Author: ATFL

Washington, DC, September 25, 2024. ATFL deplores the current escalation in Lebanon, which has already led to the deaths of more than 800 individuals, wounded over 2,000, and displaced hundreds of thousands and will, if it continues, lead to more casualties and widespread devastation.

The United States has put forth a long-term, sustainable plan to bring calm to the southern border of Lebanon, which would be the basis for full implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1701. Hezbollah has refused US overtures until there is a Gaza ceasefire. Israel’s reaction to this position has been to confront Hezbollah in response to its political and security demands, leading to the massive targeting of the group’s leaders and its members. Meanwhile, innocent Lebanese civilians have been subjected to deadly aerial strikes and are suffering the consequences.

This situation has spun out of control and risks destroying Lebanon, and the people of Lebanon are certain to be this war’s main victims. The international community must put a stop to this conflict before many more innocent lives are ruined.

We urge the Biden administration to demonstrate strong leadership now in making ending this conflict a priority before it metastasizes to the region. We call for an immediate ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah, and for the United States to lead efforts that would reestablish stability and calm along the border and to find a sustainable, diplomatic solution.

Washington, DC, August 5, 2024. Four years ago, Lebanon experienced the largest non-nuclear explosion in history. The Beirut port blast killed over 200 people and injured thousands of others. The American Task Force on Lebanon (ATFL) remains steadfast in our support of the victims and their families of the port explosion. Four years later, there has yet to be a complete investigation and those at fault remain shielded by a politically compromised judicial process. We demand a complete investigation with transparent findings made available to the public and accountability for the individuals bearing responsibility for storing a large amount of ammonium nitrate that detonated at the port. It is time that those responsible, at all levels of government, be brought to justice.

This anniversary comes as the people of Lebanon have experienced over 10 months of conflict in the south that has now extended to the country’s capital, a grinding economic and social collapse, and a seemingly indefinite presidential vacuum and political paralysis. “The Lebanese people deserve to see their elected leaders do at least one thing that puts the welfare of the country over the interests of the political class,” said Ambassador (ret.) Ed Gabriel, President of ATFL. “Every year that goes by that this calamity goes unaddressed is another tragic reminder of the lack of leadership from Lebanon’s political class,” he added.

Washington, DC, August 2, 2024. Lebanon is at the precipice of war. The international community needs to redouble efforts immediately to avoid a regional conflagration. Without resolute international leadership and mediation, Hezbollah and Israel will drag the region into war.

Previous tit for tat, cross-border exchanges have escalated dramatically over the past few days. A Hezbollah rocket strike in the Golan Heights village of Majdal Shams killed 12 Druze youth, which was followed by an Israeli airstrike in Beirut’s southern suburbs that killed senior Hezbollah commander Fuad Shukr and five civilians residing nearby. Such actions could quickly push Lebanon and the region into a devastating war that will inflict significant pain and damage on civilian communities.

“The US must avoid being dragged into a military conflict, and instead kick its diplomatic efforts into high gear to try to avert an all-out regional war,” said Ed Gabriel, President of the American Task Force on Lebanon (ATFL).

ATFL decries this aggressive escalation and calls for all sides to re-commit to a diplomatic solution that will stabilize the Lebanon-Israel border consistent with United Nations Security Council Resolution 1701.

Washington, DC, July 26, 2024. The American Task Force on Lebanon (ATFL), a leadership organization of Americans of Lebanese descent, commends President Joe Biden for signing a Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) directive for Lebanese nationals in the United States.

Today, President Biden officially signed the directive for Lebanese, which states the president has “determined that it is in the foreign policy interest of the United States to defer for 18 months the removal of any Lebanese national.”

Since the start of Lebanon’s economic crisis, ATFL has been calling for President Biden to declare Temporary Protected Status (TPS) or DED to protect Lebanese nationals in the US, approximately 11,500 eligible individuals, from having to return to an increasingly unstable country. At various points during the current hostilities between Hezbollah and Israel, the US has labeled Lebanon with Level 3 travel (Reconsider Travel) and Level 4 (Do Not Travel) travel designations.

“We want to thank President Biden for standing with the Lebanese people today,” said ATFL President Ed Gabriel. “Today’s directive sends a powerful message to the Lebanese people that they are not forgotten. ATFL would like to congratulate our board member Manal Saab for her many years of successful advocacy for this cause. We would also like thank Senator Gary Peters and Representative Debbie Dingell for their leadership in this effort. The civic engagement of Michigan’s Lebanese American community was crucial to making this effort successful,” he added.

ATFL encourages Lebanese nationals in the US who might be eligible for this directive to read the full announcement, fill out all requested documentation, and contact US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) with any questions.

###

Click here to read the full announcement
Click here for more information on DED

Washington, DC, July 17, 2024. The intensifying cross-border skirmishes and escalating rhetoric between Iran-backed Hezbollah and Israel are increasing the risks of a full-fledged conflagration. In such a scenario, unwanted by the majority of Lebanese, both sides are likely to inflict significant pain on each other, with catastrophic consequences for Lebanon. War will, moreover, almost certainly activate Iran and its proxies against US targets, setting the region on fire. The US would inevitably be drawn into direct confrontation with Tehran, which would be costly and jeopardize US interests in the region.

The US today is, realistically, the only actor that can convince Israel not to engage in a wider war for which it has outlined a diplomatic solution. Horrendous and gratuitous attacks like the Israeli bombing of a 600-year old monastery in South Lebanon will only serve to erode Lebanese public opinion. The Lebanese people and their leaders must amplify their opposition to Hezbollah’s involvement in a destructive war, and the international community must heed these calls in earnest.

ATFL calls on the Biden administration to redouble its efforts to negotiate a sustainable agreement between Lebanon and Israel that leads to the withdrawal of Hezbollah’s forces from the border and its replacement with the combination of international and bolstered Lebanese armed forces. To ensure a lasting settlement, the US should commit to facilitating negotiations on the demarcation of the land border between the two nations and commit to international support for the rebuilding of the South. Without a major diplomatic breakthrough, the situation will continue to fester and could erupt into a far deadlier war than the one raging since October 7.