Fadi Abboud
Today, we stand at a pivotal moment, and the real question is this: do we choose national solidarity, or do we allow strife to destroy the country? The harsh truth that must be stated plainly is that if the structure collapses, it will not fall on one side and spare the other—it will come down on everyone’s heads.
What we are witnessing today—the escalation of rhetoric, the fueling of sectarian tensions, and the internal and external attempts to pit one Lebanese group against another—is nothing less than a ready-made recipe for national ruin. Mutual vilification is no longer merely a form of political disagreement; it has become a tool for dismantling what remains of our national fabric.
We have accumulated multiple crises—economic, financial, and political—and instead of addressing them at their roots, we have allowed them to fester and become intertwined. Every issue now seems suspended, waiting on another: those who want transparency and those who do not; those who support holding the banks accountable and those who oppose it; those who reject dragging Lebanon into other people’s wars and those who push us toward them; those who believe in production as the path to prosperity and those who continue to bet on an illusory economy; and many other unresolved questions besides. These are not simply differences of opinion; they are defining issues that shape the kind of country we want to build.
As for the issue of war, we reaffirm our position clearly today: choosing war is suicide, and whoever pushes us toward it does not care about our fate. We have reached a point where we can only hope not to lose part of this country because of it. Destruction, devastation, and the loss of lives and property have already occurred—and we must ask: who benefited? What, in fact, did we achieve? We gambled with the very existence of the country and deepened the divisions among us, day after day.
Since independence, Lebanon has endured a recurring chain of crises—some resulting from our own corruption, and others because we allowed outside forces to interfere and manipulate our destiny. As a result, our land has become an arena for other people’s conflicts.
Has the time not come for us to truly seek ways of drawing closer to one another? In schools, through marriage, and across society at large, we need to rebuild trust among ourselves rather than deepen alienation. We are among those who call for national unity, for coexistence, and for keeping Lebanon out of conflicts larger than itself. Because continuing down this path means perpetual exhaustion, an endless headache, and a price paid by all Lebanese.
At the same time, however, we must be realistic: civil war is a red line, and it is the worst fate we could possibly reach. Lebanon’s enemies desire nothing for us more than this scenario.
Therefore, if we are unable to find a genuine formula for living together, and if we remain incapable of reaching an understanding, then we must at least have the courage to think seriously about other options—even if they are painful.
The worst possible outcome is to slide into civil war. And if we come to the conclusion that we are incapable of agreeing with one another, then it would be wiser to seek solutions that prevent bloodshed rather than move toward it. At that point, proposals may emerge—such as reorganizing the country or peacefully redefining arrangements for power and governance.
The world has witnessed cases of separation carried out in carefully managed ways, as in the split between Singapore and Malaysia, where chaos was avoided and stable models were later built. True, such an option is harsh and painful, and it may be seen as a collective failure—but under certain circumstances, it may still be less costly than the destruction of Lebanon.
Yes, this is a failed option—but civil war is an even greater failure, and far more destructive. Either we agree to live together with awareness and responsibility, or we search for solutions that prevent Lebanon’s destruction. Because the alternative, quite simply, is that the worst will be imposed upon us.