Tears and a Message of Hope for Beirut

Like many of my Lebanese-American colleagues, it is with great sadness and anguish that I have been watching the catastrophe unfold in Beirut. Tuesday evening, an explosion destroyed the Beirut Port and damaged residential areas for miles around it. The blast was so intense it reportedly was felt in surrounding nations.

Lebanon’s Prime Minister Hassan Diab was quick to declare a day of mourning for the “martyrs” and to call for international assistance. He took his time, however, scheduling an emergency meeting of the government for the following day at noon, approximately 18 hours after the blast. Meanwhile, government officials are saying that there were large quantities of ammonium nitrate stored at the port for years without the least regard for public safety.

This nonchalance for the responsibilities of leadership and the welfare of the people is emblematic of the current government — but also every other Lebanese government for decades. From the president, Michel Aoun, to the never-changing speaker of parliament, Nabih Berri, to the succession of prime ministerial appointments (often involving one of the Hariri family), to the multitude of warlords (Walid Jumblatt, Samir Geagea, and others) — this cast of characters holding the reins of power remains unchanged. They’ve spent decades bickering through power-sharing arrangements that have allowed them to set up political dynasties. Meanwhile the country slowly disintegrates under the weight of their corruption, mismanagement and clientelism. All this, of course, comes against a backdrop of regional patronages linked to the wider Sunni-Shia and Israeli-Arab conflicts in the Middle East, the most serious instantiation of which is Hizballah’s setting up an armed state within Lebanon and holding the country hostage to their whims.

Now, in the midst of an economic collapse, a global pandemic, and a continuing deluge of Syrian refugees, Lebanon faces yet another catastrophe. And yet, amidst the cataclysmic scenes of destruction and suffering, the courage and tenacity of ordinary citizens emerges. They are offering up homes and lodgings for the 300,000 people estimated to be left without shelter following the blast. They are organizing search and rescue operations for the hundreds reported missing, likely buried under the rubble. They are fundraising, organizing blood drives, and arranging medical assistance even as the hospitals and medical supply chains are collapsing under the combined weight of the disaster, the pandemic, and the economic collapse. Animal rescue groups roam the streets to gather lost pets to reunite them with their owners.

What might such brave people achieve if they were unburdened by a broken political system and leaders who hold them back? What might they achieve if they were shielded from the effects of regional conflicts?

As a native Lebanese, I call on all the Lebanese political caste, past and present, to step out of the way. Resign. Make amends. And don’t ever think of coming back to the political stage. Lebanon deserves better.

The famous and ever-tested Lebanese resilience should not have to make up for the shortcomings of political leadership. It’s time for the people of Lebanon to build a civil society and a political system that reflects allegiance to the republic and the rule of law above all else. The people of Lebanon must demand transparency, action, and accountability from their elected leaders.

As a proud citizen of the United States of America, I also call on U.S. leaders to support the people of Lebanon in building this future. First and foremost, the U.S. needs to be viewing our relationship with Lebanon beyond the narrow lens of regional politics and the necessity of picking sides. The U.S. needs to continue to support the Lebanese Armed Forces, arguably the only dependable national institution that remains. And the U.S. needs to support Lebanon’s civil society, morally and materially, as it lays the groundwork of the nation to come.

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