Deputy Parliament Speaker Elias Bou Saab, surrounded by MPs at the end of the joint committee session at Parliament, on May 6, 2026. (Credit: Ali Fawaz/Lebanese Parliament)
A parliamentary committee session on a proposed general amnesty law lasted only seven minutes on Wednesday before Deputy Parliament Speaker Elias Bou Saab adjourned it, as discussions quickly escalated into political disputes marked by sectarian tension.MPs are now expected to reconvene on Monday for what could be a final round of debate before a vote in Parliament.The process, launched under an agreement among the president, prime minister, and parliament speaker, suffered a major setback Tuesday when Defense Minister Michel Menassah, an ally of President Joseph Aoun, walked out of a joint committee meeting after a heated exchange with Beirut MP Nabil Badre over the fate of Islamist detainees.Menassah, a former army commander, rejected any amnesty that would include detainees accused of killing soldiers or members of security forces....
A parliamentary committee session on a proposed general amnesty law lasted only seven minutes on Wednesday before Deputy Parliament Speaker Elias Bou Saab adjourned it, as discussions quickly escalated into political disputes marked by sectarian tension.MPs are now expected to reconvene on Monday for what could be a final round of debate before a vote in Parliament.The process, launched under an agreement among the president, prime minister, and parliament speaker, suffered a major setback Tuesday when Defense Minister Michel Menassah, an ally of President Joseph Aoun, walked out of a joint committee meeting after a heated exchange with Beirut MP Nabil Badre over the fate of Islamist detainees.Menassah, a former army commander, rejected any amnesty that would include detainees accused of killing soldiers or members of security forces....
'American sponsorship is a guarantee,' says Lebanese-American coordination committee