Lebanon

الجمهوريّة اللبنانيّة Al-Ǧumhūriyyah al-Lubnāniyyah Republic of Lebanon
Flag Coat of arms of Lebanon Coat of arms
Motto: Transliteration: Koullouna Lil Watan, Lil Oula wal'Allam (Translation: "Us all! For our Nation, for our Emblem and Glory!")
Anthem: Kulluna lil-watan lil 'ula lil-'alam
Capital and largest city	Beirut
Official languages	Arabic 1
Government	Republic
• President	Émile Lahoud
• Prime Minister	Fouad Siniora
Constitution  Drawn on May 23 1926
• Independence	From Vichy France
• Declared	November 26, 1941
• Recognised	November 22 1943
• Water (%)	1.6%
Population
• 2005 estimate	3,577,000 2 (129th)
• 1970 census	2,126,325
GDP (PPP)	2005 estimate
• Total	$19.49 billion (116th)
• Per capita	$5,100 (130th)
HDI (2003)	0.759 high (81st)
Currency	Lebanese pound (LL) (LBP)
Time zone	UTC+2
• Summer (DST)	UTC+3
Calling code	961
ISO 3166 code	LB
Internet TLD	.lb
1 Official documents are also often written in French. Spoken languages in Lebanon includes Arabic, French, English, Armenian. 2 The Lebanese diaspora represents 10 to 14 million Lebanese around the world.

Lebanon (Arabic: لبنان Lubnān), officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a small, largely mountainous country in the Middle East, located at the eastern edge of the Mediterranean Sea. It is bordered by Syria to the north and east, and Israel to the south, with a narrow coastline along its western edge. The flag of Lebanon features the Lebanon Cedar in green against a white backdrop, with two quarter-height horizontal red stripes on the top and bottom.

The name Lebanon (also "Loubnan" or "Lebnan") is derived from the Aramaic word laban, meaning "white", a reference to snow-capped Mount Lebanon.

History

Main article: History of Lebanon

Lebanon was the home of the Phoenician traders whose maritime culture flourished for more than 2,000 years, roughly from 2700 to 500 BC. Phoenicia was an ancient civilization in the north of ancient Canaan, with its heartland along the coastal plains of what are now Lebanon and Syria. Phoenician civilization was an enterprising maritime trading culture that spread right across the Mediterranean during the first millennium BC. Though ancient boundaries of such city-centered cultures fluctuated, the city of Tyre seems to have been the southernmost. Sarepta, between Sidon and Tyre, is the most thoroughly excavated city of the Phoenician homeland. Although the people of the region called themselves the Canaani or Kenaani, the name Phoenicia became common thanks to the Greeks who called them the Phoiniki - Φοινίκη (Phoiníkē; see also List of traditional Greek place names); the Greek word for Phoenician was synonymous with the colour purple/red or crimson, φοῖνιξ (phoinix), through its close association with the famous dye Tyrian purple (cf also Phoenix). The dye was used in ancient textile trade, and highly desired. The Phoenicians became known as the 'Purple People'.

The Phoenicians spoke the Phoenician language, later called Punic since the Roman word for purple was Puniceus. In addition to their many inscriptions, the Phoenicians, contrary to some reports, wrote many books that have not survived. Evangelical Preparation by Eusebius of Caesarea quotes extensively from Philo of Byblos and Sanchuniathon. Furthermore, the Phoenician Punic colonies of North Africa continued to be a source of knowledge about the Phoenicians. Saint Augustine knew at least a smattering of Punic and occasionally uses it to explain cognate words found in Hebrew. The name of his mother, Saint Monica, is said to be of Punic origin as well. The region was a territory of the Roman Empire in the province of Syria and during the Middle Ages was important in the Crusades. It was later taken by the Ottoman Empire.

Following the collapse of the Ottoman Empire after World War I, the League of Nations mandated the five provinces that make up present-day Lebanon to France.

Modern Lebanon's constitution, drawn up in 1926, specified a balance of political power among the major religious groups.

The country gained independence in 1943, and French troops withdrew in 1946. Lebanon's history from independence has been marked by alternating periods of political stability and turmoil (including a civil conflict in 1958) interspersed with prosperity built on Beirut's position as a regional center for finance and trade.

