parliament

Parliament Approves Key Bills Amid Boycotts

After a series of delays and political standoffs, the Lebanese Parliament finally convened the second day of its plenary legislative sessions on Tuesday, but not without controversy. Initially postponed the evening before and then delayed by over an hour, the session opened just after midday, with the absence of MPs from the Kataeb Party, the ...

Parliament Committee Approves Military Grants and Green Agriculture Loans

A joint parliamentary committee approved a draft law on Monday to open an additional credit line in the 2025 state budget, allocating monthly financial grants to military personnel. Under the proposed law, active-duty soldiers will receive LBP 14 million per month, while retired military personnel will receive LBP 12 million. Payments are ...

Parliament Convenes for an Extraordinary Session: What’s At Stake?

Lebanon’s Parliament is set to resume its work under an extraordinary session, called by presidential decree, and scheduled to run from June 5 to October 20. The announcement, made official Thursday by the presidency, follows a meeting between President Joseph Aoun and Prime Minister Nawaf Salam at Baabda Palace. While such a move may seem ...

Where Law Meets Anxiety

Lebanon is poised to enter a contentious and unpredictable debate ahead of the upcoming parliamentary elections, with disputes already emerging over the electoral law that will govern the vote. Tensions escalated after Speaker Nabih Berri rejected expatriate voting and called for a new electoral law, describing the current legislation as a ...

Berri Slams Electoral Law as "Distorted"

Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri on Thursday launched a scathing critique of Lebanon’s current electoral law, calling it a “distorted” system that has “devastated the country,” and rejected any possibility of maintaining it in future elections. In comments published by Al-Jamhouria newspaper, Berri said his Development and Liberation bloc ...

The Mirage of Change: Lebanon's 'Change MPs' Exposed

They promised to change everything. They changed nothing—and worse still, they turned hope into bitterness and trust into betrayal. When Lebanon’s so-called “Change MPs” entered Parliament in 2022, they rode a wave of popular revolt against a corrupt, decaying system. For once, the Lebanese people believed. They were wrong. The illusion ...

Bank Reform in Lebanon: Central Authority Under Growing Pressure

The parliamentary subcommittee tasked with banking reform held a pivotal session to examine Articles 5 and 6 of the draft law proposing the creation of an independent banking authority. Two competing visions are at the center of the debate. The first, supported by Banque du Liban (BDL), calls for the establishment of a new, autonomous body ...

BDL Issues Statement on Legal Measures and Financial Transparency

Lebanon’s Central Bank (BDL) announced in an official statement that it remains committed to transparency and integrity within the financial sector. It is actively pursuing legal procedures in collaboration with specialized law firms across several European countries and other international jurisdictions. This effort aims to initiate judicial ...

Bou Saab: Parliamentary Session to Be Scheduled Soon, Municipal Elections to Proceed on Time

Ahead of an upcoming parliamentary session, set to be scheduled soon, Speaker Nabih Berri chaired a meeting of Parliament’s Bureau on Thursday to review an agenda packed with long-delayed expedited law proposals. Deputy Speaker Elias Bou Saab announced that Berri intends to call for a legislative session once lawmakers have had around five ...

Karim Souhaid: The Banking Reform Law Undermines the Independence of the Central Bank

Presenting a 33-page document containing substantial remarks on the banking reform bill submitted by the government, the Governor of the Central Bank of Lebanon, Karim Souhaid, attended a session of the Parliamentary Finance and Budget Committee held mid-week. The session was chaired by MP Ibrahim Kanaan and attended by 40 parliamentarians, along ...

Parliament Begins Review of the Banking Sector Bill

The Parliamentary Finance and Budget Committee, chaired by MP Ibrahim Kanaan, held a session on Wednesday to begin reviewing the draft law on the reform of the banking sector, recently approved by the government. The meeting was attended by nearly 50 lawmakers, Minister of Finance Yassine Jaber and representatives from the banking ...

Lebanon’s Banking Secrecy Reform: A Threat to Privacy, Legal Security, and Economic Trust

As Lebanon grapples with a deep financial crisis and seeks to overhaul its banking system, a proposed amendment to the country’s banking secrecy law has sparked major controversy. Though introduced under the banner of transparency and reform, the changes raise serious concerns about individual privacy, data protection, investor confidence, and ...