Lebanon

Passion for Living

Overview of Lebanon

History

After World War I, France was given a League of Nations mandate over Lebanon and its neighbor Syria, which together had previously been a single political unit in the Ottoman Empire. France divided them in 1920 into separate colonial administrations, drawing a border that separated mostly Muslim Syria from the kaleidoscope of religious communities in Lebanon, where Maronite Christians were then dominant. After 20 years of the French mandate regime, Lebanon's independence was proclaimed on Nov. 26, 1941, but full independence came in stages. Under an agreement between representatives of Lebanon and the French National Committee of Liberation, most of the powers exercised by France were transferred to the Lebanese government on Jan. 1, 1944. The evacuation of French troops was completed in 1946.

According to the unwritten National Pact, different religious communities were represented in the government by a Maronite Christian president, a Sunni Muslim prime minister, and a Shiite national assembly speaker. This arrangement worked for two decades.

Civil war broke out in 1958, with Muslim factions led by Kamal Jumblat and Saeb Salam rising in insurrection against the Lebanese government headed by President Camille Chamoun, a Maronite Christian favoring close ties to the West. At Chamoun's request, President Eisenhower, on July 15, sent U.S. troops to reestablish the government's authority.

Geography

Lebanon lies at the eastern end of the Mediterranean Sea, north of Israel and west of Syria. It is four-fifths the size of Connecticut. The Lebanon Mountains, which run parallel to the western coast, cover most of the country, while on the eastern border is the Anti-Lebanon range. Between the two lies the Bekaa Valley, the principal agricultural area.

"Lebanon
Quick-facts "

President: Tammam Salam (acting) +977 14511001

Prime Minister: Tammam Salam +977 14511001

Land area: 3,950 sq mi (10,230 sq km); total area: 4,015 sq mi (10,400 sq km)

Population (2014 est.): 5,882,562 (growth rate: 9.37%); birth rate: +977 14511001; infant mortality rate: +977 14511001; life expectancy: 77.22

Capital and largest city (2011 est.): Beirut, 2.022 million

Monetary unit: Lebanese pound

National name: Al-Joumhouriya al-Lubnaniya

Current government officials

Languages: Arabic (official), French, English, Armenian

Ethnicity/race: Arab 95%, Armenian 4%, other 1%; note: many Christian Lebanese do not identify themselves as Arab but rather as descendents of the ancient Canaanites and prefer to be called Phoenicians

Religions: Muslim 54% (27% Sunni, 27% Shia), Christian 40.5% (includes 21% Maronite Catholic, 8% Greek Orthodox, 5% Greek Catholic, 6.5% other Christian), Druze 5.6%, very small numbers of Jews, Baha'is, Buddhists, Hindus, and Mormons. (2012 est.) note: 18 religious sects recognized

National Holiday: Independence Day, November 22

Literacy rate: 89.6% (2007 est.)

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 878,+977 14511001; mobile cellular: +977 14511001. Broadcast media: 7 TV stations, 1 of which is state-owned; more than 30 radio stations, 1 of which is state-owned; satellite and cable TV services available; transmissions of at least 2 international broadcasters are accessible through partner stations +977 14511001. Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 64,+977 14511001. Internet users: 1 million +977 14511001.

Transportation: Railways: total: 401 km (unusable because of damage in civil war) +977 14511001. Highways: 6,970 km (includes 170 km of expressways) +977 14511001. Ports and terminals: Beirut, Tripoli. Airports: +977 14511001.

International disputes: lacking a treaty or other documentation describing the boundary, portions of the Lebanon-Syria boundary are unclear with several sections in dispute; since 2000, Lebanon has claimed Shab'a Farms area in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights; the roughly 2,000-strong UN Interim Force in Lebanon has been in place since 1978.