Prime Minister Nawaf Salam delivering a speech while chairing a high-level meeting titled "Moving Beyond Crisis" in New York on Sept. 23, 2026. (Credit: Grand Serail on X)
BEIRUT — On the sidelines of his visit to New York to attend the 81st session of the UNGA, Prime Minister Nawaf stressed on Wednesday that "facilitating the return of displaced residents to their towns and villages [in southern Lebanon] ... cannot wait until the crisis ends or until a new phase called ‘reconstruction’ begins," while chairing a meeting attended by senior officials and representatives of countries and international and financial institutions.
This year's war between Hezbollah and Israel, which started in March and subsided in mid-June, displaced more than one million people and caused devastating damage to many southern villages. By late June, 40% of those displaced returned home. The war could also cost Lebanon an estimated $20 billion, according to an approximate figure given by Finance Minister Yassin Jaber in May.
Last week, prefabricated houses were delivered to Zawtar Gharbieh (Nabatieh district). The initiative, which was announced in late July by Salam, is part of the authorities’ ongoing efforts to encourage residents of border villages to return to their homes.
According to a statement released by the Grand Serail, Salam chaired a high-level meeting titled "Moving Beyond Crisis," focused on developing a more effective international approach to dealing with protracted crises, in light of Lebanon’s experience in confronting the war in the South.
Salam chaired the meeting alongside European Commissioner for the Mediterranean Dubravka Šuica and UNDP Administrator Alexander De Croo. Participants in the meeting included UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell and World Bank Managing Director of Operations Anna Bjerde, as well as senior representatives from Japan, Germany, the Republic of Korea, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Haiti.
Discussions also addressed ways to strengthen the role of the state and its institutions in leading the response and recovery, and to direct international support toward strengthening their capacities rather than creating parallel systems. Furthermore, the meeting also saw the launch of the UNDP’s global "Moving Beyond Crisis" program. This program is a new approach for helping countries hit by conflict, disaster, or displacement, which mainly rely on the principle that rebuilding should not wait for crises to end.
Salam opened the meeting with a speech in which he said: "For Lebanon, moving beyond crisis is not a theoretical concept but a reality we are living today, and lessons can be drawn from it that extend beyond our country.
"Return is not separate from recovery, and recovery cannot wait until humanitarian needs have ended. Supporting the resilience of our people, facilitating the return of displaced residents to their towns and villages, and restoring basic services and livelihoods cannot wait until the crisis ends or until a new phase called ‘reconstruction’ begins," Salam said.
“What we need today is for our partners to stand alongside the Lebanese state in this process, and for us to move together from responding to urgent needs toward supporting return, recovery and reconstruction, in a way that enables the people of the South to return, remain and rebuild their lives, while strengthening the presence of the state and its institutions in affected areas," he added.
Salam also held a meeting with Šuica at the premises of Lebanon’s Permanent Mission to the United Nations in New York, in the presence of Rajji, according to a second statement released by the Grand Serail. Salam stressed the importance of supporting the return and recovery process, particularly in the South, "in a way that helps consolidate residents’ return, restore basic services and strengthen the resilience of Lebanese people in affected areas." For her part, Šuica reaffirmed the EU’s readiness to continue supporting Lebanon along this path. She also reaffirmed the European Union’s support for Lebanon, noting that the EU will begin disbursing the second €500 million tranche of its aid package for Lebanon. Moreover, she stressed the "importance of continuing the reforms initiated by the government, particularly those required to reach an agreement with the International Monetary Fund."
The new funding will cover three main areas and support Lebanon in advancing key reforms, strengthening economic recovery, improving security and border management, and maintaining basic services for the most vulnerable. It will also support Lebanon in addressing the consequences of instability, conflict and displacement in the region. The first €500 million tranche for 2024 and 2025 was adopted in August 2024.
On Tuesday, Salam also participated a multilateral summit chaired by U.S. President Donald Trump, with the participation of Gulf Cooperation Council countries, Egypt, Syria, Turkey, Iraq, Jordan, and Lebanon, on the sidelines of the UNGA. Following the summit, videos were shared on social media, with some social media users claiming that Trump ignored Salam during his handshake with the Arab leaders. In response to these critics, Salam told local television channel MTV: “Many people are trying to fish in troubled waters. They muddy the waters and then try to fish in them, but so far, they haven’t caught a single fish.”
Rajji: 'Goal of the meetings is to save Lebanon'
Salam and Foreign Minister Joe Rajji held several other meetings with international officials in the past two days, during which they mainly stressed the importance of finding a replacement to the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), whose mandate expires Dec. 31, 2026.
On Wednesday, Rajji met his German counterpart Johann Wadephul and conveyed to him the Lebanese government’s position that an international presence in the South should continue after UNIFIL's withdrawal. "I also stressed the importance of supporting the Lebanese Army to enable it to fulfill its mission of ensuring that the legitimate security forces alone exercise control over all Lebanese territory," Rajji added on a post on X. For his part, the German minister commended the Lebanese government’s courage in the decisions it has taken to place weapons exclusively under state control, and expressed hope that it would continue along this path until it is fully implemented, according to Rajji.
Rajji also told local television channel MTV on Wednesday that "the goal of the meetings is to save Lebanon, stop the war, and extend the state’s authority over its entire territory." "The international community is trying to help us, but we also have to help ourselves," he added.
UNIFIL's mandate expires on Dec. 31, 2026, and no replacement has been agreed upon yet. The uncertainty regarding the post-UNIFIL era comes as Israeli attacks continue in southern Lebanon, while dozens of villages remain under Israeli occupation.
Salam reaffirmed Lebanon's solidarity with Kuwait
Salam also met with Kuwait’s crown prince, Sheikh Sabah Khaled al-Hamad al-Sabah, joined by Rajji. They emphasized the importance of "de-escalation and preserving the region's security and stability." Salam reaffirmed Lebanon's solidarity with Kuwait following the attacks targeting it, while the crown prince reiterated his country's support for Lebanon and expressed a desire to increase Kuwaiti investments in the country. Discussions also focused on investments in infrastructure, transport and energy, as well as strengthening trade between the two nations.
