The Lebanese Business Leaders’ Association (RDCL) expresses its deep concern regarding the ongoing war, a danger that it had previously warned of in earlier statements. This war has caused the martyrdom and injury of thousands of civilians, the displacement of nearly a million people, and has put the legal private sector in a significant crisis and at risk of enduring irreversible losses. This war adds to the existing social, economic, and financial issues, as well as the refugees’ crisis, all of which require urgent solutions.

Lebanon stands at a faithful crossroads: we can either embrace the path of unity and rebuild our nation as one with a shared destiny, or expose our country and its people to further division and destruction.

Therefore, RDCL urges the immediate opening of a Parliamentary session, in accordance with the Lebanese Constitution, and calls for the election of a President of the Republic who can reassure all Lebanese people. The association also demands the appointment of a reformist government that meets the aspirations of its citizens and gains the trust of the international community, in order to protect Lebanon from the imminent dangers it faces. Delays could, God forbid, cause serious consequences that threaten the stability, security, sustainability, and future of Lebanon.

In the same context, RDCL urges the international community to continue providing support to the Lebanese army, ensuring that it remains the sole legal armed force to protect and reassure all Lebanese people, and to support the national state institutions in meeting the urgent needs of the Lebanese people and strengthening security and stability across all Lebanese territories. RDCL also emphasizes the need for immediate diplomatic action to end the war while respecting all relevant international treaties and resolutions.

Based on the above, RDCL calls on all concerned Lebanese parties to take the necessary steps with the utmost urgency to achieve these vital and existential goals, and to build the strong state we aspire to, the only one that protects its citizens and its legal and resilient private sector, before it is too late.

Photos Credit: L’Orient Le Jour & An Nahar