Lebanese Prime Minister Suspends Committee’s Work on Land and Water Disputes in Kornet el-Saouda Region

The outgoing Lebanese Prime Minister, Nagib Mikati, announced on Wednesday the suspension of the work of the committee he had appointed the day before to resolve land disputes and those related to water rights in the Kornet el-Saouda region. , where two men from Bécharré were killed on Saturday in unclear circumstances.

This announcement comes after several parties, including the Lebanese Forces (FL, of Samir Geagea), criticized Mr Mikati’s move, given that he has led a resigned cabinet since May 2022.

“In light of the objections and outbidding, the outgoing prime minister has asked the chairman of the committee and outgoing interior minister, Bassam Maoulaoui, to wait before calling him to a meeting, and to suspend his work,” he said. announced the press office of Mr. Mikati at the end of the afternoon. He specified that he had asked the outgoing Minister of Justice, Henri Khoury, to “follow up the question with the Superior Council of the Judiciary in order to speed up the processing of the judicial files which are linked to it”.

Earlier in the day, MPs for Bécharré, Sethrida Geagea and Melhem Tok, considered that the fact that Mr Mikati appointed a committee to resolve the Kornet el-Saouda conflict “constitutes a flagrant violation of the principle of separation of powers “. “The examination of land disputes is the prerogative of the judiciary and not of politics,” they insisted in a joint press release.

The committee created by Mr. Mikati includes representatives of several ministries, including those of Energy and the Environment. In addition to monitoring in Kornet el-Saouda, this group is responsible for setting up an environmental protection plan and identifying nature reserves in the region. The Prime Minister had given this committee two months to carry out its mission.

Disputes over security are frequent in Kornet el-Saouda, due to disagreements between the inhabitants of Bécharré and those of Bkaasafrine, caza of Denniyé, over land and water supply. Saturday’s incident sparked sectarian tensions, with residents of Bécharré being Christians and those of Denniyé being Sunni Muslims. Mr. Mikati, Speaker of Parliament Nabih Berry and several political and religious figures intervened to calm the situation.