MARCH held its Ninth Edition of the Beb El Dehab Football Tournament
in Collaboration with the Lebanese Armed Forces!
As part of MARCH’s Sports for Reconciliation efforts, the ninth edition of the Beb El Dahab Football Tournament brought together youth—including former fighters, former foes, and formerly incarcerated or arrested men—from historically divided neighborhoods in Tripoli, such as the Sunni-majority areas of Beb El Tebbeneh, Al Mankoubin, Wadi Al-Nahleh, Mallouleh, and Qobbeh, as well as the Alawite area of Jabal Mohsen, alongside members of the Lebanese Armed Forces. The football tournament is part of a wider approach MARCH refers to as Sports for Reconciliation, which uses sports as a tool to build trust, encourage dialogue, and foster a sense of shared identity. These events are not simply recreational, they are strategic. They reach youth who may feel disconnected or disillusioned and offer an entry point to engage constructively with the army and with one another.
Contextual Relevance: Fear and Mistrust Towards the Lebanese Armed Forces in Tripoli’s Neighborhoods
Tripoli’s neighborhoods particularly Beb El Tebbeneh and Jabal Mohsen have long been affected by sectarian divides, economic marginalization, and cycles of violence, and still carry the social impacts of past armed clashes. Intermittent fighting left deep scars across these areas, while trust between civilians and security institutions was strained, as the latter were sometimes perceived as favoring one side over the other or acting with excessive force during the 2014 Security Plan. As a result, relations between the Lebanese Armed Forces, the youth, and their communities were marked by mutual fear and mistrust.
Replacing Fear with Familiarity on the Playing Field
This football tournament reflects a deeper, ongoing collaboration between MARCH and the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF). Today, efforts like this football tournament aim to rewrite the script not through political posturing, but through collective participation. Beyond the matches themselves, the tournament marked a significant step in breaking down fear and mistrust between these former fighters and former foes and the Lebanese Armed Forces.
Twelve mixed teams participated in the tournament, soldiers from the First Intervention Regiment, the Second Brigade, and the Twelfth Brigade played alongside young men from communities once shaped by tension and mistrust. The matches unfolded in an atmosphere of camaraderie, fair play, and unexpected connection. By standing on the same team, sharing a strategy, and working toward a common goal, both sides began to see each other differently. What was once shaped by fear and distance started to shift toward mutual recognition, teamwork, and a new sense of possibility rooted in respect rather than hostility.
Humanizing the Army in the Eyes of Youth and Society
For many young participants, the army had long been associated with raids, tension, and confrontation rarely with dialogue or cooperation. Likewise, certain neighborhoods in Tripoli had been viewed by the army as high-risk zones, often approached with caution or avoided altogether. However, the presence of the army on the field playing side by side with youth from the aforementioned conflicting neighborhoods offered an opportunity to reshape mutual perceptions. After the successive and continuous football matches, army members were no longer seen only as enemies, but as individuals, teammates, and part of the same social fabric.
This initiative is not only a tool for civil militray cohesion, but also a strategic effort aimed at humanizing the LAF in the eyes of both the youth and the wider community who are also a key audience of these events.
Extending Reconciliation Beyond the Field
First by shifting the focus from past conflicts to shared goals, the tournament offered a space where relationships could be rebuilt through collaboration and trust. It reminded players and spectators alike that the field could be a place for new beginnings, where a simple pass or goal could carry far more meaning than just points on a scoreboard.
Beyond the matches, this collaboration includes community service projects and shared initiatives that extend into daily life in collaboration with the army. Together, they demonstrate that reconciliation is most effective when it is continuous, inclusive, and grounded in lived experience not confined to isolated moments.
