Introduction:
Lebanon is a country situated in the heart of the Middle East; it is a very young nation with 60% of the population under 25 years old. Its capital city Beirut is very cosmopolitan, it was even nicknamed “the Paris of the East”. Lebanon is surrounded by many countries like Syria, Israel/Palestine, Jordan, Turkey and Cyprus.
Lebanon was colonized by the French but gained its independence in 1943. It is a very small country, about the size of Yorkshire. The people of Lebanon come from many different backgrounds, and religious groups. The majority are Muslims, Christians, and Druze; it is the only country in the Middle East with almost equal amounts of both religions. Although there are about 17 different sub-groups with various beliefs. It is famous for its cedar trees that even in ancient times the Pharaohs of Egypt used this timber to build their palaces and pyramids.
Modern History:
Lebanon has been plagued by civil war, especially its capital Beirut that has been destroyed and rebuilt seven times in its history.
Beirut during the civil war
Tension first started in 1943 after independence when the Christians held the balance of power and Lebanese Muslims barely managed their own country, causing conflict between these two religious groups for years on. Although tensions reached their peak in 1975 when Phalange (Christian radical group) attacked a bus full of Palestinians (that were expelled in 1948 in the Arab-Israeli war and came to Lebanon as refuges.) and killed them all. This caused the Moronite- Christian government to allow Syria to send 20,000 troops to root out the radical Muslim groups; that caused even more tension in Lebanon. In 1982 the Israeli army invaded Beirut, and fighting and violence carried on between Muslims and Christians until a peace agreement was set between Lebanese leaders in 1989. From then there still was continued fighting but most militias disappeared, and there was more peace in Beirut. The social and economic costs of this civil war were great, to the extent that the economy was really bad. This got better by re-building the country again.
Lebanon now:
Today many of the young people of Lebanon are living in a constantly changing city having new hopes, and meeting new challenges. One challenge they got over was that they were able in March 2005 to take out all remaining Syrian troops in Lebanon. Till today the city is being reconstructed and many buildings are still being restored.
The reconstructed Down Town Beirut
The people are trying to revive its reputation and making it a tourist destination, by massive re-building programs like that of the Solidere Company.
Reference:
"Eye on Lebanon." 11 Mar. 2008
