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LEBANON                                                                         
GEOGRAPHY                                                                       
Total area: 10,400 km2; land area: 10,230 km2                                   
                                                                                
Comparative area: about 0.8 times the size of Connecticut                       
                                                                                
Land boundaries: 454 km total; Israel 79 km, Syria 375 km                       
                                                                                
Coastline: 225 km                                                               
                                                                                
Maritime claims:                                                                
                                                                                
Territorial sea: 12 nm                                                          
                                                                                
Disputes: separated from Israel by the 1949 Armistice Line;                     
Israeli troops in southern Lebanon since June 1982; Syrian troops in            
northern Lebanon since October 1976                                             
                                                                                
Climate: Mediterranean; mild to cool, wet winters with hot, dry                 
summers                                                                         
                                                                                
Terrain: narrow coastal plain; Al Biqa (Bekaa Valley)                           
separates Lebanon and Anti-Lebanon Mountains                                    
                                                                                
Natural resources: limestone, iron ore, salt; water-surplus state               
in a water-deficit region                                                       
                                                                                
Land use: arable land 21%; permanent crops 9%; meadows and pastures             
1%; forest and woodland 8%; other 61%; includes irrigated 7%                    
                                                                                
Environment: rugged terrain historically helped isolate, protect,               
and develop numerous factional groups based on religion, clan, ethnicity;       
deforestation; soil erosion; air and water pollution; desertification           
                                                                                
Note: Nahr al Litani only major river in Near East                              
not crossing an international boundary                                          
                                                                                
PEOPLE                                                                          
Population: 3,384,626 (July 1991), growth rate 1.4% (1991)                      
                                                                                
Birth rate: 28 births/1,000 population (1991)                                   
                                                                                
Death rate: 7 deaths/1,000 population (1991)                                    
                                                                                
Net migration rate: - 7 migrants/1,000 population (1991)                        
                                                                                
Infant mortality rate: 48 deaths/1,000 live births (1991)                       
                                                                                
Life expectancy at birth: 66 years male, 71 years female (1991)                 
                                                                                
Total fertility rate: 3.6 children born/woman (1991)                            
                                                                                
Nationality: noun--Lebanese (sing., pl.); adjective--Lebanese                   
                                                                                
Ethnic divisions: Arab 95%, Armenian 4%, other 1%                               
                                                                                
Religion: Islam 75%, Christian 25%, Judaism NEGL%; 17 legally                   
recognized sects--4 Orthodox Christian (Armenian Orthodox, Greek                
Orthodox, Nestorean, Syriac Orthodox), 7 Uniate Christian (Armenian             
Catholic, Caldean, Greek Catholic, Maronite, Protestant, Roman Catholic,        
Syrian Catholic), 5 Islam (Alawite or Nusayri, Druze, Ismailite,                
Shia, Sunni), and 1 Jewish                                                      
                                                                                
Language: Arabic and French (both official); Armenian, English                  
                                                                                
Literacy: 80% (male 88%, female 73%) age 15 and over can                        
read and write (1990 est.)                                                      
                                                                                
Labor force: 650,000; industry, commerce, and services 79%,                     
agriculture 11%, goverment 10% (1985)                                           
                                                                                
Organized labor: 250,000 members (est.)                                         
                                                                                
GOVERNMENT                                                                      
Note: Between early 1975 and late 1976 Lebanon was torn by civil                
war between its Christians--then aided by Syrian troops--and its Muslims        
and their Palestinian allies. The cease-fire established in October             
1976 between the domestic political groups generally held for about six         
years, despite occasional fighting. Syrian troops constituted as the Arab       
Deterrent Force by the Arab League have remained in Lebanon. Syria's            
move toward supporting the Lebanese Muslims and the Palestinians and            
Israel's growing support for Lebanese Christians brought the two sides          
into rough equilibrium, but no progress was made toward national                
reconciliation or political reforms--the original cause of the war.             
                                                                                
