Journalists summoned over online reporting

Association

The civil society Universal Periodic Review (UPR) report on Lebanon, published in October 2025, highlighted that the Ministry of Labour continues to refuse recognition of a workers’ union formed by migrant workers in Lebanon. This refusal is based on provisions in the Lebanese Labour Law that deny foreign workers the right to elect or be elected as union representatives, effectively preventing migrant workers from exercising their right to organise.

Peaceful Assembly

On 27th January 2026, thousands of retired military personnel, along with public sector employees, public school teachers, and tenants, protested outside Lebanon’s Parliament in Beirut against the 2026 state budget bill under review by lawmakers. Demonstrators said the budget failed to address the severe erosion of salaries and pensions caused by persistent inflation since the economic crisis began in 2019, leaving many unable to meet basic needs. Retired soldiers in northern Lebanon also blocked part of the Chekka highway with burning tyres hours before the parliamentary session to demand improved retirement benefits. Protesters further criticised other related issues such as stagnant wages, inadequate pension adjustments, and the commercial lease law which came into effect in 2025, effectively allowing progressive rent increases after a prolonged freeze, which tenants argue threatens their livelihoods.

Expression

On 5th November 2025, the Lebanese Ministry of Information and the UNESCO Regional Office in Beirut launched a national media campaign to inform the public about the draft media law under discussion in Parliament, stressing the media law’s importance for modernising media and promoting independence and transparency. According to the Human Rights Watch World Report 2026, this law was submitted to the parliamentary Administration and Justice Committee on 27th May 2025 and included “advancements in protecting freedom of expression, the right to freedom of expression, including abolishing pretrial detention and prison sentences for all peaceful speech-related violations.” The law was then referred to the full Parliament on 16th December 2025 for consideration and final vote, after having been reviewed and amended by the Parliamentary Administration and Justice Committee.

In November 2025, Megaphone’s editor-in-chief Samer Frangieh and managing director Jean Kassir were summoned following complaints over videos related to their reporting. On 11th November, they were summoned in relation to a video report where the news outlet raised environmental concerns surrounding the excavation of land to pave way for a private villa belonging to TV presenter Roula Bahnam despite the ecological sensitivity of the construction site in question. On 20th November 2025, they were again summoned in relation to a video report about exploitation of public maritime property, after MP Gebran Bassil filed a complaint against the two before the Court of Appeal Prosecutor.

In separate developments, on 27th November 2025, comedian Mario Moubarak faced legal action after releasing a satirical video, following a complaint filed by lawyer Aimée Helou accusing him of insulting the name of Christ and offending religious sanctities. The complaint was in relation to a video clip that circulated widely, in which Moubarak makes a joke about the Resurrection of Christ. On 5th December 2025, upon his return from Canada, General Security confiscated Moubarak’s passport and phone on his arrival at Beirut airport. He was summoned for multiple interrogations by the public prosecutor and state security services in the days that followed.

During the reporting period, several CSOs released reports on the freedom of expression in Lebanon:

In its World Report 2026, released in February 2026, Human Rights Watch highlighted Lebanon’s failure to take meaningful action to ensure Israel’s accountability for attacks on journalists during the recent conflict. In particular, no concrete measures were implemented following the directive issued on 9th October 2025 by the Cabinet and the Ministry of Justice, which had been tasked with evaluating possible legal responses to these attacks.

In the context of ongoing violations of the ceasefire by Israel, Lebanon also faces infringements on its digital sovereignty. On 27th November 2025, SMEX reported that Israel continues to violate Lebanon’s digital sovereignty one year after the ceasefire agreement, through interference with communications infrastructure, GPS signals, and mobile networks, particularly in South Lebanon. These actions, including drone surveillance, signal interception, and potential infiltration of digital platforms with political ads or spyware, severely limit Lebanese citizens’ access to secure digital information. The report also highlights the absence of robust national cybersecurity measures and data protection laws, leaving residents vulnerable and restricting their ability to access online information safely.

Similarly, the report Constant Crisis: Human Rights in Lebanon in 2025 published on 15th December 2025 by the Gulf Center for Human Rights highlights persistent insecurity, deepening economic challenges, and significant gaps in legal protection. It notes that many journalists feel inadequately protected by international mechanisms intended to support them, and that the pressures of their work have negatively affected both their physical and mental well-being. The report also points to ongoing obstacles in accessing information that should, in principle, be publicly available. At the same time, it expresses cautious optimism around a long-awaited draft media law, whose advancement was stalled by the war, and which could, if adopted, help bring greater clarity and improvements to Lebanon’s media environment.