Lebanon’s experience of blanket hunting bans showed they do not stop violations — they push them into more dangerous forms. Science-based regulation, with sustainable hunters as partners, is the balanced path.
Lebanon’s experience of banning hunting in recent years has proven ineffective. It did not stop violations; it transformed them into more dangerous patterns. A wide segment of indiscriminate shooters (qawwasin) emerged who use cheap guns that are easy to replace when confiscated, while mist-netting and liming rose by more than 70% — methods far more lethal to birds and harder to detect than shotgun hunting.
This reality weakened deterrence, opened the door to illegal hunting, and burned bridges with sustainable hunters who could have been partners in protection. A total ban also ignored the social and economic dimension of rural communities, increasing resistance to the law and deepening secret practices.
Scientific regulation of hunting is the balanced solution: setting seasons that do not conflict with bird breeding; listing prohibited species on the basis of Red Lists and international agreements; banning abusive methods such as mist nets, birdlime, and electronic callers; and limiting take to traditional individual means.
Cooperation with sustainable hunters has proven effective: most violations were detected thanks to their work with the Anti-Poaching Unit, composed of hunters who operate alongside the army and security forces in monitoring, documentation, and filing cases before the environmental public prosecutor. Field work has also documented wildlife and enriched scientific knowledge of bird status.
The fundamental solution lies in establishing responsible hunting areas managed under the oversight of the relevant ministries, municipalities, and sustainable hunters — so that hunting shifts from a drain on nature to a genuine means of protecting it.
