Levant Brief

Breaking

Ducks swim through flooded marshland with reeds under a grey sky

Environment1 September 2026

Reeds return to parts of the southern marshes after a wetter winter

Demo article: Boatmen and buffalo herders say water levels have improved in some areas, though they fear a return to drought.

Also in the news

IraqCulture
Baghdad's Mutanabbi Street hosts a late-night poetry reading
Demo article: Booksellers kept their stalls open after dark as poets read to a crowd that filled the street.
IraqGovernance
Erbil trials digital queue tickets at public service offices
Demo article: Residents book a slot by text message and wait from home instead of spending hours in a waiting room.

Latest

A cedar forest on a rocky mountain slope, with a rope-fenced footpath in the foreground

13 September 20261 min read

Civil defence volunteers in the Bekaa complete a winter rescue drill

Demo article: More than 80 volunteers spent two days practising road clearance and stranded-driver rescues ahead of the snow season.

Towering sandstone rock formations rise above orange desert sand under a clear blue sky

Geopolitics and Security

13 September 20261 min read

Mountain rescue volunteers in the Kurdistan Region prepare for winter

Towering sandstone rock formations rise above orange desert sand under a clear blue sky

Geopolitics and Security

12 September 20261 min read

Search and rescue teams train in Wadi Rum for desert emergencies

Close-up of ripe golden wheat in a field

Geopolitics and Security

12 September 20261 min read

Community sessions teach returning farmers to spot unexploded ordnance

Towering sandstone rock formations rise above orange desert sand under a clear blue sky

Geopolitics and Security

11 September 20261 min read

Emergency medical volunteers run an earthquake preparedness drill

Israel blows up Ali al-Taher tunnels

11 September 20261 min read

Israel blows up Ali al-Taher tunnels

Israel blows up Ali al-Taher tunnels with 1,100 tons of explosives

A large container ship stacked with shipping containers moored beside a blue gantry crane

Business and Economy

11 September 20261 min read

Tripoli port logs a busy season for fresh fruit exports

A large container ship stacked with shipping containers moored beside a blue gantry crane

Business and Economy

10 September 20261 min read

Aleppo soap makers restart workshops and look for export orders

Close-up of ripe golden wheat in a field

Business and Economy

10 September 20261 min read

Olive oil producers prepare for an early harvest after a hot summer

A large container ship stacked with shipping containers moored beside a blue gantry crane

Business and Economy

9 September 20261 min read

Basra date growers bet on packaged exports

Podcast

Levant Brief Podcast cover card for episode 3

Episode 3

This Is the Best Music for Any Age (and Attitude)

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15 September 2026 Video

Levant Brief Podcast cover card for episode 2

Episode 2

You Made Your Boyfriend a Cheesy, Valentine's Day Playlist

15 September 2026 Video

Levant Brief Podcast cover card for episode 1

Episode 1

Listen to the Best Music From New York Fashion Week

15 September 2026 Video

Lebanon

A cedar forest on a rocky mountain slope, with a rope-fenced footpath in the foreground

13 September 20261 min read

Civil defence volunteers in the Bekaa complete a winter rescue drill

Demo article: More than 80 volunteers spent two days practising road clearance and stranded-driver rescues ahead of the snow season.

Israel blows up Ali al-Taher tunnels

11 September 20261 min read

Israel blows up Ali al-Taher tunnels

A large container ship stacked with shipping containers moored beside a blue gantry crane

11 September 20261 min read

Tripoli port logs a busy season for fresh fruit exports

A smiling man in a blue blazer works on a laptop at an office desk

8 September 20261 min read

A Mount Lebanon municipality moves building permit applications online

A cedar forest on a rocky mountain slope, with a rope-fenced footpath in the foreground

5 September 20261 min read

Volunteers replant cedar seedlings on a fire-scarred mountain slope

Syria

Close-up of ripe golden wheat in a field

12 September 20261 min read

Community sessions teach returning farmers to spot unexploded ordnance

Demo article: Trainers visited villages to show families what to look for, and whom to call, before working fields left untended for years.

A large container ship stacked with shipping containers moored beside a blue gantry crane

10 September 20261 min read

Aleppo soap makers restart workshops and look for export orders

Demo article: Family workshops are reviving the slow olive-and-laurel method, and say online buyers abroad are their best hope for growth.

A smiling man in a blue blazer works on a laptop at an office desk

6 September 20261 min read

Local councils in Homs post spending plans on neighbourhood noticeboards

Demo article: Printed budgets now go up in bakeries and mosques, and residents are invited to comment before projects are approved.

Young seedlings growing beside black drip irrigation lines in mulched soil

3 September 20261 min read

Farmers along the Orontes turn to drip irrigation to stretch scarce water

Demo article: Growers say drip lines cut water use sharply, but the upfront cost is keeping smaller farms from switching.

Jordan

Towering sandstone rock formations rise above orange desert sand under a clear blue sky

12 September 20261 min read

Search and rescue teams train in Wadi Rum for desert emergencies

Demo article: Volunteers and tour guides practised locating lost hikers and treating heat exhaustion ahead of the busy season.

A large container ship stacked with shipping containers moored beside a blue gantry crane

9 September 20261 min read

Amman start-ups test a shared delivery network for neighbourhood shops

A smiling man in a blue blazer works on a laptop at an office desk

4 September 20261 min read

Irbid pilots a single hotline for municipal complaints

Mounds of coral and a sea fan on a reef, with small yellow fish swimming past

1 September 20261 min read

Aqaba divers record signs of coral recovery at a restored reef site

A stone mosaic panel spelling the word Poetry inside a decorative border

28 August 20261 min read

A Madaba mosaic workshop trains a new generation of artisans

Israel & Palestinian Territories

All Israel & Palestinian Territories

Towering sandstone rock formations rise above orange desert sand under a clear blue sky

11 September 20261 min read

Emergency medical volunteers run an earthquake preparedness drill

Demo article: Volunteer first responders practised triage and communications for a large earthquake, a risk along the Jordan Rift Valley.

Close-up of ripe golden wheat in a field

10 September 20261 min read

Olive oil producers prepare for an early harvest after a hot summer

A smiling man in a blue blazer works on a laptop at an office desk

7 September 20261 min read

A municipal council starts livestreaming its public meetings

Solar panels cover the roofs of a row of apartment buildings at dusk

2 September 20261 min read

Rooftop solar panels spread across family businesses in an old market

A stone mosaic panel spelling the word Poetry inside a decorative border

29 August 20261 min read

A small theatre company tours a play about coastal fishing families

Iraq

Towering sandstone rock formations rise above orange desert sand under a clear blue sky

13 September 20261 min read

Mountain rescue volunteers in the Kurdistan Region prepare for winter

Demo article: Teams rehearsed rope rescues and avalanche searches in the mountains near the Iranian and Turkish borders.

A large container ship stacked with shipping containers moored beside a blue gantry crane

9 September 20261 min read

Basra date growers bet on packaged exports

Demo article: Farmers are investing in sorting and packing lines to sell boxed premium dates instead of bulk fruit.

A smiling man in a blue blazer works on a laptop at an office desk

5 September 20261 min read

Erbil trials digital queue tickets at public service offices

Demo article: Residents book a slot by text message and wait from home instead of spending hours in a waiting room.

Ducks swim through flooded marshland with reeds under a grey sky

1 September 20261 min read

Reeds return to parts of the southern marshes after a wetter winter

Demo article: Boatmen and buffalo herders say water levels have improved in some areas, though they fear a return to drought.