October 9, 2026
In a new escalatory step that revives the sabbatical issue on the government table, contract professors at the Lebanese University carried out a massive sit-in on the road to the Republican Palace in Baabda, coinciding with the Cabinet session, demanding the final resolution of the issue after years of waiting, and warning that continued procrastination will be met with further escalation.
Participants in the sit-in raised banners demanding the approval of the sabbatical file, stressing their adherence to their legitimate rights and the continuation of their protest steps until a radical solution is reached that ends their suffering.
Dr. Ali Fares gave a speech on behalf of the contract professors, in which he stressed that their demands do not go beyond the limits of fairness to professors who have spent many years in the education and scientific research sector, and that they deserve job stability and dignity.
Fares asked, “Has demanding stability, dignity, and fairness become a crime? Has demanding justice and equal citizenship become a sin?”, noting that professors continue to fulfill their mission of building generations and advancing the university despite the harsh living conditions.
He explained that the sabbatical file has passed basic administrative stages and is now in the approval stage, stressing that what professors are awaiting today are not new promises, but rather a decisive and just decision that will put an end to the series of procrastination and postponement.
Fares stressed that the professors are keen on the students’ interests and do not want to disrupt the university’s progress, but the continued official procrastination exacerbates the crises and threatens the university year with serious challenges.
He held the state fully responsible for ending the crisis, considering that the main approach to the solution lies in approving the sabbatical file to ensure academic and social stability for both professors and students.
Fares concluded his speech by raising the ceiling of warnings, saying: “Either approving the sabbatical file and providing justice to those who deserve it, or continuing the strike and sit-ins… Enough waiting, enough postponing… It is time for a decision.”
This field move comes at a time when the sabbatical issue is back at the forefront of official attention, amid professors’ insistence on settling their academic and employment statuses, in exchange for continued assurances that students will be spared the repercussions of this chronic delay.
