October 13, 2026
The National Authority of the Litani River announced, based on the reference of the Public Prosecutor of Appeal in the Bekaa, the sealing of the “Aziz al-Murr” slaughterhouse in the Al-Mu’allaqa area in the city of Zahle with red wax, against the backdrop of committing serious environmental and health violations represented by the discharge of blood and waste resulting from the activity of the armed forces and the farm directly into the riverbed.
The Authority explained in a statement it issued that this judicial action was the culmination of a field inspection carried out on October 1, 2026, with the participation of members of the Al-Muallaqa Police Station – Zahle and representatives of the Ministries of Agriculture and Public Health. The inspection resulted in documenting the presence of a hidden pipe used to drain liquid waste and blood towards the river, in addition to collecting another portion of the polluted water and pumping it into the public sewage network.
The statement pointed out that this step falls within the vigorous judicial follow-up of a file dating back to 2021, when the authority documented environmental violations at the same site. Recent inspections revealed the continuation of pollution while resorting to developing new drainage methods instead of correcting the situation and stopping the violations.
The National Litani River Authority considered that sealing the slaughterhouse with red wax represents a pivotal step in the process of combating pollution and protecting water resources, stressing the need to go beyond the stage of monitoring and documenting violations to actually implementing deterrent measures against institutions and facilities that are stubborn in polluting the river.
The Authority concluded its emphasis on continuing to pursue all sources of pollution at the judicial and administrative levels, in full coordination with public prosecutors, security services, and relevant ministries, in order to preserve public safety, preserve the Litani River, and put an end to the ongoing violations targeting vital water resources.