Continuing Israeli concern about the Palestinian presence in                    
Lebanon led to the Israeli invasion of Lebanon in June 1982. Israeli            
forces occupied all of the southern portion of the country and mounted a        
summer-long siege of Beirut, which resulted in the evacuation of the            
PLO from Beirut in September under the supervision of a multinational           
force (MNF) made up of US, French, and Italian troops.                          
                                                                                
Within days of the departure of the MNF, Lebanon's newly elected                
president, Bashir Gemayel, was assassinated. In the wake of his death,          
Christian militiamen massacred hundreds of Palestinian refugees in two          
Beirut camps. This prompted the return of the MNF to ease the security          
burden on Lebanon's weak Army and security forces. In late March 1984           
the last MNF units withdrew.                                                    
                                                                                
Lebanese Parliamentarians met in Taif, Saudi Arabia in late 1989                
and concluded a national reconciliation pact that codified a new                
power-sharing formula, specifiying a Christian president but giving             
Muslims more authority. Rene Muawad was subsequently elected president on       
4 November 1989, ending a 13-month period during which Lebanon had no           
president and rival Muslim and Christian governments. Muawad was                
assassinated 17 days later, on 22 November; on 24 November Ilyas Harawi         
was elected to succeed Muawad.                                                  
                                                                                
In October 1990, the chances for ending the 16 year old civil war               
and implementing Ta'if were markedly improved when Syrian and Lebanese          
forces ousted renegade Christian General Awn from his stronghold in East        
Beirut. Awn had defied the legitimate government and established a              
separate mini-state within East Beirut after being appointed acting             
Prime Minister by outgoing President Gemayel in 1988. Awn and his               
supporters feared Ta'if would diminish Christian power in Lebanon               
and increase the influence of Syria.                                            
                                                                                
Since the removal of Awn, the Lebanese Government has reunited the              
capital city and implemented a phased plan to disarm the militias               
and gradually reestablish authority throughout Lebanon. The army has            
deployed from Beirut north along the coast road to Tripoli, southeast           
into the Shuf mountains, and south to the vicinity of Sidon. Many               
militiamen from Christian and Muslim groups have evacuated Beirut               
for their strongholds in the north, south, and east of the country.             
Some heavy weapons possessed by the militias have been turned over to           
the government, which has begun a plan to integrate some militiamen             
into the military and the internal security forces.                             
                                                                                
Lebanon and Syria signed a treaty of friendship and cooperation in              
May 1991. Lebanon continues to be partially occupied by Syrian troops,          
which are deployed in East and West Beirut, its southern suburbs,               
the Bekaa Valley, and throughout northern Lebanon.                              
                                                                                
Iran also maintains a small contingent of revolutionary guards                  
in the Bekaa Valley and South Lebanon to support Lebanese Islamic               
fundamentalist groups.                                                          
                                                                                
Israel withdrew the bulk of its forces from the south in 1985,                  
although it still retains troops in a 10-km-deep security zone north            
of its border with Lebanon. Israel arms and trains the Army of South            
Lebanon (ASL), which also occupies the security zone and is Israel's            
first line of defense against attacks on its northern border.                   
                                                                                
The following description is based on the present constitutional                
and customary practices of the Lebanese system.                                 
                                                                                
Long-form name: Republic of Lebanon; note--may be changed to                    
Lebanese Republic                                                               
                                                                                
Type: republic                                                                  
                                                                                
Capital: Beirut                                                                 
                                                                                
Administrative divisions: 5 governorates (muhafazat,                            
singular--muhafazah); Al Biqa, Al Janub, Ash Shamal,                            
Bayrut, Jabal Lubnan                                                            
                                                                                
Independence: 22 November 1943 (from League of Nations mandate                  
under French administration)                                                    
                                                                                
Constitution: 26 May 1926 (amended)                                             
                                                                                
Legal system: mixture of Ottoman law, canon law, Napoleonic code,               
and civil law; no judicial review of legislative acts; has not accepted         
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction                                                     
                                                                                
