The Lebanese people want “full diplomatic ties” with Israel and to enjoy the benefits of tourism and trade with their neighboring state, but both Hezbollah and a government unwilling to confront the Iran-backed group are disregarding this wish, the co-chair of the American Mideast Coalition for Democracy (AMCD), John Hajjar, told The Jerusalem Post.
Hajjar, who visited Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, and Haifa several years ago, said he grew up hearing stories from his Lebanese grandparents about Jewish holidaymakers who would visit the Lebanese mountains for rest and relaxation when his grandmother was young.
He said Israel and Lebanon had much to offer each other’s citizens, but that Lebanon’s 1955 Boycott Law, which criminalizes social and business ties with Israel, had created unnecessary barriers between the two neighboring countries.
The law was originally intended to prevent trade and financial dealings with Israel as part of the Arab League’s efforts to economically isolate the Jewish state, but has since been used to prevent even the most basic forms of communication, benefiting Hezbollah and Hamas, Hajjar said on Thursday.
When the law was first introduced, Article 7 stipulated that violations could be punished with three to 10 years of temporary hard labor, alongside financial fines, asset seizures, and product confiscation.
However, Hajjar said, members of the Lebanese diaspora have since faced sentences of up to 15 years in absentia simply for expressing the view that Lebanon would benefit from pursuing peace with its neighbor.
More recently, there were efforts to have Lebanon’s Ambassador to Washington, Nada Hamadeh Moawad, prosecuted over her message of support to Israeli Ambassador to the US Yechiel Leiter, whose son was severely wounded in a terrorist attack.
The Lebanese people demand peace
“The Lebanese people demand peace. They want to grow their economy. Lebanon’s infrastructure is in shambles. Lebanon is still a beautiful place, and a lot of economic activity still goes on. It could be so much better if there were strong ties with Israel,” Hajjar said.
“It would be mutually beneficial for both Lebanese and Israelis if peace is established,” he continued.
Earlier last week, Hajjar and his co-chair, Tom Harb, wrote an open letter urging Washington to use its influence with Lebanon to push for the repeal of 1955 Boycott Law, which would allow religious groups in Lebanon to visit the many holy sites in Jerusalem. They also called on the US to sanction members of the Lebanese judiciary involved in prosecuting violations of the law.
“You see it in poll after poll among the Lebanese. They’re trying to break the wall of silence imposed by Hezbollah and other terrorist organizations. I believe the day is fast approaching when people will finally break free and say, ‘That’s it. We’re not going to tolerate these laws that forbid us from speaking with Israelis, and we want full diplomatic ties,” Hajjar said.
Nostalgic for the years he said Lebanon was the “Paris of the Middle East,” Hajjar shared it had been disheartening to see a country he felt so connected with struggle to bear the weight of sectarian violence, terrorism, and wars.
He said that, given Lebanon’s own experience with Palestinian terrorism, many Lebanese could empathize with Israel following the October 7 attacks even as the war touched their own country following Hezbollah’s attacks a day after the invasion.
“I think the Lebanese diaspora in the United States understands the persecution of minorities, and they feel a natural affinity to the State of Israel and what Israelis have endured, because the Lebanese themselves have endured the same things in Lebanon for hundreds of years,” he said.
“The horrible terrorist acts of October 7 happened to the Lebanese in 1976 in Damour and Aishiyeh, another Christian village, which the Palestinians savagely attacked. I think a lot of Lebanese [therefore] understand the suffering and feel a natural affinity for Israeli citizens,” he explained.
Palestinian armed groups, including Fatah and other PLO-aligned factions, attacked the predominantly Christian town of Damour in January 1976, killing hundreds of people and forcing its inhabitants to flee.
In October that year, Palestinian factions, including Fatah and As-Sa’iqa, then attacked the southern Christian village of Aishiyeh, killing dozens of civilians and displacing its population.
Displaced Palestinians who were housed at the Tal al-Za’atar refugee camp east of Beirut were then resettled in Damour, while Aishiyeh was used as a PLO base. In total, more than 600 people were killed in both attacks.
Asked how to deal with Hezbollah, particularly as AMCD advocates sanctions that critics argue could push Beirut closer to Tehran, Hajjar said Lebanon’s government needed to end the “double game” of promising to disarm Hezbollah while simultaneously disregarding that promise.
Hajjar calls for stronger government capable of getting rid of Hezbollah
Softer in his stance on Lebanon’s Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, Hajjar didn’t mince words on corruption in Beirut. He argued Lebanon Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri has grown rich while pushing the boycott laws that deny opportunity to Lebanon’s struggling economy.
“It’s time for him to go and if President [Joseph] Aoun and Salem can’t get Hezbollah disarmed, then it’s time for them to go, too,” he said.
Hajjar added that while the Lebanese people were often seen as eternally patient with a government unable to fulfill its promises, that patience was waning, as was their willingness to remain “captive by Hezbollah.”
“Hezbollah has, despite its claims to the contrary, carried out wave after wave of assassinations against prominent Lebanese officials,” Hajjar warned. “It has infiltrated every segment of the government and civil society.”
“It has operatives throughout the country, even in Druze and Christian areas; the Lebanese have strong reasons to be very fearful. They also lack strong political leaders, and that is a direct result of the fact that those who have been outspoken and principled have paid with their lives,” he said, acknowledging how hard it has been for the Lebanese to push for any kind of change.
Asked about the war with Israel and the collateral damage that has wreaked havoc across multiple sects in southern Lebanon, Hajjar blamed the Lebanese government, saying that some people were too emotionally affected by the tragic losses to see its culpability.
“Some people have paid with their lives, unfortunately, because the Lebanese government is really a failed state. When you don’t have a government that can protect its people and is strong enough to negotiate peace, the consequences can be very disastrous, and that’s what has happened,” he shared.
“I understand why Israel is conducting this war against Hezbollah, and I just wish the Lebanese government would realize that it has a common enemy in Hezbollah and other terrorist groups,” Hajjar said.
“Until all those terrorist organizations are defeated and held accountable, either paying the ultimate price or serving long prison terms, then you’re going to have more of this,” Hajjar warned.
“Hopefully, justice will be served, and the Lebanese government will stand up and look out for the interests of the Lebanese, not terrorists and foreigners who don’t even hold Lebanese citizenship and are not patriotic Lebanese.”