Beirut’s Rafik Hariri International Airport has become more than just a travel hub as it has now become a political bargaining chip and a tool of coercion wielded by one faction at the expense of an entire nation. This cannot continue. In the days ahead, securing the airport and ensuring uninterrupted access to it must become Lebanon’s top priority.

Long before the war escalated in September 2024, the Kataeb Party pushed for the establishment of a second—and even a third—airport. The reasoning was clear: relying on a single airport in an increasingly volatile environment poses serious risks, not just for travelers but for Lebanon’s economy, security, and international standing. Yet, these efforts were put on hold when war broke out.

The situation today has gone far beyond mere flight delays due to security concerns or political disputes. This is not about stranded passengers, as some would have people believe. Lebanon's airport has become a tool of blackmail and coercion, used to reassert political dominance that has already begun to fade away, ironically, due to the miscalculations of the very faction now working to tighten its grip on the country’s only international gateway.

Thursday’s events—sparked by the denial of landing to an Iranian aircraft operated by a sanctioned airline banned in most countries—are just the latest chapter in a pattern of manipulation. Time and again, the road leading to the airport was blocked, not over actual airport-related issues, but as a show of force. Whether it’s an objection to a routine U.S. statement, an article in the press, or even a staged celebration of an alleged victory, the same tactic is used: cut offing access to the airport, holding thousands of travelers and workers hostage to political posturing. 

At this point, calling it the Airport Road is misleading. If there is one name that truly fits this road, it is the Road of Blackmail and Subjugation. Even in wartime, Lebanon’s enemies did not shut down the airport, bound by international agreements. Yet today, some Lebanese are doing exactly what foreign adversaries refrained from.

This is why Lebanon can no longer delay the establishment of additional airports. This is not just about infrastructure; it is about national security, economic stability, and basic human dignity. Employees, students, workers, and tourists should not have their lives disrupted whenever Hezbollah and its supporters decide to flex their muscles. Failing to act on this issue immediately, despite the clear feasibility of doing so, would amount to nothing short of a national betrayal.

From this moment forward, everything else must take a backseat. The government, the presidency, and Lebanon’s fragile coexistence depend on resolving this issue. Either real action is taken to end this cycle of blackmail, or Lebanon will continue its descent into chaos, risking the collapse of a political era that still has a chance to reclaim its future; a political era that began with promise but will end in failure if left to be strangled by the same forces holding the airport, and Lebanon itself, hostage.