Country	Lebanon
Capital	Beirut
Continent	Asia
Currency	Lebanese pound(LBP)
Languages	Arabic, French & English

Locaion

Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Israel and Syria

Geographic Co ordinates

33 50 N, 35 50 E

Land Boundries

Total: 454 km
Border countries:Israel 79 km, Syria 375 km

Geography - note

Nahr el Litani is the only major river in Near East not crossing an international boundary; rugged terrain historically helped isolate, protect, and develop numerous factional groups based on religion, clan, and ethnicity

Population

4,125,247 (July 2010 est.)
Country comparison to the world: 127

Nationality

Noun:Lebanese (singular and plural)
Adjective:Lebanese

Ethnic groups

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 59.7% (Shia, Sunni, Druze, Isma'ilite, Alawite or Nusayri), Christian 39% (Maronite Catholic, Greek Orthodox, Melkite Catholic, Armenian Orthodox, Syrian Catholic, Armenian Catholic, Syrian Orthodox, Roman Catholic, Chaldean, Assyrian, Copt, Protestant), other 1.3%
note: 17 religious sects recognized

Languages

Arabic (official), French, English, Armenian

Country Name

Conventional long form:Lebanese Republic
Conventional short form:Lebanon
Local long form:Al Jumhuriyah al Lubnaniyah
Local short form:Lubnan
Former:Greater Lebanon

Government Type

republic

Capital

Name:Beirut
Geographic coordinates:33 52 N, 35 30 E
Time difference:UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October

Administrative divisions

6 governorates (mohafazat, singular - mohafazah); Beqaa, Beyrouth (Beirut), Liban-Nord, Liban-Sud, Mont-Liban, Nabatiye
note: two new governorates - Aakar and Baalbek-Hermel - have been legislated but not yet implemented

Independence

22 November 1943 (from League of Nations mandate under French administration)

National Holiday

Independence Day, 22 November (1943)

Constitution

23 May 1926; amended a number of times, most recently in 1990 to include changes necessitated by the Charter of Lebanese National Reconciliation (Ta'if Accord) of October 1989

Legal system

mixture of Ottoman law, canon law, Napoleonic code, and civil law; the constitutional court reviews laws only after they have been passed; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Suffrage

21 years of age; compulsory for all males; authorized for women at age 21 with elementary education; excludes military personnel

Executive branch

Chief of state:President Michel SULAYMAN (since 25 May 2008)
Head of government:Prime Minister Sa'ad al-Din al-HARIRI (since 9 November 2009); Deputy Prime Minister Elias MURR (since 9 November 2009)
Cabinet:Cabinet chosen by the prime minister in consultation with the president and members of the National Assembly
(For more information visit the World Leaders website)
Elections:president elected by the National Assembly for a six-year term (may not serve consecutive terms); election last held on 25 May 2008 (next to be held in 2014); the prime minister and deputy prime minister appointed by the president in consultation with the National Assembly
Election results:Michel SULAYMAN elected president; National Assembly vote - 118 for, 6 abstentions, 3 invalidated; 1 seat unfilled due to death of incumbent

Legislative branch

unicameral National Assembly or Majlis al-Nuwab (Arabic) or Assemblee Nationale (French) (128 seats; members elected by popular vote on the basis of sectarian proportional representation to serve four-year terms)
Elections:last held on 7 June 2009 (next to be held in 2013)
Election results:percent of vote by group - March 8 Coalition 54.7%, March 14 Coalition 45.3%; seats by group - March 14 Coalition 71; March 8 Coalition 57

Judicial branch

four Courts of Cassation (three courts for civil and commercial cases and one court for criminal cases); Constitutional Council (called for in Ta'if Accord - rules on constitutionality of laws); Supreme Council (hears charges against the president and prime minister as needed)

Political Parties and Leaders

14 March Coalition: Democratic Left [Ilyas ATALLAH]; Democratic Renewal Movement [Nassib LAHUD]; Future Movement Bloc [Sa'ad al-HARIRI]; Kataeb Party [Amine GEMAYEL]; Lebanese Forces [Samir JA'JA]; Tripoli Independent Bloc
8 March Coalition: Development and Resistance Bloc [Nabih BERRI, leader of Amal Movement]; Free Patriotic Movement [Michel AWN]; Loyalty to the Resistance Bloc [Mohammad RA'AD] (includes Hizballah [Hassan NASRALLAH]); Nasserite Popular Movement [Usama SAAD]; Popular Bloc [Elias SKAFF]; Syrian Ba'th Party [Sayez SHUKR]; Syrian Social Nationalist Party [Ali QANSO]; Tashnaq [Hovig MEKHITIRIAN]
Independent: Democratic Gathering Bloc [Walid JUNBLATT, leader of Progressive Socialist Party]; Metn Bloc [Michel MURR]

Political pressure groups and leaders

Maronite Church [Patriarch Nasrallah SFAYR]
other: note - most sects retain militias and a number of militant groups operate in Palestinian refugee camps

International organization participation

ABEDA, ACCT, AFESD, AMF, FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, LAS, MIGA, NAM, OAS (observer), OIC, OIF, OPCW, PCA, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNRWA, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer)

Diplomatic representation in the US

Chief of mission: Ambassador Antoine CHEDID
Chancery:2560 28th Street NW, Washington, DC 20008
Telephone:[1] (202) 939-6300
FAX:[1] (202) 939-6324
Consulate(s) general:Detroit, New York, Los Angeles

Diplomatic representation from the US

Chief of mission:Ambassador Michele J. SISON
Embassy:Awkar, Lebanon (Awkar facing the Municipality)
Mailing address:P. O. Box 70-840, Antelias, Lebanon; from US: US Embassy Beirut, 6070 Beirut Place, Washington, DC 20521-6070
Telephone:[961] (4) 542600, 543600
FAX:[961] (4) 544136

Flag description

three horizontal bands consisting of red (top), white (middle, double width), and red (bottom) with a green cedar tree centered in the white band

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                              L'Orient Le Jour As-Safir Al-Markazia Almassira Al-Akhbar An-Nahar
                              Dar Al Hayat Annabaa Al Intiqad
Tourism -         Ministry of Tourism

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