The 1975-1990 war

Main article: Lebanese Civil War

Until the outbreak of the Lebanese Civil War, Beirut, the capital of Lebanon, was noted for its wide boulevards, French-style architecture, and modernity, and was called "the Paris of the Middle East." Lebanon as a whole was known as the Switzerland of the Middle East (Swisra Ash Shark), enjoying a similar conflict-free status as Costa Rica in Central America and (until recently) Uruguay in South America.

• The term "Civil War" is not adequate due to the complexity and foreign (Iranian-Israeli-Palestenian-Syrian) military forces role in the 1975-1990 war.

Beginning of the war

After the 1948 Arab-Israeli conflict, Lebanon became home to more than 110,000 Palestinian refugees who had fled from Israel. More Palestinian refugees arrived after the 1967 Arab-Israeli war and Black September. By 1975 they numbered more than 300,000 with Yassir Arafat's Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) in charge of their political and military activities. During the early 1970s difficulties arose over the increase of Palestinian refugees in the south. Initially, the fighting began between these Palestinians (referred to as "anti-Lebanese militias" by some) and the indigenous Lebanese "leftists" (the communists and socialist parties.) As the fighting intensified the sides involved became more distinct. On one side was the Christian resistance lead first by Bachir Gemayel then by Samir Geagea. The other side comprised a coalition of Palestinians refugees, Sunni Muslim, and Druze forces who were united in their detestation of the 1943 National Pact. The civil war left the nation with no effective central government.

Syrian intervention and occupation

Map of Lebanon

In June, 1976 Syria sent 40,000 troops into Lebanon to prevent the Maronite militias from being overrun by Palestinian forces. The fact that Baathist Syrians were fighting against Palestinians was ironic. Together the Syrians and Maronites pushed the Palestinians out of Beirut and into southern Lebanon. Over the next few years, shifting political climates resulted in Syria being allied with the Palestinians and some of the Maronites allied with Israel. Syrian forces remained in Lebanon, effectively dominating its government and occupying the country until 2005.

First Israeli invasion and occupation

Cross-border attacks by Palestinian groups in southern Lebanon against civilians in Israeli territory led to an invasion by the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) on March 15, 1978 in what was titled the Litani River Operation. A few days later, the United Nations Security Council passed resolutions 425 and 426, calling for the withdrawal of Israeli forces, and establishing an international peace-keeping force in southern Lebanon, the United Nations Interim Force In Lebanon (UNIFIL). Three months later, on June 13, 1978, Israel completed the withdrawal of its troops, and turned over control of southern Lebanon to the SLA.

Second Israeli invasion and occupation

The PLO's armed forces continued to use Lebanon as a base to attack Israel with rockets and artillery, and on June 6, 1982 Israel again invaded Lebanon with the objective of evicting the PLO. Israeli forces occupied areas from the southern Lebanese border with Israel northward into areas of Beirut. During this invasion the Phalangist militia, under the command of Elie Hobeika, moved into the Sabra and Shatila refugee camps, with the knowledge of Israeli Defense Minister Ariel Sharon, and committed the first Sabra and Shatila massacre. Israel's plans for Lebanon suffered a severe setback on September 14, 1982, with the assassination of the Phalangist leader and President-elect Bachir Gemayel, who was regarded as secretly sympathetic to Israel.

To date, there is no formal declaration of war between Lebanon and Israel, despite the lack of communication between the two nations.

International mediation

A multinational force landed in Beirut on August 20, 1982 to oversee the PLO withdrawal from Lebanon, and US mediation resulted in the evacuation of Syrian troops and PLO fighters from Beirut.

This period saw the rise of radicalism among the country's factions, and a number of landmark terrorist attacks against American forces, including the destruction of the US Embassy by a truck bomb and an even deadlier attack on the US Marines barracks.

1988 and 1989 saw unprecedented chaos. The Parliament failed to elect a successor to President Amine Gemayel (who had replaced his slain brother Bachir in 1982), whose term expired on 23 September. Fifteen minutes before his term expired, Gemayel appointed an interim administration headed by the army commander, General Michel Aoun. His predecessor, Selim al-Hoss, refused to accept his dismissal in Aoun's favour. Lebanon was thus left with no President, and two rival governments that feuded for power, and more than 40 private militias.

