The Lebanese Army has long been considered the guarantor of national security in Lebanon but today, it is economically weakened to the extent that it can barely pay its soldiers.
“In the morning I go about my job in the army,” a soldier who prefers to remain anonymous tells dpa. “I drive a taxi in the afternoon and at night and on weekends,” he says. This is what he must do to feed his children, the soldier adds.
Many military personnel in Lebanon find themselves in similar circumstances. The soldiers' poor economic situation poses a security risk for Lebanon and the region at a time of growing tensions with neighbouring Israel and the imminent threat of war.
The powerful Shiite Hezbollah militia, which is backed by Iran and controls large parts of Lebanon, further increases the potential for conflict.
Hezbollah is classified as a terrorist organization by several Western countries. It not only presents itself as the stronger and more capable rival, but has also established a kind of "state within a state" in Lebanon - with dangerous consequences.
Even before 2019, when Lebanon slid into the worst economic crisis in its history, a regular soldier earned the equivalent of about €1,500 ($1,640) a month. However, the country is running out of foreign currency.
State institutions can only pay their salaries partially in local currency, which has lost more than 95% of its value during the crisis. Today, that same soldier brings home an average of just under €130, which is hardly enough to survive in the deeply corrupt Mediterranean state, let alone support a family.
“The economic situation has forced many soldiers and police officers to take on other jobs to make ends meet,” says former Lebanese Army general Wehbe Katicha.
So far, the army has turned a blind eye because it simply does not have enough resources to pay full salaries. "This is very dangerous," Katicha says.
If the army were to collapse, it could have serious consequences. “If there is no army, militias will take their role and the country will descend into chaos,” Katicha warns.
This would be a painful reminder of Lebanon's most difficult days during the Lebanese Civil War between 1975 and 1990, which led to the collapse of the country's army.
Various militias, formed largely along communal lines, seized power and plunged Lebanon into a bloody inter-sectarian conflict that killed more than 150,000 people.
For many soldiers and policemen, however, their main job - protecting the country - has now become secondary to making ends meet.
"I am a soldier I have duties yes towards my country, but if I cannot feed my family, my job becomes secondary," one soldier who also works in a pharmacy tells dpa.
This comes at a time when Lebanon is experiencing its worst escalation of violence in years on its shared border with Israel.
Since the massacre led by the militant Palestinian organization Hamas in Israel on October 7 and the start of the war in the Gaza Strip, mutual attacks have occurred almost daily between the Hamas-allied Hezbollah and Israel with casualties on both sides.
Just one day after the Hamas attack, Hezbollah's first rockets flew at targets in northern Israel.
There have long been concerns that the war could spread to Lebanon if a diplomatic solution is not reached in Gaza.
"The army's power is not only weakened by the economic problems," says Lebanese political expert and analyst Makram Rabah. Its power is also undermined by Hezbollah's strategies, he says.
The militia has built a kind of state within a state in Lebanon and has propagated that the army is unable to protect its border with Israel.
In general: "The destruction of the idea of the state has destroyed the idea of the army," says Rabah.
Hezbollah mainly controls the south on the border with Israel. As a strong political force, it was the only group that was officially allowed to keep its weapons after the civil war.
It claims to have tens of thousands of rockets that could reach the entire Israeli territory. According to its leader Hassan Nasrallah, it has around 100,000 fighters at its disposal.
This figure cannot be verified. But if it is correct, Hezbollah would be larger than the Lebanese army, which officially has 85,000 members.
Military expert Katicha also sees the militia's actions as a danger. Despite the economic problems, the Lebanese armed forces are sufficiently trained to "easily maintain peace on the border."
Hezbollah would just have to let them, he says. "If Hezbollah does not allow this, then the whole country would be jeopardized."
After visiting Beirut in January, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock pledged €15 million so that the army could better ensure security in the south of the country along the Lebanese-Israeli border.
The funds are intended to cover fuel costs, but also medium-term measures, including border surveillance. However, military salaries will not be paid with this support.
A military employee who drives a taxi for extra income says, "I'm just tired. My colleagues in the army feel the same.”
"Even on my days off, I work day and night. If I find a job that pays me better and in dollars - whether here or abroad - I will resign and leave the service. In the end, my family's survival is the most important thing," he says.
