A Lebanese flag at a crossroads on the road to Mansourieh (Metn). (Credit: Philippe Hage Boutros/L'Orient Today)
BEIRUT — Lebanese authorities made initial progress in 2025 toward reforms promised by President Joseph Aoun and Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, but human rights violations persisted and accountability remained elusive, Human Rights Watch said in its World Report 2026, published Wednesday.
The group said Lebanese authorities failed to deliver justice for victims of the 2020 Beirut port explosion and for victims of alleged war crimes.
“Security agencies and the public prosecutor continued to harass activists, journalists and government critics by summoning them for questioning in response to their criticism,” the report said.
Human Rights Watch also noted that Parliament’s Administration and Justice Committee began discussing a new media law on May 27, 2025. While the draft included “important steps” to protect freedom of expression, the organization said proposed amendments risked reintroducing pretrial detention for peaceful expression.
In response, Lebanese Forces MP George Adwan, who heads the committee, rejected that characterization. In a statement on Wednesday, he said the version approved by the committee does not allow pretrial detention for offenses related to peaceful expression.
Adwan cited Article 122 of the draft law, which states that “pretrial detention is not permissible for any crimes committed through all media and electronic means stipulated in this law, regardless of the status or profession of the perpetrator.”
The report also criticized the government for failing to follow through on accountability measures related to Israeli attacks on journalists. Human Rights Watch said that on Oct. 9, the Cabinet tasked the Justice Ministry with evaluating possible legal steps following such attacks during the recent war, but that no concrete action has since been taken.
Accountability gaps
After the cease-fire took effect in November 2024, Israeli forces killed more than 330 people in Lebanon, including at least 127 civilians, through October 2025, the report said. At least 64,000 people remain displaced.
“People in Lebanon still face obstacles in obtaining justice, social and economic rights, and the right to freedom of expression,” said Ramzi Qais, Lebanon researcher at Human Rights Watch. “Authorities must turn promised reforms into tangible reality.”
Qais added that while Lebanese officials have begun discussing accountability for alleged Israeli violations of the laws of war, “they have not yet taken concrete steps to hold Israel accountable.”
Despite the resumption of the investigation into the Aug. 4, 2020, Beirut port explosion, Lebanese authorities have yet to deliver justice to victims and their families, the report said.
