen among a crowd of medical workers.
Business, Economics and Jobs
‘Sometimes I feel like I betrayed my country’: Lebanon’s doctors are leaving in droves
Protesters
Report: Lebanese security used French-made equipment during protests
Lebanese Prime Minister-Designate Saad Hariri is show with his hair slicked back and wearing a dark suit.
Global Politics
For 4th time, Hariri is back as PM in crisis-hit Lebanon
Nazeer Mohammed shows a photo of his 1 1/2-year-old son on the boat to Cyprus.
Displacement
Lebanese take to the sea — risking their lives to reach Europe
A banner with representations of the Lebanese flag hangs on a damaged building in a neighborhood near the site of the explosion
Music
Musicians across the world sing tributes to Beirut
Several African women sit in a room with light blue walls, next to luggage and personal belongings.
Migrant workers stuck in Beirut in wake of blast
A block of buildings are shown with all of the windows blown out and two people in the street walking past a large pile of debris.
Global Politics
Lebanon’s military gets sweeping powers after Beirut blast
A woman with long hair and glasses wears blue scrubs holding three infants in her arms while talking on a phone in a damaged hospital
Health & Medicine
In Beirut, hospital staff witness ‘total chaos’ after blast
Several people are shown carrying an injured protester on their shoulders with smoke all around them.
Top of The World
Election protests erupt in Belarus; Lebanon remains on the brink; US tops 5 million COVID-19 cases
A woman stands inside a damaged interior with blue painted walls underneath an arch and art hung loosely on the walls.
‘Our house is your house’: Locals open their homes after Beirut blast
A man is shown walking on the street with a white bandage around his head with security officers standing nearby.
Top of The World
Mourning and anger amid devastation after Beirut explosion; One-third of Afghanistan may have had COVID-19; 75-years since Hiroshima bombing
Two soldiers are shown in the near ground in soft focus with widespread rubble from Beirut's destroyed port in the destance.
Global Politics
Lebanon probes blast amid rising anger, calls for change
Several people are shown wearing military fatigues and digging through building rubble.
Conflict
Negligence blamed for huge Beirut chemical blast
A view of Beirut's port is shown, flattened from an explosion and smoke rising from the rubble
Top of The World
Beirut blast kills at least 100, injures thousands; Security restrictions in Kashmir; Can artificial crowd noise match up?
A photo showing Beirut's port left in complete rubble with smoke rising from parts and the Mediterranean Sea in the distance.
Global Politics
Lebanese confront devastation after massive Beirut explosion
Smoke is seen rising in the air with several people standing and two cars are flipped over a barrier.
Large blast in Beirut port area rocks Lebanon’s capital, many people hurt
Four Ethiopian women wearing blue face masks sit outside with a young child.
Business, Economics and Jobs
As Lebanon’s financial crisis worsens, migrant workers are being dumped on the streets like ‘trash’
A woman poses in front of a Black Lives Matter mural on the street as a protest against racial inequality in the aftermath of the death in Minneapolis police custody of George Floyd, in Brooklyn, New York, June 16, 2020.  
Identity
‘We need to talk about racism,’ these Middle Easterners say 
People in military uniform wear face masks while they form a line on a Beirut street during protest.
Protest
Lebanon protests called out corruption. Now it’s about survival. 
Three people wear face masks with soldiers standing behind them
COVID-19
Some Americans feel safer in Lebanon when it comes to COVID-19 response
A woman is shown walking with through a area with flowering trees while holding an umbrella.
COVID-19
Japan declares emergency; Coronavirus impacts democratic participation; Hezbollah’s latest front line?
Men in personal protective gear stand in a line in front of vans.
COVID-19
Hezbollah’s latest front line? The fight against coronavirus.
The author's 3-year-old daughter Leila has been occupying herself during the "stay at home" order in Boston amid the coronavirus outbreak by making cards and beaded necklaces for her preschool friends. 
COVID-19
How families around the world talk coronavirus with kids
A volunteer in protective gear sanitizes a mosque
COVID-19
Lebanon’s ‘two crises’: coronavirus and financial collapse
A woman stands in front of a brightly lit restaurant sign
As Lebanon’s economy spirals, foreign domestic workers remain stranded
Vendors and civil society tents set up in Martyrs' Square under the photo of man who was killed during a roadblock in a suburb of Beirut.
Protest
Could reclaiming public space be key to ending Lebanon’s sectarian system?
An anti-government protester hits by a tear gas canister during a protest march in Hong Kong, China, on Oct. 20, 2019.
Global protests gaining attention in financial markets
A birds-eye-view of protests in Lebanon.
How Lebanon’s ‘WhatsApp tax’ unleashed a flood of anger
Firas Yordi, a Venezuelan of Lebanese descent, in front of his new restaurant in Beirut. He returned to his parents' homeland last year amidst Venezuela's financial crisis.
Migration
Venezuelans with Lebanese roots bring Latin flavors to the Beirut food scene
A family portrait with several younger children in the front row and adults in the back row.
Migration
Torn apart by the Syrian war, these siblings struggle to stay connected across 6 different countries
A boy in a blur running.
Arts, Culture & Media
From Syrian refugee to Oscar nominee, ‘Capernaum’ star gets second chance at childhood in Norway
Director Ziad Doueiri poses during a photocall for the movie "The Insult," at the 74th Venice Film Festival in Venice, Italy on August 31, 2017. The film won Best Actor for Kamal el-Basha’s role. When he returned to Lebanon, Doueiri was detained by author
Arts
This Lebanese filmmaker is getting global acclaim, but back home he got arrested
People walk next to a poster depicting Lebanon's Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri
Conflict
Talk of war and instability are all too familiar in Lebanon
Lebanon's Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri, seen on Oct. 24, 2017, before stepping down.
Global Politics
Lebanon’s prime minister just resigned, saying he fears for his life
Taxi driver Gabriel Saad searches for passengers in Beirut.
Economics
Uber has met its match with Lebanon’s old-school carpool taxis
A general view shows tents for Syrian refugees at a makeshift settlement in Bar Elias, a town in the Bekaa valley, Lebanon, on March 28, 2017.
Conflict
Lebanon banned all protests after Syrians called for better refugee conditions
Ramlet al-Baida is the only public beach in Lebanon's seaside capital Beirut, in a city with a serious public space shortage.
Global Politics
Beirut’s only public beach is about to be taken over by an exclusive private resort
Adventist
Conflict
Syrian refugee kids find joy and success in these classrooms. They are a lucky few.
Abu Radwan and his family converted to Christianity after they fled Syria to Lebanon. He says it's a genuine conversion, though he does say he thinks it might help him get resettled in the West.
Conflict
Why some Muslim Syrian refugees are converting to Christianity
The Friends of Donald Trump in Lebanon Facebook page gets comments, such as: "Go Mr. President God bless you" and "We need someone like you [in Lebanon] to clean up our country."
Global Politics
Trump fans in Lebanon want to ‘make the Middle East great again’