End of the war

The 1989 Arab League-sponsored Taif Agreement marked the beginning of the end of the military war, but not the end of the Syrian occupation nor the economic war against Lebanon. It is estimated that in the military war more than 100,000 were killed, and 100,000 maimed during the 15-year war. The legitimacy of the Taif agreement was contested by a portion of the population who viewed it as means to institutionalize a confessional political system. Popular protests occurred intermittently between 1989 and 1990 in support of the stand taken by the 1989 interim prime minister in Lebanon, General Michel Aoun. The General Michel Aoun demanded the withdrawal of Syrian and Israeli forces as a condition to having free parliamentary elections; the goal of the then-interim government. He contested these two occupations as justified by so-called “internal confessional conflict”, which was more of a series of foreign military manipulations. In October 1990 the Syrian occupation drove the head of the interim government, the General Aoun, into exile to Paris and the Lebanese patriotic movement he led became an underground one until the Syrian withdrawal in 2005.

On May 22 2000, Israel unilaterally completed its withdrawal from the south of Lebanon in accordance with UN Security Council Resolution 425 of 1978. On September 2 2004, the United Nations Security Council, recalling previous resolutions, especially 425 (1978), 520 (1982) and 1553 (July 2004), approved Resolution 1559, sponsored by the US and France, demanding that Syria, though not mentioned by name, should withdraw its troops from Lebanon. "All foreign forces should withdraw from Lebanon" to allow free elections. The enactors of the Taif agreement however did not enact the clause asking the Syrian occupation to withdraw from Lebanon, or heed the UN Security Council’s decision. The Lebanese patriotic movement has intensively lobbied for the withdrawal of the Syrian army from Lebanon since 1989, in governments throughout the western world. This withdrawal was catalyzed in its final stage by the assassination of Prime Minister Hariri in 2005.

Reconstruction

The country is recovering from the effects of the war, with foreign investment and tourism on the rise. Syrian forces occupied large areas of the country until April 2005 (see Cedar Revolution below), and Iran exercises heavy influence over Hezbollah forces in the Beqaa Valley and Southern Lebanon. Nevertheless, areas of Lebanon and Beirut in particular are moving toward a sense of normality and stability. Lebanese civil society enjoys significantly more freedoms than elsewhere in the Arab world. After twelve years, the reconstruction of downtown Beirut is largely complete. Lebanon's telcommunication rehabilitation is well underway, and in 2004 and 2005 foreign investment in the country topped $1 billion. Solidere has also announced many projects that will be complete in 2007.

Cedar Revolution (Intifada of Independence)

Main article: Cedar Revolution

Note: International media coined the term "Cedar Revolution", but Lebanese media also uses the term "Intifada (uprising) of Independence."

Hariri assassination

File:Hariri2002.jpg

Rafik Hariri (1944-2005)

On February 14, 2005, after 10 years of relative political stability, Lebanon was shaken by the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri in a car-bomb explosion. It is widely believed that Syria was responsible for the attack, due to its extensive military and intelligence presence in Lebanon, and to the public rift between Hariri and Damascus over the Syrian-backed constitutional amendment extending pro-Syrian President Lahoud's term in office. Syria, however, denies any involvement. Some sources also suggest a cover up of criminal evidence by Lebanese authorities.

On June 2, 2005, the journalist and historian Samir Kassir, also a founding member of the Democratic Left Movement was assassinated by a car bomb.

Less than one month later, on June 21, 2005, George Hawi, the former secretary general of the Lebanese Communist Party was also assassinated by a car bomb in Beirut.

On December 12, 2005, the journalist Gebran Tueni, editor-in-chief and CEO of the An-Nahar newspaper, was assassinated by a car bomb in the suburbs of Beirut.

On September 25, 2005, there was a failed assassination attempt on a Lebanese Broadcasting Corp News Anchor, in which May Chidiac lost her left leg below the knee, her left arm was severely injured and was amputated. Since then, May Chidiac won the UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize 2006.

