Michel Hayek 2026: Predictions For Lebanon
As per his yearly tradition, Michel Hayek made predictions for Lebanon and the region for the year 2026:
The title of my predictions for Lebanon is ‘the purge.’ When I say purge, I mean many things. A purge of intentions. A purge of hearts. A settling of accounts. A clearance of old goods, a sale. A purge of heads, and even a purge with blood.
The purge I mean comes in the sense of cleaning. We will shake off, from ourselves and from our country, the dust of the past. Where do I begin? I begin with some points from the oath speech and the ministerial statement that will start to be implemented one after another.
First, I will say what has been going through my mind, and I believe through the minds of people everywhere. There is danger facing presidents. There is a question here. But is the danger immediate? Now it is not dangerous. Is there a war or not? We are at war. And the strikes that…”
“What’s coming will not be greater than what Lebanon has already gone through. I have said this before, we are in a war of peace. Israel will strike where it sees fit, even if it has to strike near the American embassy.
There will also be an expansion in parliamentary elections, through a ‘cesarean birth.’ Everything in this phase will come through a cesarean birth, just as I told you about the birth of the president and the government.
The airport is threatened with a strike, one strike or two. Strikes on the airport will not change anything. The smallest natural storm, anywhere in the world, shuts things down for a week or two.
Is there peace or not? There is peace. And after a deep breath, peace will pass. Water and electricity will not remain.”
They are both struggling, but moving toward improvement. I see an inflow of capital and investors, an improvement in the financial situation.
We will see money coming into people’s hands. Deposits will be untangled, step by step, even if the final solution is still on the horizon.
The economy will not be cooked overnight. It is a slow simmer, pots heating up. I see it warming up, getting ready to run into restructuring.
Everything that is chaotic will be restructured, from banks, to borders, to real estate, all the way to weapons.
There will be a hot summer, and a winter of construction.
There will be tourism, diverse tourism, and most importantly, tourism will be historical tourism, in the great museum called Lebanon itself, with its nature, ruins, churches, monasteries, and shrines.
Some municipalities will compete to achieve better development.
Migrants who left long ago are starting to think about returning. Even the younger ones who were born abroad are coming to Lebanon. They will taste zaatar manousheh, its scent, and cheese kunafa in Lebanon.
The black market will no longer be tied to what is officially labeled as ‘anti-corruption.’
Lebanon’s gold will do its job.
There will be prosperity across regions, not sectarian or faction-based, an unprecedented boom since the start of the war.
Every area will choose a logo to represent itself.
The fight against corruption will grow stronger, and its road will not be short.
Sports will head toward a peak, with women at the forefront. There will be assassinations and purges, as we said.
Lebanese art will help extinguish the fire of war and spark the launch of Lebanon’s revival.
The grey list will change its color. They will turn the page on money laundering.
The railways are being renovated, becoming a tourist landmark, waiting for the train to arrive.
Individual projects will launch strongly, built on solid foundations, forming the start of Lebanon’s revival.
Lebanon’s oil is heating up, with surprises ahead.
Reconstruction will take place in the foreseeable future. Maps, files, and the flow of funds have already begun.
Finally, I want to say that the level of optimism and hope in Lebanon is higher than it was before. The Lebanon workshop has started. Lost opportunities will converge, and Lebanon will benefit from them in services.
Everything I mentioned will happen quietly, subtly, and without noise.