Current Analysis News Not "Fit to Print" On February 8, at 12:45 am, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) launched a series of air strikes against Lebanon as revenge against recent Hizballah attacks in south Lebanon. Three power switching stations, the most vital electricity facilities in the country, were bombed -- one in the Jamhour district of Jennifer Loewenstein • 7 min read
Current Analysis Petition Charges Israel with War Crimes QANA, SOUTH LEBANON -- A sprawling mass tomb in the heart of this small hilltop village bears silent witness to a war crime committed by Israeli forces here one spring day in 1996. The town, less than five miles away from Israeli-occupied south Lebanon, is the site of a United Laurie King-Irani • 7 min read
MER Article A Modern-Day "Slave Trade" In what can be termed a modern-day slave trade, Sri Lankan women arrive in Lebanon only to find themselves abused, imprisoned, raped, hungry, defenseless and alone. Siriani P., 27, came to Beirut in a desperate attempt to save her family from a life of poverty. Just ten months later, however, she gr Reem Haddad • 7 min read
MER Article Liberating Arnoun This interview with student activist Hassan Marwany was conducted, transcribed and translated by Marlin Dick of The Daily Star in May 1999. The initial spark for the liberation of Arnoun was a candlelight vigil and march from St. Joseph’s University to UN House in central Beirut, organized by the T Marlin Dick • 3 min read
MER Article Beirut Dispatch Two things one hears daily in Lebanon: The government is more corrupt than ever, and relations between people are becoming harsh. Let’s consider whether any correlation exists between government neglect and widespread individual survivalism. And let’s focus on highway transportation, where public po K. S. • 3 min read
MER Article Two Faces of Janus Eight years after the end of the war in Lebanon, the discrepancy between free minds and free markets is growing ever sharper. Since 1992, Lebanon’s billionaire prime minister, Rafiq al-Hariri, has been the individual most responsible for outlining an economic program for the post-war era. The prime Michael Young • 10 min read
MER Article To Clear the Minefield Irene Gendzier, Notes from the Minefield: United States Intervention in Lebanon and the Middle East, 1945-1958 (New York: Columbia University Press, 1997). With the February 1998 news that the Clinton administration was preparing unilateral military action against Iraq, sectors of the US public see Karen Pfeifer • 6 min read
MER Article Secularism and Personal Status Codes in Lebanon Marie Rose Zalzal is secretary general for Tayyar al-‘Ilmani (Movement for Secularism) and a practicing lawyer in Abu Rumana, Matn, Lebanon. Part of a research project on the impact of Lebanon’s civil war (1975-1990) on women, the interview was conducted by Suad Joseph on September 29, October 6 and Suad Joseph • 8 min read
MER Article Never-Never Land Just north of Metula, there is a hill in Israel that offers a breathtaking view of the northern Galilee, the upper Jordan valley and southern Lebanon. Also within view from this hill, about ten kilometers north of Metula -- in what Israel calls its “security zone” and the Lebanese call territory occ Aviv Lavie • 11 min read
MER Article Disappearances Some of the cases are old but certainly not forgotten. The most recent inquiry that I received about a “disappearance” in Lebanon came in April 1997 from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The caller was a Palestinian whose brother, Rushdi Rashid Hamdan Shihab, “disappeared” in Sidon in October 1987. “At 10 am, Virginia N. Sherry • 8 min read
MER Article Skirting Democracy The practice of selecting political representatives by voting is not new to Lebanon. The parliamentary framework of modern electoral life in Lebanon was established in the 1926 constitution. Elections were held regularly during the French Mandate period, except for interruptions during World War II. Paul Salem • 8 min read
MER Article Reconstructing History in Central Beirut With the project to develop central Beirut now well underway, the Company for the Development and Reconstruction of Beirut’s Central District -- better known by its French acronym Solidere -- has expropriated legally most of the land in the ancient city center. Previous holders of the property rights have Saree Makdisi • 8 min read
