Al Habtoor Group, a Dubai based company has confirmed selling everything that it owns in Lebanon, while closing the chapter on more than two decades of investment in the country.
The group’s board approved the move on Monday, November 2. The sale covers its hotels, commercial and residential properties, land holdings and all other assets in Lebanon. It comes nine months after the conglomerate shut down its Lebanese operations on January 28, 2026.
What is being sold
The best-known assets are in Beirut. The group owns two adjoining hotels in Sin el-Fil, the Metropolitan Palace Hotel and the Al Habtoor Grand Hotel, which together operate as Al Habtoor City Beirut. The Grand is a 31-storey luxury property with a convention centre and spa.
Al Habtoor Group said the sale will be handled as a structured process. Each asset will be valued separately, and deals will depend on market conditions and fair prices. The group described its Lebanese holdings as worth billions but did not give figures, saying it was already in talks with several potential buyers and investors.
How it got here
The exit has been building for a long time. Al Habtoor first invested in Lebanon in the late 1990s and opened its first hotel there in 2001, later expanding into real estate, retail and leisure.
Relations soured as Lebanon’s financial crisis deepened. The group has said banking restrictions imposed by Lebanese authorities and the central bank, Banque du Liban, blocked it from accessing and transferring its own deposits. It has put its total losses at more than $1.7 billion, about Dh6.24 billion, and is pursuing legal action against the Lebanese government.
In January 2025, chairman Khalaf Al Habtoor cancelled all planned investments in Lebanon and said he would sell his properties there. A year later, the group closed its hotels and ended the contracts of all its employees in the country, citing prolonged instability and what it called hostile campaigns against it. Monday’s decision is the final step: moving from shutting the doors to selling the buildings.
What it means
For Lebanon, losing one of its most prominent Gulf investors is a blow to confidence at a time when the country badly needs foreign capital. The Beirut hotels were once among the city’s main venues for conferences and large events.
For Al Habtoor Group, one of the UAE’s largest conglomerates with interests in hospitality, real estate, automotive and education, the sale frees up capital. The group said it wants to focus on markets that offer more stability and clearer long-term growth, and that it will keep looking for international opportunities.
Further details of the sale process are expected to be announced later.
Quick facts
- Decision announced: November 2, 2026
- Operations closed: January 28, 2026
- Claimed losses in Lebanon: over $1.7 billion
- Main assets: Metropolitan Palace Hotel and Al Habtoor Grand Hotel, Beirut
- In Lebanon since: late 1990s
Sources: Al Habtoor Group, Arab News, Al-Monitor, Arabian Business, Construction Week.
