Macron Warns Lebanon Risks 'Civil War' if Not Helped

W460

French President Emmanuel Macron on Friday warned that Lebanon risks a return to civil war if it is left alone to deal with the crisis that followed the deadly Beirut port explosion this month.

Macron was speaking as he prepared to head to Lebanon on Monday in a new bid to press its leaders to undertake radical reform in the wake of the explosion this month that left 181 dead.

"If we let Lebanon go in the region and if we somehow leave it in the hands of the depravity of regional powers, it will be civil war" as well as "the defeat of what is the very identity of Lebanon," he said.

Paris is impatient over the lack of progress in forming a new government to undertake reform in the aftermath of the blast, which was blamed on a store of ammonium nitrate left for years in a warehouse.

Many Lebanese have blamed the disaster on a ruling class they charge as being mired in nepotism, corruption and neglect since the 1975-1990 civil war.

Macron spoke of the "constraints of a confessional system" in a country populated by 18 Christian and Muslim sects.

This had led to "a situation where there is hardly any (political) renewal and where there is almost an impossibility of carrying out reforms," he added.

Macron insisted that France would follow a policy of being "demanding without interfering" and awaited reforms like passing an anti-corruption law and reforming public contracts, the energy sector and the banking system.

"If we do not do this, the Lebanese economy will collapse" and "the only victim will be the Lebanese people (...) who cannot go into exile," he warned.

He extolled Lebanon's multi-confessional make-up saying it "is perhaps one of the last existing forms" in the Middle East of the "peaceful possible coexistence of religions" and a pluralist system based on "education and culture."

Comments 5
Missing kazan 28 August 2020, 20:45

"If we let Lebanon go in the region and if we somehow leave it in the hands of the depravity of regional powers, it will be civil war" as well as "the defeat of what is the very identity of Lebanon," he said.
If this is the case then this proves that the population is divided that despite all miseries they are able to start again a civil war. Conclusion any agreement is a window dressing, and because of the narrow minded population they will end in the hands of Syria and their southern neighbour good luck.

Default-user-icon Samir Mokdad (Guest) 29 August 2020, 16:42

What a laughable and ridiculous comment full of mispellings by tric.portugal, that has nothing to do with the article about Lebanon.

Missing rabiosa 29 August 2020, 17:49

Does any one of these powers ever question the Iranians about the Hizbos? After all all directives come from Tehran just all the weapons and rockets.

Want to the end the situation in Lebanon and get rid of Hizbos, cut the head of the snake that is in Tehran. See how quickly the situation changes.

Default-user-icon cocoman (Guest) 30 August 2020, 08:17

Sadly Macron is right. Lebanon is a failed state at the brink of civil war... Probably the only solution is to split the country or kill the other side

Thumb Gone 30 August 2020, 10:06

SOS good point. Macro is too late. The only way is to get an Ataturk style ruler that will put in jail all those corrupt and all those those clerics that keep interfering in politics. Religion and politics don't mix. It is an explosive situation.