Can Starlink help rewrite Lebanon’s broken telecoms rulebook?

The struggling economy could benefit hugely from the US firm’s satellite-based internet service, given that it currently only has patchy broadband coverage. Will it be allowed, though?

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Starlink executives are exploring whether a licence could be granted in Lebanon, but talks may have slowed in the country's political and legal morass.

Can Starlink help rewrite Lebanon’s broken telecoms rulebook?

Abdulfattah Khattab

last update on 28 Jul 2025

Lebanon is a land of necessary neighbourhood generators, patchy internet connections, entrepreneurial ideas, and effectively absent regulatory oversight. When Israeli bombing targeted southern Lebanon late last year, the internet was cut off. Suddenly, the satellite internet service offered by US-based entrepreneur Elon Musk became important. Negotiations between the company and the Ministry of Telecommunications followed. The aim is to integrate Lebanon into Starlink’s network of 136 serviced countries.

Lebanese media revealed that Starlink had carried out pilot tests with the approval of security agencies, after agreeing to provide authorities with a tool for accessing user data similar to the arrangements made with Ogero, Lebanon’s state-run telecom operator. How it does so is open to question, since the national Telecommunications Regulatory Authority—established under Law 431/2002—has been inactive since 2012, when its board members fell out.

Series of meetings

On 29 May, Lebanon’s Presidential Office said President Joseph Aoun had been briefed by Sam Turner, Starlink’s Global Director of Licensing and Development, on the company’s ongoing talks with the Ministry of Telecommunications. Starlink could help Lebanon’s industrial, commercial, banking, educational, and governmental sectors, Turner said. Prime Minister Nawaf Salam’s office said he had also been briefed by Turner, alongside US Ambassador Lisa Johnson.

Soon, Economy and Trade Minister Amer Bassat said Starlink’s entry into Lebanon would “provide the private sector with additional, reliable, and efficient internet services”. Weeks later, on 26 June, Aoun spoke by phone to Elon Musk, who is reportedly keen to enter Lebanon. Aoun invited him to visit and welcomed the idea of Starlink, saying he would support it as far as he was able, or “within the framework of applicable Lebanese laws and regulations”.

The aim is to integrate Lebanon into Starlink's network of 136 serviced countries

Ever since, questions have been asked, and accusations have been made. Former Ogero director Abdel-Moneim Youssef told Telecoms Minister Charbel Hajj that Turner was not Starlink's global licensing chief, as claimed. Others began asking if Aoun had even spoken to Musk in June.

Questions about data

Others still asked whether the Lebanese security services (including Military Intelligence, the Information Branch of the Internal Security Forces, and General Security) had let Starlink operate based on its willingness to share user data, because the US CLOUD Act of 2018 mandates that US tech firms store data on US-based servers and only disclose it following a court order.

Shutterstock — Elon Musk's Starlink satellite internet services company could help Lebanon get better broadband connectivity, but current fixed-line providers don't want the competition

Should Starlink be licensed, data would travel directly from users' terminals to satellites, then to ground stations abroad, before entering the global internet infrastructure – bypassing all Lebanese state gateways. This raises concerns about digital sovereignty, which is partly why France revoked Starlink's licence in 2022 and the United Arab Emirates also enforces strict regulations requiring state ownership of international gateways and full data traffic oversight.

These are models that some experts think Lebanon should emulate with Starlink, whose entry into Lebanon is not a new topic for conversation, the Cabinet and parliament having debated it several times over the years, with lawmakers raising security and economic concerns. Some now suggest that, in the aftermath of Musk's very public disagreement with US President Donald Trump, Starlink may not be the smart political choice.

Accusing the minister

Some have called for Telecom Minister Hajj's dismissal, accusing him of colluding to grant an illegal licence or exclusive privilege, and of favouring the company Connect—allegedly linked to his private business network—in distributing Starlink equipment without any transparent tender process (Hajj denies any wrongdoing).

On 30 June, lawyers submitted a complaint to the Financial Prosecutor's Office against the Minister and others, accusing them of embezzlement, squandering public funds, and abuse of power. Media outlets also reported that MPs were preparing to file a lawsuit before the State Council to annul Starlink's licence, citing severe constitutional and legal violations.

Ogero is a broadband provider in Lebanon that fears Starlink will take its customers

There are vested interests. Lebanese internet companies were caught off guard by Starlink, which could take at least 25% of their customer base, inflict monthly losses of more than $1mn, and drain foreign currency revenues out of the national economy. They called for the company's market entry to be governed by fair terms that align with Lebanon's legal framework for telecom operators.

Stalled in the mud

Amid all this political and legal upheaval, the decree that was expected to authorise Starlink's licence in late June was never signed. Hajj is relying on Article 45 of Law 431 (2002), which grants Liban Telecom a 20-year licence to provide basic telecom services, including internet. Though the company was never formally established, he argues that the licence has now expired.

Lebanese internet companies were caught off guard by Starlink, which could take at least 25% of their customer base

Article 45 also allows the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority to grant licences to other applicants if Liban Telecom fails to provide the required services. Based on this clause, Starlink would only need a cabinet-issued decree to begin operations. Opponents say bypassing Parliament would be unconstitutional. Granting any company a public service concession, they say, requires a law passed by the legislature.

The controversy took another turn after a sudden global outage disrupted Starlink's services on 24 July, affecting users in the US, Europe, Africa, Asia, and Australia. Ukrainian armed forces rely on Starlink and media outlets there reported that the outage impacted the country's warfighting abilities. It is not known whether the problem also affected Starshield, the company's military satellite division, which has big US defence and intelligence contracts.

In Lebanon, Starlink would represent more than just an internet service; it could be a temporary remedy to the country's dire telecoms crisis. But to succeed, Lebanon also needs a robust legal framework and parallel investment in local infrastructure, particularly fibre-optic networks. High costs, lack of local technical support, and the absence of Lebanese IP addresses could all limit uptake.

Still, if Starlink succeeds, it may boost foreign investment, provide support to global firms, and generate revenues for the state. Whether Starlink can help rewrite the telecom rules in Lebanon, or whether it would remain as an elite-only solution in a country drowning in crises, will depend on whether the company can navigate Lebanon's treacherous political and legal terrain.

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