The New York times posted an article titled A Biden Confident Emerges as a Crucial Mid East Confident where ATFL President Ed Gabriel is quoted. Read the article here.
Author: ATFL
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Securing Lebanon to Prevent a Larger Hezbollah-Israel War and Wider Escalation
July 8, 2024 – 12:00pm ET
As tensions between Israel and Hezbollah escalate, the specter of full-scale war with the potential to draw in the United States and Iran demands the United States’ immediate attention. At the same time that the US actively tries to avoid Lebanon becoming a theater of regional war, a durable solution to the crisis will need to address Iran’s entrenched influence and destabilizing role within Lebanon and in the region, as well as Lebanon’s governance vacuum. Lebanon’s descent into a quasi-failed state following a financial collapse engineered by its governing elites has indeed reinforced the need to prioritize improved governance and accountability. Accordingly, a determined approach to dissuading parties from provocation together with a more comprehensive roadmap for lasting stability is essential to warding off a potentially catastrophic Hezbollah-Israel war and ensuring the survivability and recovery of the Lebanese state. Prioritizing diplomacy to avert a full-scale war offers an opportunity for the US and friends of Lebanon to confront these pressing issues, including the country’s erosion of sovereignty, its corrupt system of governance, and the collapse of its formal economy.
The latest policy brief written by a group of experts from the Middle East Institute (MEI) and the American Task Force on Lebanon (ATFL) proposes a framework for robust diplomacy designed, first and foremost, to steer Lebanon away from the precipice of war, and then help establish a direct and sustainable path to stability and recovery.
To launch this important policy document, MEI and ATFL co-hosted a panel of experts who discussed the key elements of the brief’s framework, including the pressing need to secure Lebanon by stabilizing the Lebanese-Israeli land border, addressing Lebanon’s leadership vacuum, as well as reviving its economy. Additionally, the assembled panelists outlined what an optimal multi-faceted US strategy and policy toward Lebanon and the region should look like.
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Securing Lebanon to Prevent a Larger Hezbollah-Israel War and Wider Escalation
As tensions between Israel and Hezbollah escalate, the specter of a full-scale war, with the potential to draw in the United States and Iran, demands the US’s immediate attention. The Biden-Harris Administration has tasked, in response, White House Senior Advisor Amos Hochstein with mediating efforts to de-escalate the conflict and bring stability to the Lebanon-Israel border.
As the US tries to avoid Lebanon becoming a theater of regional war, it is difficult to envisage a durable solution to the crisis without tackling both Lebanon’s governance vacuum and Iran’s entrenched influence. On the one hand, the evolution of Iran-backed Hezbollah into the country’s main powerbroker means that the decision to go to war does not rest with the government and calls for addressing more effectively Iran’s destabilizing role within Lebanon and in the region. On the other hand, Lebanon’s descent into a quasi-failed state following a financial collapse engineered by its governing elites, who have chronically mismanaged the country’s public finances, reinforces the need to prioritize improved governance and accountability. The prospect of a major military operation in Lebanon has become even more real with Israel’s determination to drive Hezbollah away from the border, in response to Hezbollah’s unfettered military activities in the border demarcation zone. Accordingly, a determined approach to dissuading parties from provocation together with a more comprehensive roadmap for lasting stability is essential to warding off a potentially catastrophic Hezbollah-Israel war and ensuring the survivability and recovery of the Lebanese state.
Prioritizing diplomacy to avert a full-scale war therefore offers an opportunity for the US and friends of Lebanon to confront these pressing issues, including the country’s erosion of sovereignty, its corrupt system of governance, and the collapse of its formal economy. This policy brief proposes a framework for robust diplomacy that would steer Lebanon away from the precipice of war and help establish a direct and sustainable path to stability and revival. This framework revolves around key elements, including stabilizing the Lebanon-Israel land border, addressing Lebanon’s leadership vacuum, revitalizing its economy, and enhancing its sovereignty.