Demonstrations

The assassination of Hariri resulted in huge anti-Syrian protests by Lebanese citizens in Beirut demanding the resignation of the pro-Syrian government. Following the examples of the Rose Revolution and Orange Revolution in 2004, the popular action was dubbed the "Cedar Revolution" by the US State Department, a name which quickly caught on among the international media. On February 28, 2005, as over 70,000 people demonstrated in Martyrs' Square, Prime Minister Omar Karami and his Cabinet resigned. They remained in office temporarily in a caretaker role prior to the appointment of replacements, as outlined by the constitution.

In response, Hezbollah organized a large counter-demonstration of 1.5 million people [1], staged on March 8 in Beirut, supporting Syria and accusing Israel and the United States of meddling in internal Lebanese affairs.

On March 14, one month after Hariri's assassination, throngs of people rallied in Martyrs' Square in Lebanon with up to 1 million people, [2]. Protestors of all sects (even including a number of Shiites) marched demanding the truth about Hariri's murder and independence from Syrian occupation. The march reiterated their will for a sovereign, democratic, and unified country, free of Syria's hegemony.

In the weeks following the demonstrations, bombs were detonated in Christian areas near Beirut. Although the damage was mostly material, these acts demonstrate the danger of Lebanon relapsing into sectarian strife.

Eventually, and under pressure from the international community, Syria withdrew its 15,000-strong army troops from Lebanon. The last Syrian uniformed soldier left Lebanon on April 26, 2005. On April 27, 2005, the Lebanese celebrated their first free-from-Syria day.

Parliamentary elections

After weeks of unsuccessful negotiations to form a new government, Prime Minister Omar Karami resigned the post for the third time in his political career on 13 April 2005. Two days later, Najib Mikati, a US-educated millionaire businessman and former Minister of Transportation and Public Works, was appointed Prime Minister-designate. A moderate pro-Syrian, Mikati secured the post through the support of the Opposition, which had previously boycotted such negotiations.

During the first parliamentary elections held after Syria's withdrawal from Lebanon in May 2005, the anti-Syrian coalition of Sunni Muslim, Druze and Christian parties led by Saad Hariri, son of assassinated ex-Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, won a majority of seats in the new Parliament.

The combinations were interesting in that in some areas the anti-Syrian coalition allied with Hezbollah and others with Amal. They did not win the two-thirds majority required to force the resignation of Syrian-appointed President Lahoud voted for by Rafic Hariri parliamentary bloc, due to the unexpectedly strong showing of retired army general Michel Aoun's Free Patriotic Movement party in Mount Lebanon. Aoun is arguably the strongest Christian figure in the new parliament: known previously for his anti-Syrian sentiment, Aoun aligned with politicians who were friendly to the Syrians in the past decade: Soleiman Franjieh Jr and Michel Murr. Their alliance dominated the north and the Metn District of Mount Lebanon. Saad Hariri and Walid Joumblat joined forces with the two staunchly pro-Syrian Shiite movements, Hezbollah (on the USA list of terrorist organizations) and Amal, to secure major wins in the South, Bekaa, and Baabda-Aley district of Mount Lebanon. This alliance proved temporary and the last vestiges of civility between Joumblatt and the Shi'ite coalition came crashing down in December 2005. On the 6th of Febraury 2006 Hezbollah signed a memorandum of understanding with Michel Aoun. That agreement opened the door to further understandings with Hezbollah, which could lead to its desarmement.

New government

After the elections, Hariri's Future Movement party, now the country's dominant political force, nominated Fouad Siniora, a former Finance Minister, to be Prime Minister. His newly formed representative government has obtained the vote of confidence from the parliament despite the lack of representation of Gen. Aoun.