National holiday: Independence Day, 22 November (1943)                          
                                                                                
Executive branch: president, prime minister, Cabinet; note--by                  
custom, the president is a Maronite Christian, the prime minister is a          
Sunni Muslim, and the speaker of the legislature is a Shia Muslim               
                                                                                
Legislative branch: unicameral National Assembly (Arabic--Majlis                
Alnuwab, French--Assemblee Nationale)                                           
                                                                                
Judicial branch: four Courts of Cassation (three courts for civil               
and commercial cases and one court for criminal cases)                          
                                                                                
Leaders:                                                                        
                                                                                
Chief of State--Ilyas HARAWI (since 24 November 1989);                          
                                                                                
Head of Government--Prime Minister Umar KARAMI (since 20                        
December 1990)                                                                  
                                                                                
Political parties and leaders: political party activity is                      
organized along largely sectarian lines; numerous political groupings           
exist, consisting of individual political figures and followers                 
motivated by religious, clan, and economic considerations; most parties         
have well-armed militias, which are still involved in occasional clashes        
                                                                                
Suffrage: compulsory for all males at age 21; authorized for women              
at age 21 with elementary education                                             
                                                                                
Elections:                                                                      
                                                                                
National Assembly--elections should be held every four years                    
but security conditions have prevented elections since May 1972                 
Communists: the Lebanese Communist Party was legalized in 1970;                 
members and sympathizers estimated at 2,000-3,000                               
                                                                                
Member of: ABEDA, ACCT, AFESD, AL, AMF, CCC, ESCWA, FAO, G-24,                  
G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO,         
INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, ITU, LORCS, NAM, OIC, PCA, UN, UNCTAD,                 
UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNRWA, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO                     
                                                                                
Diplomatic representation: Ambassador Nassib S. LAHOUD;                         
Chancery at 2560 28th Street NW, Washington DC 20008; telephone (202)           
939-6300; there are Lebanese Consulates General in Detroit, New York, and       
Los Angeles;                                                                    
                                                                                
US--Ambassador Ryan C. CROCKER; Embassy at Antelias, Beirut                     
(mailing address is P. O. Box 70-840, Beirut, and FPO New York 09530);          
telephone  961  417774 or 415802, 415803, 402200, 403300                        
                                                                                
Flag: three horizontal bands of red (top), white (double width),                
and red with a green and brown cedar tree centered in the white band            
                                                                                
ECONOMY                                                                         
Overview: Since 1975 civil war has seriously damaged Lebanon's                  
economic infrastructure, disrupted economic activity, and all but ended         
Lebanon's position as a Middle Eastern entrepot and banking hub.                
Following October 1990, however, a tentative peace has enabled the              
central government to begin restoring control in Beirut, collect taxes,         
and regain access to key port and government facilities. The battered           
economy has also been propped up by a financially sound banking system          
and resilient small- and medium-scale manufacturers. Family remittances,        
foreign financial support to political factions, the narcotics trade, and       
international emergency aid are main sources of foreign exchange.               
Economic prospects for 1991 have brightened, particularly if the                
Syrian-backed government is able to maintain law and order and                  
reestablish business confidence. Rebuilding war-ravaged Beirut is likely        
to provide a major stimulus to the Lebanese economy in 1991.                    
                                                                                
GDP: $3.3 billion, per capita $1,000; real growth rate - 15%                    
(1990 est.)                                                                     
                                                                                
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 100% (1990 est.)                              
                                                                                
Unemployment rate: 35% (1990 est.)                                              
                                                                                
Budget: revenues $120 million; expenditures $1.0 billion, including             
capital expenditures of $NA (1990 est.)                                         
                                                                                
Exports: $1.0 billion (f.o.b., 1989 est.);                                      
                                                                                
commodities--agricultural products, chemicals, textiles, precious               
and semiprecious metals and jewelry, metals and metal products;                 
                                                                                
partners--Saudi Arabia 16%, Switzerland 8%, Jordan 6%, Kuwait 6%,               
US 5%                                                                           
                                                                                
