The scientist Chadi Abdallah, who was previously the director of the natural risks and early detection center at the National Council for Scientific Research (CNRS), has been appointed secretary-general of the council, succeeding Tamara al-Zein, the new Minister of Environment in the government of Nawaf Salam.

Chadi Abdallah received his doctorate in natural risks from the Pierre and Marie Curie University in 2007 and studied interferometry (a measurement process that uses the interference phenomenon of waves) at the University of Missouri from 2008 to 2010. Among other roles, he has been, a research director at the CNRS since 2019, and director of the natural risks center since January 2024.

In a statement, Zein welcomed the appointment of Abdallah, noting that he contributed to the "development plan of this institution since July 2022" until she was tasked with the Ministry of Environment in February 2025. She stated that with Abdallah and other CNRS colleagues, the modernization of this institution has been set in motion. "We have established the role of this council as a scientific reference in various fields and created a new center (for natural risks) despite the crisis," she added.