The British ambassador to Lebanon, Chris Rampling, will be saying goodbye to Lebanon this month. According to a statement by the British Embassy in Beirut, Rampling will be leaving for personal reasons.
The statement came as clarification following several local media reports which claimed that Rampling, along with the families of British diplomats, were leaving Lebanon for security reasons related to rising tensions between Iran and Israel.
The British Embassy Beirut emphasized that Rampling, who has served as UK’s Ambassador to Lebanon since September 2018, was leaving for family-related issues, not security concerns. It also said that a successor will be announced at a later time.
Regarding family members of staff at the British Embassy, the statement revealed that some have left the country recently due to “challenging circumstances.”
The embassy stressed however that this did not change the UK’s commitment to Lebanon and to supporting its security and stability.
This is undoubtedly an extremely difficult time to be in Lebanon, and while Rampling is seen to have experienced the best of what our country has had to offer, he had surely seen the worst.
The961 reached out to the British Embassy in Beirut which was not immediately available for comment.
Update: On December 7th, the British Embassy Beirut confirmed to The961 that Rampling will be leaving Lebanon in December due to family circumstances.