Imports: $1.9 billion (c.i.f., 1989 est.);                                      
                                                                                
commodities--NA;                                                                
                                                                                
partners--Italy 14%, France 12%, US 6%, Turkey 5%, Saudi Arabia 3%              
External debt: $900 million (1990 est.)                                         
                                                                                
Industrial production: growth rate NA%                                          
                                                                                
Electricity: 1,381,000 kW capacity; 3,870 million kWh produced,                 
1,170 kWh per capita (1989)                                                     
                                                                                
Industries: banking, food processing, textiles, cement, oil                     
refining, chemicals, jewelry, some metal fabricating                            
                                                                                
Agriculture: accounts for about one-third of GDP; principal                     
products--citrus fruits, vegetables, potatoes, olives, tobacco, hemp            
(hashish), sheep, and goats; not self-sufficient in grain                       
                                                                                
Illicit drugs: illicit producer of opium poppy and cannabis for the             
international drug trade; opium poppy production in Al Biqa                     
is increasing; hashish production is shipped to Western Europe, Israel,         
and the Middle East                                                             
                                                                                
Economic aid: US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-88), $356                   
million; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments          
(1970-88), $608 million; OPEC bilateral aid (1979-89), $962 million;            
Communist countries (1970-89), $9 million                                       
                                                                                
Currency: Lebanese pound (plural--pounds);                                      
1 Lebanese pound (LL) = 100 piasters                                            
                                                                                
Exchange rates: Lebanese pounds (LL) per US$1--974.22 (January                  
1991), 695.09 (1990), 496.69 (1989), 409.23 (1988), 224.60 (1987), 38.37        
(1986), 16.42 (1985)                                                            
                                                                                
Fiscal year: calendar year                                                      
                                                                                
COMMUNICATIONS                                                                  
Railroads: 378 km total; 296 km 1.435-meter standard gauge, 82 km               
1.050-meter gauge; all single track; system almost entirely inoperable          
                                                                                
Highways: 7,370 km total; 6,270 km paved, 450 km gravel and crushed             
stone, 650 km improved earth                                                    
                                                                                
Pipelines: crude oil, 72 km (none in operation)                                 
                                                                                
Ports: Beirut, Tripoli, Ras Silata, Juniyah, Sidon,                             
Az Zahrani, Tyre, Shikka; northern ports are occupied by Syrian                 
forces and southern ports are occupied or partially quarantined by              
Israeli forces                                                                  
                                                                                
Merchant marine: 60 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 257,220                  
GRT/379,691 DWT; includes 39 cargo, 1 refrigerated cargo, 2 vehicle             
carrier, 2 roll-on/roll-off cargo, 1 container, 8 livestock carrier, 1          
petroleum, oils, and lubricants (POL) tanker, 1 chemical tanker,                
1 specialized tanker, 3 bulk, 1 combination bulk                                
                                                                                
Civil air: 15 major transport aircraft                                          
                                                                                
Airports: 9 total, 8 usable; 6 with permanent-surface runways;                  
none with runways over 3,659 m; 3 with runways 2,440-3,659 m;                   
2 with runways 1,220-2,439 m; none under the direct control of the              
Lebanese Government                                                             
Telecommunications: rebuilding program disrupted; had fair system               
of radio relay, cable; 325,000 telephones; stations--5 AM, 3 FM, 15 TV;         
1 inactive Indian Ocean INTELSAT satellite earth station; 3 submarine           
coaxial cables; radio relay to Jordan and Syria, inoperable                     
                                                                                
DEFENSE FORCES                                                                  
Branches: Army (includes Navy and Air Force)                                    
                                                                                
Manpower availability: males 15-49, 725,974; 449,912 fit for                    
military service                                                                
                                                                                
Defense expenditures: $168 million, 7.3% of GDP (1991)