Muslim students accuse Lebanese university of discrimination over prayer

A lack of prayer spaces at the Lebanese American University (LAU) campus in Byblos has sparked controversy in Lebanon, with Muslim students accusing the university of discriminating against them.

Byblos, also known as Jbeil, is a majority-Christian city north of Beirut, but hundreds of Muslim students study at the university's campus.

Students have accused LAU of restricting their ability to pray on campus and closing spaces that had previously been used for prayer. They have also pointed out that there is no mosque within walking distance of the university.

An LAU student who gave only his first name, Suleiman, told The New Arab: "The students were praying in an unused locker room, but then the university said they wanted to convert it to a lab. This never happened.

"When the students asked if they could get [another] space to pray, the university ignored them. The students began praying underneath a staircase in the parking garage but the university said they couldn't do that either. A LAU student asked [LAU] President Chaouki Abdalla for another space to pray but the students were told to forget about this request," Suleiman added.

Around 300 students recently signed a petition calling on LAU to provide prayer spaces for Muslims. Suleiman said many Muslim students feared speaking out because they were concerned they could be expelled.

Local imam Sheikh Ahmed Al-Laqis accused LAU of restricting students' ability to exercise their right to pray, saying that if the university continued to do so, "people would be forced to seek other solutions".

The controversy has continued to generate debate in Lebanon, with LAU issuing a statement "regretting that this issue is being amplified".

"LAU is a secular, private, not-for-profit institution. Its mission and values are clearly communicated to all students, faculty and staff," the statement said.

"The matter concerns requests for dedicated physical spaces for prayer. Consistent with its secular character, the university does not designate physical spaces for religious observance. This policy applies equitably to all members of the LAU community," it added.

However, students have pointed to LAU's mission statement, which includes a commitment to "enable individuals to find their own spiritual and personal fulfilment".

They have also pointed out that universities in Lebanon and other countries where Muslims make up a much smaller proportion of the population provide prayer spaces for Muslims and members of other faiths.

In a statement sent to The New Arab following publication, LAU rejected claims that it prohibits students from praying on campus.

The university said it is a private, secular institution that respects individual freedoms, including religious freedom and observance, and that it "does not prohibit any members of its community from praying". However, it also said that it "does not maintain designated prayer spaces."

LAU also said President Chaouki T. Abdallah "did not prohibit students from praying" and had referred students to the university's position on the matter.

Some secular Lebanese media outlets have defended the university's policy.

"It is true that under Lebanese law every citizen has the right to practice their religious rituals, but is the university the appropriate place for that?" the social media platform Political Pen commented in a video.

The issue has also fuelled sectarian tensions between Muslims and Christians, with Ibrahim al-Saqr, a prominent figure in the right-wing Christian Lebanese Forces party, sarcastically suggesting that Muslim students should establish their own Islamic university if they wanted to pray.

Some students have linked the controversy to other alleged instances of discrimination against Muslims in Lebanon, including previous reports of Lebanese Muslims being denied the opportunity to rent homes in Christian areas and women wearing hijab being denied access to beaches.

Sectarian tensions in Lebanon have intensified amid Israel's war, which has forced hundreds of thousands of mostly Shia Muslim Lebanese to flee their homes in southern Lebanon and seek shelter in Sunni and Christian areas.

Editor's note: This article was updated on 16 September 2026 to include a response from the Lebanese American University.