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Lebanon’s Military Chief Heads to US Amid Rising Israel-Hezbollah Tension
Beatrice Farhat and Adam Lucente report, “Lebanon’s head of the military Joseph Aoun is heading to Washington next week, Al-Monitor has confirmed, amid the ongoing border hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah and rising domestic tensions.” They add, “The discussions will reportedly touch on the US military and financial assistance provided to the Lebanese army.” The article includes comments from ATFL President Ed Gabriel. [Al Monitor]
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ATFL Commends Senator Gary Peters for Leading Letter Calling for Lebanon Temporary Protected Status Designation
Washington, DC, June 7, 2024. The American Task Force on Lebanon, a leadership organization of Americans of Lebanese descent, applauds Senator Gary Peters and 16 of his Senate colleagues for their letter that urges the Biden-Harris Administration to extend Temporary Protected Status (TPS) to Lebanese nationals present in the US.
As the letter notes, “designating Lebanon for TPS would enable Lebanese nationals currently in the United States, including students, tourists, and workers, to be able to remain safely in the United States and to work legally to support themselves and their families” and that this would benefit 12,000 eligible individuals currently present in the US.
Given the current hostilities in the region adding to the economic, humanitarian, and political crises afflicting the country, Lebanon is a prime candidate for a TPS designation.
ATFL extends our deepest gratitude to Senator Gary Peters for leading this letter and to the Senators who signed it:
Richard J. Durbin
Debbie Stabenow
Edward J. Markey
Patty Murray
Alex Padilla
Tammy Duckworth
Raphael Warnock
Mark R. Warner
Peter Welch
Cory A. Booker
Jeanne Shaheen
Jack Reed
Brian Schatz
Chris Van Hollen
Mazie K. Hirono
Benjamin Cardin -
ATFL Welcomes Proposed Ceasefire in Gaza
Washington, DC, June 3, 2024. The American Task Force on Lebanon (ATFL) welcomes the prospect of a ceasefire agreement in Gaza and hopes that this will reflect positively on the situation in southern Lebanon. We expect a truce will help save Palestinian, Israeli, and Lebanese lives and pave the way for the restoration of needed stability in the region.
We also look forward to a cessation of hostilities in south Lebanon and an enduring settlement that spares Lebanon from devastating conflict in the next phase and restores the Lebanese state’s sovereignty and control over national institutions.
The only path forward to durable security, peace, and self-determination comes from diplomacy. The United States needs to redouble its mediated efforts to deescalate the fighting and bring calm to the Lebanon-Israel border where Hezbollah continues to attack, and which could fuel a broader regional conflict drawing in the United States directly.
Efforts to stabilize this border longer-term must be as envisaged by UN Resolution 1701 and involve the demarcation of disputed border areas. Given the urgency of consolidating the authority of the Lebanese armed forces and state security institutions over Lebanon’s territory, US mediation should continue to underscore to Lebanon’s political leaders the critical importance of a nationally oriented resolution of Lebanon’s political paralysis, starting with the election of an independent and reform-minded president.
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ATFL Calls for Restraint on Lebanon’s Border
Washington, DC, May 30, 2024. The recent deadly attacks and counterattacks on the Lebanon-Israel border, eight months after Hamas’s October 7 attack, are reaching a new level of intensity. Lebanon continues to suffer from compounding and interlinked political, economic, and social crises and can ill-afford the devastation that would accompany war with Israel.
We decry the recent provocations and call for restraint on all sides. We are further concerned about Israel’s continued use, in violation of international humanitarian law, of phosphorous bombs in South Lebanon that are causing potentially irreversible damage to the environment and agriculture, making these areas uninhabitable and impeding the livelihoods of its citizens. Over 90,000 of them have been forced to flee the region since the beginning of the Gaza war.
We urge all parties to take every step possible to end hostilities, protect civilians who are at risk as the conflict expands, and find a sustainable agreement that brings long-term stability to the Israel-Lebanon border.
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ATFL Calls for Restraint on Lebanon’s Border
Israel’s Use of Phosphorus Bombing in Violation of International Law
Washington, DC, May 30, 2024. The recent deadly attacks and counterattacks on the Lebanon-Israel border, eight months after Hamas’s October 7 attack, are reaching a new level of intensity. Lebanon continues to suffer from compounding and interlinked political, economic, and social crises and can ill-afford the devastation that would accompany war with Israel.