On July 18, Lebanon's newly elected parliament, dominated by an anti-Syrian coalition, approved a motion to free Samir Geagea, who had spent most of the past 11 years in solitary confinement in an underground cell with no access to news violating all his basic human rights. The motion was endorsed by pro-Syrian Lebanese President Emile Lahoud the next day. The following months proved the government's inaptitude to begin the economical/political reforms promised to the people. Nearly nothing has been done to pull the country out of the economic crisis in which it lingers still. AS the government is losing its credibility, the opposition, mainly formed by Amal and Hezbollah (who are part of the goverment) and Gen. Aoun, is growing in popularity, even amongst other comunities than Christians and Shi'as. Since the beginning of May, a series of demonstrations and strikes are beginning to appear, proof of the people's discontent. [3]

Criminal investigation

On September 1, 2005, four current and former officials of Lebanon -- the former head of General Security Maj Gen Jamil Sayyad, the former chief of police Maj Gen Ali Hajj, the former military intelligence chief Brig Gen Raymond Azar, and the commander of the Republican Guard Brig Gen Mustafa Hamdan -- were charged in connection with Hariri's assassination.[4]

On October 21, Detlev Mehlis, lead investigator in the UN Hariri Probe released the report of the investigation. The report said that "many leads point to the direct involvement of Syrian Officials". [5]

Withdrawal of Syrian troops

Maj Gen Jamil Sayyed, the top Syrian ally in the Lebanese security forces, resigned on April 25, 2005. The following day the last 250 Syrian troops withdrew from Lebanon.

During the departure ceremonies, Syria's Chief of Staff Gen Ali Habib said that Syria's president had decided to recall his troops after the Lebanese army had been "rebuilt on sound national foundations and became capable of protecting the state."

UN forces led by Senegalese Brig Gen Mouhamadou Kandji were sent to Lebanon to verify the military withdrawal which was mandated by UN Security Council Resolution 1559.

Politics

Main article: Politics of Lebanon

Lebanon is a republic in which the three highest offices are reserved for members of specific religious groups:

• the President must be a Maronite Catholic Christian.
• the Prime Minister must be a Sunni Muslim, and
• the Speaker of the Parliament must be a Shi'a Muslim.

This arrangement is part of the "National Pact" (al Mithaq al Watani), an unwritten agreement which was established in 1943 during meetings between Lebanon's first president (a Maronite) and its first prime minister (a Sunni), although it was not formalized in the Constitution until 1990, following the Taif Agreement. The pact included a promise by the Christians not to seek French protection and to accept Lebanon's "Arab face", and a Muslim promise to recognize independence and legitimacy of the Lebanese state in its 1920 boundaries and to renounce aspirations for union with Syria. This pact was thought at the time to be an interim compromise, necessary until Lebanon formed its own sense of a national identity. Its continued existence and the fallout from subsequent civil wars continue to dominate politics in Lebanon.

The pact also stipulated that seats in the Parliament would be allocated by religion and region, in a ratio of 6 Christians to 5 Muslims, a ratio based on the 1932 census, which was taken at a time when Christians still had a slight majority. The Taif Agreement adjusted the ratio to grant equal representation to followers of the two religions.

The Constitution grants the people the right to change their government. However, from the mid-1970s until the parliamentary elections in 1992, civil war precluded the exercise of political rights. According to the constitution, direct elections must be held for the parliament every four years. The last parliament election was in 2000; the election due to be held in 2004 was postponed for one year.

The parliament composition is based on more ethnic and religious identities rather than ideological features. The distribution of parliament seats has been modified recently.

Template:Parliament of Lebanon The Parliament elects the President of the republic to a six-year term. Consecutive terms for the president are forbidden. This constitutional rule has been bypassed by ad-hoc amendment twice in recent history, however, at the urging of the Syrian government. Elias Hrawi's term, which was due to end in 1995, was extended for three years. This procedure was repeated in 2004 to allow Emile Lahoud to remain in office until 2007. Pro-democracy campaigners denounced the moves.

The last presidential election was in 1998. The President appoints the Prime Minister on the nomination of the Parliament. Lebanon has numerous political parties, but their role is less important than in most parliamentary systems. Most represent, in practice if not in theory, sectarian interests; many are little more than ad-hoc lists of candidates endorsed by a well-known national or local figure. Electoral tickets are often formed on a constituency-by-constituency basis by negotiation among local leaders of clans, religious groups, and political parties; these loose coalitions generally exist only for the election and rarely form cohesive blocs in the Parliament subsequently.

