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Lebanon: Abbas Ibrahim Warns Crisis Could Be Prolonged

Major General Abbas Ibrahim, head of Lebanon's General Security agency is seen in Beirut, Lebanon May 23, 2018. REUTERS/Jamal Saidi
Major General Abbas Ibrahim, head of Lebanon's General Security agency is seen in Beirut, Lebanon May 23, 2018. REUTERS/Jamal Saidi
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Lebanon: Abbas Ibrahim Warns Crisis Could Be Prolonged

Major General Abbas Ibrahim, head of Lebanon's General Security agency is seen in Beirut, Lebanon May 23, 2018. REUTERS/Jamal Saidi
Major General Abbas Ibrahim, head of Lebanon's General Security agency is seen in Beirut, Lebanon May 23, 2018. REUTERS/Jamal Saidi

The head of one of Lebanon's most powerful security agencies ordered his officers to stand firm in the face of a national crisis that could be protracted, warning of the chaos that would ensue if the state collapsed.

Major General Abbas Ibrahim, in a message to General Security staff received by Reuters on Friday, said state institutions had been undermined by "the great collapse".

He was referring to a financial crisis that has gripped Lebanon for two years and plumbed new depths this month as supplies of imported fuel ran out, forcing even essential services to scale back or shut down and sparking numerous security incidents.

The meltdown has deepened international concerns about Lebanon, a country pieced back together after a 1975-90 civil war and still deeply riven by sectarian and factional rivalries.

Ibrahim noted the impact of the crisis on personnel at General Security, an intelligence and security agency whose responsibilities include control of Lebanon's border crossings.

"The crisis that Lebanon is going through may be prolonged. Your duty is steadfastness and standing as a barrier to protect your country and your people," he told staff.

Were the state to fall it would fall on everyone "and everyone will be in the eye of chaos and in the line of tension," he said.

Ibrahim also noted the crisis' impact on other security agencies and on the nation in general.

The UN secretary general on Thursday called on Lebanese leaders to form a new government urgently - something they have failed to do for a year during which the currency has collapsed by more than 90% and poverty has soared.

Foreign donors say they will provide assistance once a government is formed that embarks on reforms to address the root causes of the collapse.

President Michel Aoun, the Maronite Christian head of state, and Prime Minister-designate Najib Mikati, a Sunni Muslim, have yet to agree on a new cabinet more than one month after Mikati was picked to form one.

Mikati gave no statement on Thursday after their 13th meeting.

Mikati took on the task after Saad al-Hariri, Lebanon's leading Sunni, abandoned a nine-month-long bid to form the government, saying he could not agree with Aoun and accusing him of seeking effective veto power in cabinet.

Aoun, an ally of the heavily armed, Iran-backed Shi'ite group Hezbollah, has denied this, and blamed Hariri.

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Thomas Barrack: Syria’s Joining Abraham Accords ‘Could Take Time’

HANDOUT - 19 June 2025, Lebanon, Beirut: US Special Envoy to Syria Tom Barrack speaks during a press conference in Beirut. Photo: Hassan Ibrahim/Lebanese Parliament/dpa
HANDOUT - 19 June 2025, Lebanon, Beirut: US Special Envoy to Syria Tom Barrack speaks during a press conference in Beirut. Photo: Hassan Ibrahim/Lebanese Parliament/dpa
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Thomas Barrack: Syria’s Joining Abraham Accords ‘Could Take Time’

HANDOUT - 19 June 2025, Lebanon, Beirut: US Special Envoy to Syria Tom Barrack speaks during a press conference in Beirut. Photo: Hassan Ibrahim/Lebanese Parliament/dpa
HANDOUT - 19 June 2025, Lebanon, Beirut: US Special Envoy to Syria Tom Barrack speaks during a press conference in Beirut. Photo: Hassan Ibrahim/Lebanese Parliament/dpa

Syria and Israel are engaged in “meaningful” talks through the United States that aim to restore calm along their border, according to Thomas Barrack, US President Donald Trump’s envoy to Syria.

Barrack said in an interview with The New York Times on Thursday that the administration wanted Syria to join the Abraham Accords, but “this could take time” because Syria’s new President Ahmed al-Sharaa could face resistance at home.

“He cannot be seen by his own people to be forced or coerced into the Abraham Accords,” Barrack said. “So he has to work slowly.”

Trump tapped Barrack, an old friend and private equity investor, to help realize his vision for the Middle East, which the administration hopes will foster less conflict and more prosperity.

Trump made clear during his Mideast visit in May that lucrative business deals in sectors including arms and artificial intelligence were his priority, and his decision to bomb nuclear enrichment facilities in Iran last month showed his support for Israel and willingness to use force against American foes.

Barrack called the US administration’s approach a departure from previous “failed” American attempts at “nation building” and from past efforts to shape how other governments rule.

Much of Barrack’s work has focused on pushing Syria and Lebanon, both recovering from destructive wars, toward solving their own problems while rallying support from Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Türkiye and other regional partners.

It is unclear whether Trump’s focus on prioritizing economic development over vocal support for democracy will fare better than the efforts of previous administrations to address some of the Middle East’s most bedeviling problems, according to The New York Times.

Barrack, in his first diplomatic job at age 78, has been working his relationships with heads of state and other power brokers. He said that having a direct line to the White House and to Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and the fact that the administration had “little patience for the region’s resistance to helping itself,” had helped.

Much of Barrack’s effort has focused on Syria, where the fledgling government of al-Sharaa is trying to rebuild the country after a 13-year civil war.

Trump signed an executive order this week aimed at ending decades of US sanctions on Syria.

Barrack said that instead of making strict demands, the administration had laid out objectives for the Syrian government to work toward while Washington monitored its progress.

Those indications would include finding a peaceful accommodation with Israel; integrating the US-backed, Kurdish-led militia that controls Syria’s northeast; and investigating the fates of Americans who went missing during the war.

Progress on democratization and inclusive government will not happen quickly, Barrack said, and are not part of the US criteria.

American officials have expressed concerns about the thousands of fighters who came to Syria from abroad to take part in the war, mostly as part of militant groups.

Barrack said Washington realized that Syria could not expel those who remained and that they could pose a threat to the new government if they were excluded. So the Trump administration instead expects transparency about the roles they are given.

Lifting sanctions to encourage changes worked better than keeping them in place until Syria met specific demands, Barrack said.

“It is a brilliant way to accomplish the same thing, and these roll-on, roll-off sanctions have never worked anyway,” he said.

The new Syrian government’s relations have been tense with Israel, whose military has moved into southern Syria and often carried out operations there. The talks aim to quiet the conflict along the border while laying the groundwork for better relations.