Legal & Policy Change
Lebanon continues to face major legal and policy challenges in addressing substance use and illegal gambling, especially with growing youth exposure, weak enforcement, and gaps between regulation and reality.
Rehabilitation Instead of Imprisonment
Substance use law (Law 673/1998) criminalizes drug use but also provides a way for courts to send first-time offenders to rehabilitation instead of prison. ecoi.net
Prevention and Youth Education
The “Inter-Ministerial Substance Use Response Strategy” suggests that prevention and education are critical: peer influence, socio-economic stress, and youth exposure are major risk factors. Council of Europe
Growth of Underground Betting Cafés
According to reports, the legal gamble infrastructure is not enough to compete with underground gambling: many betting “cafés” operate illegally, and enforcement is inconsistent. Public Gaming+1
Weak Gambling Law Enforcement
Despite attempts to regulate online gambling, there are major enforcement gaps: black-market gambling houses, corruption, and weak regulation make it difficult to fully control illegal betting. L'Orient Today