Bahaa Hariri, the billionaire son of one former Lebanese prime minister and brother of another, tells Axios his younger brother Saad Hariri must not cut any political deals with Hezbollah in order to form a new government.
Why it matters: Lebanon is in a deep political, social and economic crisis amid the COVID-19 pandemic and after the catastrophic Beirut port explosion. Saad Hariri, who resigned as prime minister last year after mass protests, was tasked again two weeks ago with forming a new government in which Hezbollah is expected to play a role.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced Monday that he had tested positive for the coronavirus.
What he's saying: "There are no lucky people for whom #COVID19 does not pose a threat. Despite all the quarantine measures, I received a positive test. I feel good & take a lot of vitamins. Promise to isolate myself, but keep working. I will overcome COVID19 as most people do. It's gonna be fine!" Zelensky posted on Twitter.
Turkey's minister of finance and treasury, who is also President Erdoğan's son-in-law, announced in an Instagram post that he is stepping down from both roles to spend more time with his family.
Vladimir Putin's spokesman says the Kremlin will wait for an "official announcement" before commenting on the U.S. election — or congratulating President-elect Biden.
Why it matters: Most major world leaders congratulated Biden after the race was called on Saturday, just as Putin quickly congratulated Trump in 2016. But Dmitry Peskov, the spokesman, said this was a different situation due to the "legal procedures that have been announced by the current president."
The leaders of America's closest allies aren't waiting for President Trump to concede. They're already offering their congratulations to President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris.
Why it matters: The world is now preparing for a very different American administration.
King Salman and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman congratulated President-elect Joe Biden on his projected victory in the 2020 election on Sunday, according to the Saudi Press Agency.
Why it matters: The Saudi government has been one of the Trump administration's closest allies in the world, with White House adviser Jared Kushner sharing a personal friendship with MBS. Despite pressure from Congress, President Trump stuck by MBS after he was accused of ordering the assassination of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018.
The Trump administration, in coordination with Israel and several Gulf states, is pushing a plan to slap a long string of new sanctions on Iran in the 10 weeks left until Joe Biden’s inauguration on Jan. 20, two Israeli sources briefed on the effort told me.
Driving the news: The Trump administration’s envoy for Iran Elliott Abrams arrived in Israel on Sunday and met Prime Minister Netanyahu and National Security adviser Meir Ben-Shabbat to discuss the sanctions plan.
The British government will spend £170 million ($220 million) on providing free meals to poor children and their families during the holidays, following a child hunger campaign by soccer star Marcus Rashford, AP reports.
The big picture: The program was spurred by a petition from the 23-year-old Manchester United forward and garnered more than 1 million signatures after initially being rejected by Prime Minister Boris Johnson's government. It will affect nearly 1.7 million children in the U.K. over the next 12 months, Rashford said.
More than 12 hours after the U.S. television networks called the presidential race for Joe Biden, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu tweeted his congratulations to the president-elect.
Why it matters: Israel is one of the main allies of the U.S., but Netanyahu’s congratulatory tweet came long after most leaders around the world had already congratulated Biden.