Lebanon's judicial system is based on the Napoleonic Code. Juries are not used in trials. The Lebanese court system has three levels - courts of first instance, courts of appeal, and the court of cassation. There also is a system of religious courts having jurisdiction over personal status matters within their own communities, with rules on matters such as marriage, divorce, and inheritance. Lebanese law does not provide for Civil marriage (although it recognizes such marriages contracted abroad); efforts by former President Elias Hrawi to legalize civil marriage in the late 1990s foundered on objections mostly from Muslim clerics.

Administrative divisions

Lebanon is divided into six governorates (mohafazat, singular - mohafazah), which are further subdivided into 25 districts (Aqdya, singular - qadaa), also divided into several municipalities englobing a group of cities or villages.

• Governorates of Lebanon
• Districts of Lebanon
• Cities and Villages in Lebanon

Administrative division.

Geography

Main article: Geography of Lebanon

A Middle Eastern country, Lebanon is located to the west by the Mediterranean (Coast: 225 km; 140 mi) and to the east by the Syro-African Depression. Lebanon borders Syria for 375 kilometres (233 mi) to the north and to the east and Israel for 79 kilometres (49 mi) to the south. The border with Israel has been approved by the United Nations (see Blue Line (Lebanon)), although a small piece of land called "Shebaa Farms" located in the Golan Heights is claimed by Lebanon but occupied by Israel, who claim that it is actually Syrian land. The UN has officially declared this region to be Syrian and not to be Lebanese territory, but Hezbollah occasionally launches attacks against Israeli positions within it, under the banner of freeing Lebanese territory.

Economy

Main article: Economy of Lebanon

Lebanon has a competitive and free market regime and a strong laissez-faire commercial tradition. The Lebanese economy is service-oriented; main growth sectors include banking and tourism. There are no restrictions on foreign exchange or capital movement, and bank secrecy is strictly enforced. There are practically no restrictions on foreign investment.

The 1975-1991 civil war seriously damaged Lebanon's economic infrastructure, cut national output by half, and all but ended Lebanon's position as a Middle Eastern entrepot and banking hub. Peace has enabled the central government to restore control in Beirut, begin collecting taxes, and regain access to key port and government facilities. Economic recovery has been helped by a financially sound banking system and resilient small- and medium-scale manufacturers, with family remittances, banking services, manufactured and farm exports, and international aid as the main sources of foreign exchange.

Lebanon has witnessed a growth in the past couple of years. Bank assets have reached over 70 billion dollars. Even though Lebanon was down 10% in the tourism sector in 2005, more than 1.2 million tourists visited Lebanon. Market capitialization is at an all time high. Capitialization reached over $7 billion at the end of January 2006.

Demographics

Main article: Demographics of Lebanon

The population of Lebanon is comprised of three predominant ethnic groups and religions: Muslims (Shi'ites, Sunnis, Alawites), Druze, and Christians Maronite Catholics, Melkite Greek Catholics, Armenian, Syrian and Assyrian and Latin Rite Catholics, Greek Orthodox, Armenian Apostolic, Syrian Orthodox, Assyrians, Copts and Protestants. No official census has been taken since 1932, reflecting the political sensitivity in Lebanon over confessional (religious) balance. It is estimated that seventy percent of the resident population are Muslims; the rest are Christians. There is a small minority of Jews, mostly living in the eastern region of Beirut. Also, a small community (less than 1%) of Kurds (also known as Mhallamis or Mardins) live in Lebanon. There are approximately 15 million people of Lebanese descent, mainly Muslims and Christians, spread all over the world, Brazil being the country with the biggest Lebanese community abroad. Lebanese are of mixed descent. They possess Phoenicican, Aramaic/Syriac, Greek, Roman, European (Crusaders, mainly French) and Arabic elements. While 360,000 Palestinian refugees have registered in Lebanon with the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) since 1948, estimates of those remaining range between 180,000 and 250,000.

The urban population, concentrated mainly in Beirut and Mount Lebanon, is noted for its commercial enterprise. A century and a half of migration and return have produced Lebanese commercial networks around the globe from North and South America to Europe, the Gulf, and Africa. Lebanon has a high proportion of skilled labor compared with many other Middle Eastern countries.