We decry the recent provocations and call for restraint on all sides. We are further concerned about Israel’s continued use, in violation of international humanitarian law, of phosphorous bombs in South Lebanon that are causing potentially irreversible damage to the environment and agriculture, making these areas uninhabitable and impeding the livelihoods of its citizens. Over 90,000 of them have been forced to flee the region since the beginning of the Gaza war.
We urge all parties to take every step possible to end hostilities, protect civilians who are at risk as the conflict expands, and find a sustainable agreement that brings long-term stability to the Israel-Lebanon border.###
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May 16, 2024: ATFL Celebrates 2024 Annual Awards Gala Dinner, Washington, DC
The American Task Force on Lebanon (ATFL), a leadership organization of Americans of Lebanese descent celebrated its annual awards dinner, where it honored individuals of Lebanese descent who have strengthened the ties between Lebanon and the United States, in addition to featuring remarks by dignitaries and policymakers.
The Honorable Spencer Abraham, Chairman of ATFL, served as Master of Ceremonies for the dinner that honored the accomplishments of exceptional individuals working for the betterment of Lebanon and the Middle East:
The Philip C. Habib Award for Distinguished Public Service
The Honorable Jeanne Shaheen, United States Senator (NH)The Ray R. Irani Lifetime Achievement Award
Leila Fadel, Host of NPR’s Morning Edition and Up FirstThe Issam M. Fares International Leadership Award
Elie Saab, Founder and Creative Director of the Elie Saab Group
In a surprise announcement, the Honorable Edward M. Gabriel, President of ATFL and former US Ambassador to Morocco, was presented with the Philip C. Habib Award for Distinguished Public Service. The dinner also featured remarks by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Chargé d’Affaires of the Lebanese Embassy Waël Hachem, White House Senior Advisor Amos Hochstein, and US Congressman Darin LaHood (IL).The event was attended by a diverse audience of Lebanese Americans, US and Lebanese government representatives, and members of the think tank and diplomatic communities. In addition to honoring some remarkable Lebanese Americans, ATFL underscored the continued importance of deescalating tensions on the Lebanon-Israel border to avert a potentially catastrophic war in Lebanon, and the critical need for the country’s political leaders to elect a president and embark on much needed economic reforms.ATFL is committed to improving the civic, cultural, educational, and charitable ties between both countries while promoting the sovereignty, territorial integrity, and prosperity of a democratic and pluralistic Lebanon.
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ATFL Celebrates 2024 Annual Awards Gala Dinner
Washington, DC, May 16, 2024. The American Task Force on Lebanon (ATFL), a leadership organization of Americans of Lebanese descent celebrated its annual awards dinner, where it honored individuals of Lebanese descent who have strengthened the ties between Lebanon and the United States, in addition to featuring remarks by dignitaries and policymakers.
The Honorable Spencer Abraham, Chairman of ATFL, served as Master of Ceremonies for the dinner that honored the accomplishments of exceptional individuals working for the betterment of Lebanon and the Middle East:The Philip C. Habib Award for Distinguished Public Service
The Honorable Jeanne Shaheen, United States Senator (NH)
The Ray R. Irani Lifetime Achievement Award
Leila Fadel, Host of NPR’s Morning Edition and Up FirstThe Issam M. Fares International Leadership Award
Elie Saab, Founder and Creative Director of the Elie Saab Group
In a surprise announcement, the Honorable Edward M. Gabriel, President of ATFL and former US Ambassador to Morocco, was presented with the Philip C. Habib Award for Distinguished Public Service. The dinner also featured remarks by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Chargé d’Affaires of the Lebanese Embassy Waël Hachem, White House Senior Advisor Amos Hochstein, and US Congressman Darin LaHood (IL).
The event was attended by a diverse audience of Lebanese Americans, US and Lebanese government representatives, and members of the think tank and diplomatic communities. In addition to honoring some remarkable Lebanese Americans, ATFL underscored the continued importance of deescalating tensions on the Lebanon-Israel border to avert a potentially catastrophic war in Lebanon, and the critical need for the country’s political leaders to elect a president and embark on much needed economic reforms.
ATFL is committed to improving the civic, cultural, educational, and charitable ties between both countries while promoting the sovereignty, territorial integrity, and prosperity of a democratic and pluralistic Lebanon.###