Interior Minister Ahmad Hajjar chairing a meeting with members of the ministry's operations room responsible for monitoring the municipal elections, on May 27, 2025. (Credit: NNA)
Interior Minister Ahmad Hajjar on Tuesday praised, during a meeting of the Central Security Council, the efforts of the security forces and the army, which, according to him, ensured the smooth conduct of the municipal elections, which were held in four phases during May across Lebanon.
Hajjar praised “the efforts made by the security and military bodies during the four phases of the municipal and mukhtar elections, which reflect a positive message about the state's determination to defend democracy and to renew confidence in official institutions,” according to comments reported by the state-run National News Agency.
“The Lebanese state has proven that it applies the principle of total neutrality,” he added, during the meeting which took place in the presence of the Attorney General of the Court of Cassation, the heads of the security and military bodies, the governor of Beirut, and the head of security at Beirut International Airport.
Hajjar also stated that “the relevant agencies worked throughout the electoral period to maintain security and order, protect the electoral process, combat corruption and bribery, and demonstrated their seriousness and commitment in favor of absolute transparency and integrity.”
The Lebanese Association for Democratic Elections noted, during each stage of the vote in the different regions, hundreds of electoral law violations. Throughout the month, several people were also arrested on suspicion of electoral corruption, while the second voting weekend in the North was marked by sustained celebratory gunfire after the announcements of preliminary results.
After three years of repeated postponements, and despite the ongoing Israeli strikes in the country despite the truce, the municipal elections took place on May 4 in Mount Lebanon, on May 11 in North Lebanon and Akkar, on May 18 in Beirut and the Bekaa. The elections in the South and Nabatieh were held on May 24, two days after Israel carried out a sudden escalation at the border, but also in the Bekaa.
The minister also issued directives so that necessary security measures would be taken in anticipation of the upcoming tourist season, starting with the airport and the roads leading to it.