Culture

File:Jupiter Baalbek.jpg

Baalbek Ruins

Main article: Culture of Lebanon

Lebanon has been a major crossroads of civilizations for millennia, so it is perhaps unsurprising that this small country would possess an extraordinarily rich and vibrant culture. Lebanon's wide array of ethnic and religious groups contributes to the country's rich cuisine, musical and literary traditions, and festivals. Beirut in particular has a very vibrant arts scene, with numerous performances, exhibits, fashion shows, and concerts held throughout the year in its galleries, museums, theaters, and public spaces. Lebanese society is modern, educated, and perhaps comparable to European societies of the Mediterranean. Lebanon and in particular Beirut, has become the cultural center of the Arab world. Lebanon is a member state of the Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie. This is why most Lebanese are bilingual, speaking Arabic and French; however, English has become popular, especially among university students. The country is not only where Christianity intermingles with Islam, but Lebanon is also the Arab gateway to Europe and the European bridge to the Arab world.

Lebanon also hosts several prestigious universities, including the Lebanese University , The American University of Beirut, The Université Saint-Joseph, The Lebanese American University, and The Notre-Dame University.

Several international festivals are held in Lebanon, featuring world-renowned artists and drawing crowds from Lebanon and abroad. Among the most famous are the summer festivals at Baalbek, Beiteddine, and Byblos, where the elite and eclectic line-ups perform against the backdrop of some of Lebanon's most famous and spectacular historical sites.

• Lebanon football
• Music of Lebanon

See also

• Communications in Lebanon
• List of Lebanon-related topics: an attempt to list every Lebanon-related article on Wikipedia.
• List of Lebanese people: a list of well-known Lebanese people, including some foreigners of Lebanese ancestry.
• Military of Lebanon
• Military action in Lebanon
• Transportation in Lebanon

References

• Fisk, Robert. Pity the Nation: The Abduction of Lebanon. New York: Nation Books, 2002.
• Holst, Sanford. Phoenicians: Lebanon's Epic Heritage. Los Angeles: Cambridge and Boston Press, 2005.
• Riley-Smith, Johnathan. The Oxford Illustrated History of the Crusades. New York: Oxford University Press, 2001.
• Salibi, Kamal. A House of Many Mansions: The History of Lebanon Reconsidered. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1990.

See also: History of Lebanon § References

External links

Government

• The Lebanese Governmental Portal for Information & Forms
• Official site of the President of the Lebanese Republic
• Official site of The Lebanese Parliament Template:Ar icon
• Central Administration for Statistics
• Ministry of Tourism
• Internal Security Forces
• The Lebanese Armed Forces
• Central Bank of Lebanon
• Beirut Stock Exchange
• Embassy of Lebanon, Washington, D.C.

News

• An-Nahar national daily newspaper Template:Ar icon
• Al-Mustaqbal national daily newspaper Template:Ar icon
• As-Safir national daily newspaper Template:Ar icon
• AL-Balad national daily newspaper
• Addiyar national daily newspaper
• The Daily Star national daily newspaper in English
• Ya Libnan independent news in English
• L'Orient - Le Jour national daily newspaper in French Template:Fr icon
• NewsXS aggregated news headlines and rss-feed
• United Nations - Mehlis Report official report of the investigation into Hariri's assassination

Culture and Education

• UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Lebanon
• Al-Bustan Festival, Beit Meri
• Baalbek Festival
• Beiteddine Festival
• Byblos Festival
• The National Museum of Beirut

See also: List of universities in Lebanon

Tourism

• Destination Lebanon
• Rediscover Lebanon
• MEA-Middle East Airlines

General information

• Movie Clip: Lebanese Civil War 7 minutes
• Lebanon - Al Mashriq Extensive information about Lebanon, including maps and pictures.
• CIA World Factbook - Lebanon
• Open Directory Project - Lebanon directory project
• Go-Leb! Proud to be Lebanese -Lebanon Lebanese directory of links
• US State Department - Lebanon includes Background Notes, Country Study and major reports
• Lebanese civil war

Lebanese People

• The Center for Democracy in Lebanon
• Lebanon White Pages (leb.org)|Find Lebanese
• Window in Lebanon (The First Lebanese Blog in French)
• Helem (Lebanese GLBT association)