Housing

Statement

Regarding yesterday’s BIEL incident and the “encroachment” speech on the waterfront

English 3-liner
On May 18, a large number of security forces arrived at BIEL and began relocating displaced families, who had settled there due to the lack of safe alternatives, to a limited area within the same property.
The municipality is estimated to provide between 200 and 300 tents, while approximately 600 families currently reside in the area, with no clarity regarding the fate of those families who will not receive a tent. Meanwhile, many of the displaced Syrians have fled the area, fearing the actions of the security forces.
This event was accompanied by escalating rhetoric claiming that the displaced refuse to move to shelters, and therefore are “squatting” in downtown Beirut, hindering tourism.
In this statement, we clarify some points concerning the rights of displaced communities in safe displacement shelters that they choose and adapt, and the need for the state’s support that prioritizes the safety, security and wellbeing of the displaced communities.

Article Law Commentary

A Proposal to Address Building Collapses:

Filling the Legal Void Does Not Replace the State 

Building collapses in Lebanon are no longer isolated incidents, but the result of a long accumulation of neglect and the state’s retreat from its responsibilities toward public safety. The latest draft law proposed by deputy Ihab Matar seeks to establish a mechanism for addressing structurally damaged buildings by organizing roles and relying on incentives and private financing rather than developing a comprehensive public policy. Yet when rehabilitation is tied to economic feasibility and investment opportunities, the question remains: what kind of city is being shaped, and for whom is it being rebuilt or renovated?

Legal Memo

What Are My Rights During and After Evictions from  Buildings at Risk of Collapse?

In the wake of Tripoli’s building collapse crisis, this legal memo serves to inform residents of the rights guaranteed to them under Lebanese and international law at every stage of eviction and beyond, from prior notice and dignified relocation to guaranteed return, and calls on them to demand these protections both on an individual and collective level.

Petition

Joint Letter to Stakeholders Addressing the Displacement Crisis:

Housing Is a Right That Cannot Be Postponed

Hundreds of displaced families continue to seek shelter in public spaces, under difficult conditions, while other families are forced to negotiate or open vacant doors on their own to avoid sleeping in the …

Project

A Comprehensive Law for the Right to Housing in Lebanon

In 2023, Public Works Studio launched a project for a comprehensive draft law for the right to housing in Lebanon. The project is a radical approach to addressing the housing crisis and its accumulations over the past decades, and is proposed as a tool capable of securing the diverse needs of a variety of social groups, especially the elderly, persons with disability, students, workers, families, and others. The project is rooted in a participatory methodology, and throughout its phases engaged in consultations with residents from marginalized communities, civil society institutions, and experts, whose ownership of the proposal is a pillar for the project’s success.

Policy Watch

Shelter Centers in Tripoli: A Response Deepening class inequalities in the city

Until the morning of 17 April, 20 shelters were opened in Tripoli. Their uneven distribution concentrated pressure in already vulnerable neighbourhoods, particularly those with collapsed or at-risk buildings, while wealthier areas were largely excluded despite available vacant housing stock, reflecting how response practices reproduce existing spatial and class-based inequalities in the city.

Policy Watch

Shelters in Beirut: Three Factors Deepening Inequality in the City

Amid the ongoing escalation and growing waves of displacement toward the capital, shelters in Beirut continue to face increasing pressure. A review of these centers reveals three key challenges: limited capacity and delayed shelter availability, the uneven geographic distribution across the city, and the heavy reliance on educational institutions as shelter sites. These patterns point to fundamental structural imbalances in the crisis response, contributing to the deepening of inequality at the level of the city.

Statement

Securing the Right to Housing and Return: An Open Letter to Officials on Tripoli’s Building Collapse Crisis

As Tripoli’s building collapse crisis deepens. This letter calls on public officials to ensure that the government’s Emergency Plan measures protect residents from long-term displacement through dignified alternative housing and guaranteed return.

Law Commentary

The Suspension of Deadlines in the Absence of Housing Protection: A Legislative Loophole in Times of War

The suspension of deadlines in times of war is a key tool for protecting rights. However, excluding lease agreements from it undermines this protection and exposes tenants to the risk of eviction and homelessness. In the context of widespread displacement and declining ability to pay, the right to housing cannot be separated from any serious legislative response to the crisis. Including leases within the scope of suspended deadlines is not a technical detail, but an urgent necessity to ensure a minimum level of social protection under exceptional circumstances.

Research-Based Article

Eviction in Wartime: A Reading of Old Rent Eviction Verdicts

This article explores how courts in Beirut and Zahle selectively applied an inapplicable law to fast-track legally preventable evictions, while disregarding the consequences for old-rent tenants in a country already overwhelmed by war and displacement.

Statement

Open the Empty Buildings – Public and Private- and Apply Rent Control

Thousands of displaced families are sleeping on the Corniche sidewalks, the beach, and in public squares, left without shelter. This situation is a direct result of the government’s shortcomings in its plan to accommodate the growing number of displaced people, exacerbated by Israel’s orders to evacuate more than 80 towns in the south and all of southern Beirut.

We are here to reiterate the following options for effectively responding to the escalating displacement crisis, in light of the evolving security situation and the imperative to guarantee the right to housing, which is being violated on an unprecedented scale during wars.

Law Commentary

Two Complementary Draft Laws to Strengthen the Right to Housing

On Wednesday, February 25, 2026, MP Halima Al-Qaqour, along with a number of MPs, submitted two draft laws to the Speaker of Parliament. The first, an amendment to the old residential lease law, …