Lebanon is facing a series of simultaneous financial, economic, and political shocks. The country stands at a critical juncture, as hundreds of thousands of Lebanese have fallen under the poverty line in recent months. The protest movement that began in October 2019, following the previous government’s decision to raise taxes, is regaining momentum in spite of the lockdown from the coronavirus pandemic. The Carnegie Middle East Center will offer analyses of the multiple crises afflicting Lebanon, explaining their causes, characteristics, consequences, and potential solutions.
Spot analysis from Carnegie scholars on events relating to the Middle East and North Africa.
Despite statements to the contrary, Lebanon’s political class seems unenthusiastic about forming a government today.
Spot analysis from Carnegie scholars on events relating to the Middle East and North Africa.
Is Hezbollah undermining its resistance by failing to address Lebanon’s many crises, as the late Anis Naccash implied?
Saad al-Hariri’s wager on a Sunni-Shi‘a partnership in the next phase is no less risky than was his alliance with Michel Aoun.
The 2019-2020 crises not only swept away the idea that Lebanon is a paragon of economic success, but also made blatant another kind of exceptionalism in the country—its record-high income and wealth inequality, which is perpetuated by the corrupt political economy.
The assassination of Luqman Slim underlines that the scope for dissent in Lebanon is rapidly narrowing.
In an interview, Salim Adib discusses Lebanon’s management of Covid-19, and expresses some hope for the future.
To survive its ongoing financial crisis, Lebanon needs a new economic system that addresses massive income inequality. Paired with political and institutional reform, tax reform can help.
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