Al Habtoor issues new threats of legal action against Lebanon

• Al Habtoor claims losses of $1.7bn
• Calls on government to honour obligations
• Lebanon focused on ‘restoring stability’

Al Habtoor Group said on Monday it would pursue legal action against the Lebanese government, the latest episode in a long running saga between the Emirati conglomerate and the bankrupt republic.

The group claims that its frozen Lebanese assets, combined with the government’s “failure… to take timely and necessary measures to protect foreign investments and private properties” have led to it incur losses of $1.7 billion.

In a statement, the company said it had “exhausted all reasonable and good-faith efforts to resolve this dispute” and threatened “to advance this matter further and proceed to take all legal measures necessary to protect and enforce its rights”. It did not offer specific details.

Al Habtoor Group is headed by chairman Khalaf Ahmad Al Habtoor. It has a number of major interests in Lebanon, including the Habtoor Grand Hotel Beirut, the Sooq Avenue mall, and the country’s only theme park, Habtoorland, which is currently closed.

“Over recent years, these investments have suffered severe and sustained harm as a direct result of measures and restrictions imposed by Lebanese authorities and the Banque du Liban, which have prevented the Group from freely accessing and transferring lawfully deposited funds held in Lebanese banks,” the statement read.

It called on the Lebanese government to honour its obligations to investors and to UAE companies in particular, citing bilateral agreements signed between the two countries.

In response to the statement, Lebanese minister of economy and trade, Amer Bisat, told AGBI that the government “is fully aware of the concerns expressed by investors and business leaders, particularly in light of the profound economic and financial crisis the country has endured”.

“Addressing these concerns is a central priority of the current reform agenda, which is focused on restoring financial stability, strengthening institutions, enhancing transparency and rebuilding confidence in the Lebanese economy,” he said.

“Lebanon continues to welcome dialogue that is grounded in mutual respect and a forward-looking perspective.”

Al Habtoor Group’s disagreement with Lebanon dates back to the banking crisis that emerged in 2019, wiping out more than 95 percent of the value of the Lebanese lira and freezing $90 billion of dollar deposits.

The Lebanese government is in talks to partially unfreeze accounts to allow depositors to withdraw $100,000 of their funds, although the International Monetary Fund has expressed scepticism.

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Despite this, Al Habtoor announced in April 2024 that he would establish a new TV channel in Lebanon and build a 100,000 square metre “studio city”, before axing the plans two months later citing “a barrage of orchestrated campaigns including accusations, slander and threats” made against the group.

Last January, the chairman said in a video interview that he intended to reopen Habtoorland, only to walk back the plans later that month, saying that the group would pull out of Lebanon completely. 

This was followed by threats in April that it would dismantle the Habtoor Metropolitan Palace Hotel and ship it out of the country in pieces.

Al Habtoor performed a U-turn four months later, posting a video to X in September in which he toured the Metropolitan, calling Lebanon a country “dear to my heart” and saying: “God willing, we will re-open it soon”.