Army Command

The transition of the Lebanese Army to the authority of the Lebanese State:

After Lebanon’s independence on the 22nd of November 1943, the Lebanese government made numerous contacts with the French state in order to take control of the Lebanese Army. Therefore, as a result of the Lebanese State, the French State agreed to mainly hand over the Lebanese Army to the Lebanese authorities, as they agreed on the handing over procedures and decree number 3540/k was issued on the 11th of July 1945 that stipulated the establishment of a special committee for this affair. After the procedures suggested by the delivery and handing over committees were approved, the Joint English – French Staff Committee in the Levant issued resolution number 15 on 25/07/1945 that stipulated the transition of the Lebanese Army to the authority of the Lebanese State on the 1st of August 1945 at 00.00 hours at midnight. The handing over ceremony of the Lebanese Special Units took place on the 1st of August 1945 at 9.00 AM in front of the new Headquarters building at the Sham Road, near the national museum. The ceremony was attended by President Cheikh Bechara el Khoury, Prime Minister Abd el Hamid Karami along with ministers, the Army Commander Fouad Chehab, the Chief of Staff of the ministry of National Defense Suleiman Nawfal and numerous members of the General Staff of the new command.
The Army headquarters was located at first in the Headquarters of the Ministry of National Defense near the national museum – Sham Road. However, the number of personnel and the missions of the Army increased. Furthermore, the Army Headquarters was transferred in 1968 to the current building of the ministry of National Defense in Yarzeh until nowadays.
 

The Army Command:
The Army command consists of:

  • The Army Commander
  • The General Staff


The General Staff operate under the authority of the Army Commander and consists of:

  • The Chief of Staff
  • The deputies of the Chief of Staff
  • Directorates, branches, bureaus and specialized units
     

The Army Commander:
The Army Commander is assigned among General Grade officers, holding the P.S.C grade, who have never been put into the reserve, with a decree issued from the cabinet, based on the suggestion of the minister of National Defense. The Army Commander holds the rank of General, is named “LAF Commander in Chief” and is directly linked to the minister of Defense.
 

The missions of the Army commander
The Army Commander takes upon himself the mission of preparing the Army for the missions assigned to it, to raise its combat level and to command military operations. These missions require:

  • Performing optional or mandatory volunteering
  • Organizing and managing units and bureaus and specifying their mission
  • Performing operations of employment and on the alert operations when they are decided
  • Preparing plans and combat orders and putting forth their logistic programs
  • Determining the need of the Army and maintaining the state of equipment and supplies upon their delivery from the General Administration
  • Commanding military operations
     

The Chief of Staff:
The Chief of Staff is assigned among General Grade officers, holding the P.S.C grade, who have never been put into the reserve, with a decree issued from the cabinet, based on the suggestion of the minister of National Defense, after consulting with the Army Commander. The Chief of Staff substitutes the Army Commander in case he was absent and practices his missions and authorities throughout all his absence period.


The missions of the Chief of Staff:
The Chief of Staff assists the Army commander in assuming his responsibilities and performing his missions, and that through the control of the work of the General Staff and the coordination among them.

The Chief of Staff also supervises the combat level of the army through the following:

  • Supervising the implementation of the issued resolutions
  • Supervising the readiness of the Army as to men and equipment
  • Suggesting means and ways that help develop the work of the General Staff and improve the level of services for the Combat units
  • Supervising the training and managing the affairs of the Reserve Force