Navigating Collapse: Where Next for Lebanon?

Over a year ago, on 4 August 2020, one of the world’s most powerful non-nuclear explosions devastated Beirut, killing 218 people. While Lebanon dominated global news headlines then, attention has since fizzled. Amidst political stagnation, disastrous inflation and shortages in basic commodities from fuel to medicine, Lebanon seems in free fall. In this webinar, nearly two years on from the 17 October Revolution, we hear from speakers active in the fields of politics, labour union organising, urban space and law, who will address the aftermath of the Beirut explosion, the future of political activism, the upcoming elections and what may be emerging in Lebanon. Ghida Frangieh is a lawyer and researcher based in Beirut. She has been a member of the Legal Agenda since 2011 and is currently the head of its Strategic Litigation Unit. The Legal Agenda is a law and society research and advocacy organization with offices in Beirut and Tunis. Ghida recently worked on producing a legal guide for the victims of the Beirut blast of 4 August 2020 to support their path to justice. She holds a Master’s degree in Applied Human Rights from France and has produced various publications related to social justice and human rights issues. She is also a founding member of Ruwad Al-Houkouk Association and the Lawyers Committee for the Defense of Protesters. Ibrahim Halawi is a Teaching Fellow in International Relations at Royal Holloway, University of London. His research interests focus on theories and histories of counterrevolution and revolution, with an emphasis on counterrevolution and revolution in the Middle East. He has published in peer-reviewed journals and established outlets on Lebanon, as well as revolution and sectarianism more broadly. Ibrahim is also the Secretary of Foreign Relations for Citizens in a State party, a progressive secular Lebanese party. Abir Saksouk graduated as an architect in 2005, and later did her masters in Urban Development Planning. She is co-founder and co-director of Public Works Studio, a research-based organization that addresses spatial inequality in Lebanon. Her primary focus includes urbanism and law, property and shared space, and right to the city of marginalized communities. Abir is also a member of the Legal Agenda and co-founder of Dictaphone Group. Omar Al-Ghazzi is Assistant Professor in the Department of Media and Communications at LSE. His work focuses on questions around the global power asymmetries in the reporting and representation of conflict. He researches digital journalism, the politics of time and memory, and the geopolitics of popular culture, with a focus on the Middle East and North Africa.