ALI could drop lawsuit against Port of Beirut

Conflict over leased building to be resolved

The Ministry of Industry (MoI) suggested an initiative to resolve a conflict between the Port of Beirut and the Association of Lebanese Industrialists (ALI). As a leaseholder in a building owned by the Port of Beirut, the ALI had filed a lawsuit against the Port’s authority. The ALI had rejected the Port authority's plan to lease the building's top floor to a nightclub.

Ziad Bekdache, Vice-President of the ALI, said: “We expressed our objection by refusing to pay rent, which resulted in the accumulation of $370,000 in unpaid installments.”

The MoI proposed reducing the sum owed by the ALI to less than $100,000 in return for its withdrawal of the lawsuit. “The suggestion will be presented to the ALI’s board of directors next week,” Bekdache said. The proposal is expected to gain the approval of both parties.