Mourning the Beirut blast disaster, ruined by economic meltdown and hostage to a dysfunctional political system, Lebanon marks its centenary Tuesday unsure whether it will survive as a state.

There will be no ceremony to commemorate 100 years since French mandate authorities on September 1, 1920 proclaimed the creation of Greater Lebanon incorporating mainly Muslim former Ottoman regions.

The arrival five years ago of more than a million migrants in Europe caused widespread chaos and, despite a significant decline in arrivals, tensions and divisions have continued between EU countries over migration.

Sara Jaafar joined a group of political activists gathered on Aug. 4 to discuss strategies to challenge Lebanon's entrenched rulers when their building was shaken and the windows blasted out by the giant explosion that rocked Beirut.

She took cover from the flying debris, thoughts rushing through her head of past political assassinations in Lebanon. Her immediate reaction was that Hizbullah was targeting the dissidents' meeting.

Amidst all the diplomatic back-slapping, the Israel-UAE accord faces its first hiccup: the possible sale of American F-35s to Abu Dhabi that could challenge the Israeli technological edge in the Middle East.

The UAE's decision to normalise ties with Israel has been welcomed by some Arab countries, but despite cheerleading from the US, others have rejected the idea and many approach it with caution.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who is on a Middle East tour that takes in Israel, Sudan, Bahrain and the UAE, expressed optimism Monday that more Arab nations will sign up.

A surprise ceasefire announcement by Libya's rival administrations offers a glimmer of hope for peace, but analysts caution skepticism after years of violence and as multiple foreign forces back opposing sides.

The 10 firefighters who received the call a bit before 6 p.m. -- alerting them of a big fire at the nearby port of Beirut -- could not know what awaited them.

The brigade of nine men and one woman could not know about the stockpile of ammonium nitrate warehoused since 2013 along a busy motorway in the heart of a densely populated residential area -- a danger that had only grown with every passing year.

As Egypt flexes its muscle with threats to intervene in Libya's civil war, its President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has sought to join forces with some of the neighbouring country's powerful tribes.

Secret talks and quiet ties — that's what paved the way for last week's deal between the United Arab Emirates and Israel to normalize relations.

Touted by President Donald Trump as a major Mideast breakthrough, the agreement was in fact the culmination of more than a decade of quiet links rooted in frenzied opposition to Iran that predated Trump and even Barack Obama, as well as Trump's avowed goal to undo his predecessor's Mideast legacy.

As US President Donald Trump prepares to host Iraq's new Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhemi, here are key dates in relations between their countries since 2003.

- Invasion -