In its first report, the Independent Lebanese Committee for the Elimination of COVID-19, a group of concerned citizens with various health-related expertise, addresses weaknesses in current government policy and highlights several directions and actions for a more coherent and sustainable national strategy. The Lebanese government has the responsibility to protect the health of all its citizens and residents. The early and decisive interventions implemented in the spring to address the COVID-19 pandemic allowed Lebanon to avoid what would have been an exponential rise in cases. These included thorough contact tracing, border closure, partial lockdown and (initially) centralized case isolation in hospitals.