This wouldn’t come without some kind of compensation. Telecom Minister Mohamed Chouchair promised “something in return” to be made public next week.

This isn’t exactly an exorbitant fee. If you feel compelled to make a Facebook Messenger call while you’re in Beirut, you can talk to your heart’s content once the call starts. However, it could deter people from using VoIP regularly. They might resort to sending voice messages or video chats. And when there are only two (government-controlled) carriers in Lebanon, you can’t just use an indie provider to help you skirt around the ban on voice.