#UNDER C-BCD: "Venus Towers" | 30F + 26F + 20F Res

[Hassoun]

Ruins found while digging the site



النهار: اكتشاف أول مرفأ فينيقي في بيروت وأساسات معبد روماني في ميناء الحصن

كتبت مي عبود ابي عقل في صحيفة "النهار":

ميناء بيروت الفينيقي كان يقع في منطقة ميناء الحصن. هذا هو الاكتشاف الجديد الذي توصل اليه المنقبون في العقار 1893 الذي تملكه "شركة فينوس العقارية" وتنوي انشاء ثلاثة مبانٍ عليه، وتبلغ مساحته 7500 متر مربع، ويقع خلف فندق مونرو.

منذ خمسة اشهر يقوم فريق من المديرية العامة للآثار بادارة الخبير هشام صايغ بحفريات اسفرت عن اكتشاف معالم اثرية عدة اهمها:

1- منزلقان متوازيان محفوران في الصخر يبعدان مسافة 120 مترا فقط عن الشاطىء القديم لمدينة بيروت، تبين انهما يعودان الى ميناء فينيقي من القرن الخامس قبل الميلاد. والمنشآت المكتشفة تؤكد انها نموذجية لبناء ميناء فينيقي اذ كان يتم اختيار موقعه على خليج بين رأسين، ومن هنا تسمية المنطقة ميناء الحصن مما يشير الى وجود ميناء على الخليج الصغير. و تذكر المراجع التاريخية حتى بداية العشرينيات وجود ميناء في هذه المنطقة التي تعرضت للردم مرات عدة ايام العثمانيين بفعل شق الطرق، وايام الفرنسيين حيث بني "اوتيل النورماندي"، ثم في الحرب الاهلية حيث اقيم "مطمر النورماندي". وقد استغلت المراكب والسفن هذا الميناء للحماية بسبب وجود حاجز طبيعي للامواج. ويذكر فؤاد دباس في كتابه " بيروت ذاكرتنا" ان المدينة الرومانية امتدت حتى هذه الميناء. وبينت الحفريات ان الميناء طمر بين القرنين الاول والثاني ميلادي. ويعتقد انه الميناء الفينيقي الاول الذي يتم اكتشافه في بيروت.

2- معالم عمرانية رومانية تتمثل بجدارين ضخمين من الحجر الرملي المقصوب يمثلان جزءا من مبنى ضخم، يعتقد انها تعود الى اساسات معبد، ظهر احدهما بطول 25 مترا في الموقع، والجزء الشرقي مقطوع بالمباني الاسمنتية التي شيدت في العقار في الخمسينيات، والباقي تحت الطريق. وتؤكد هذه المكتشفات التي تعود الى بداية الحكم الروماني لبيروت، اهمية المدينة مما جعل الاباطرة الرومان ينشئون فيها مدينة كبيرة ( متروبوليس) ويقيمون في هذه المنطقة بالذات، المنشآت الضخمة مثل ميدان سباق الخيل والفوروم والفيللات الفخمة والمسرح والبرج او الحصن والحمامات وحلبة المصارعة والشوارع الجميلة عند شاطىء ميناء الحصن الزاخر بالمراكب والعائدة كلها الى القرنين الاول والثاني ميلادي ،وقد عثرعليها في حفريات سابقة. كل هذه المعالم تشكل جزءا من مشروع الاعمار الامبراطوري في بيروت مما يدل على دور بيروت كمستعمرة رومانية استثنائية.

كذلك ظهرت مكتشفات اثرية اخرى من حقبات مختلفة ابرزها: معالم عمرانية عثمانية متأخرة تتمثل باساس منزل وبعض الآبار، مقلع للحجر الرسوبي الكلسي من الصخر بنيت منه معظم المكتشفات العمرانية العائدة الى النصف الثاني من الالف الاول قبل الميلاد اي الى الفترات الفينيقية الفارسية والهلنستية. وعثر كذلك على لقى فخارية متنوعة تعود الى الفترات العثمانية اي الى نهاية القرنين التاسع عشر والعشرين، والرومانية الممتدة بين النصف الثاني من القرن الاول ميلادي والنصف الاول من القرن الميلادي الثاني وجدت مع اساسات المعبد، ولقى فخارية تعود الى النصف الثاني من القرن الاول والنصف الاول من القرن الثاني وجدت في طبقات الردم داخل المنزلقين الكبيرين ما يؤكد انهما طمرا في تلك الفترة. كذلك عثر على لقى فخارية في مقلع الحجر تعود الى القرن الخامس قبل الميلاد .

وفي تفسير لأهمية الموقع، يعتبر صايغ انه "يتفرد بمعالمه البحرية الفينيقية التي تعطي فكرة مختلفة عن فهمنا لمدينة بيروت في تلك الحقبة، وعن امتدادها واساليب الحياة البحرية ذات الاهداف المختلفة من صيد او عسكرية او صناعية التي عاشها اهل المدينة. ويشكل الميناء مادة اساسية تشهد على الدور الذي أدته منطقة ميناء الحصن كمحتوى جغرافي واقتصادي حيوي لبيروت في الفترة الفينيقية، وتعكس مشهدا عمره اكثر من 2500 عام عن تفاصيل حياة الفينيقيين وتفاعلهم مع بيئتهم وحسن استخدامهم لمواردها لتأمين حاجاتهم في البناء والصيد والابحار والاتجار والتطور والتواصل مع بقية المدن والشعوب على حوض البحر الابيض المتوسط مما اعطاهم تميزا ساعدهم على استعمار معظم شواطىء هذا الحوض. كذلك يؤكد من خلال اسم المكان ( ميناء الحصن) الذي ما زال حيا في ذاكرة البيروتيين واللبنانيين على استمرار التميز الفينيقي كإرث متجذر في طبيعة سكان هذه المدينة خصوصا واللبنانيين عموما".

ونظرا الى الاهمية العلمية والتاريخية لهذه المكتشفات اقترح الفريق الاثري ادخال الموقع في لائحة الجرد العام وابلاغ مالكي العقار بضرورة الحفاظ عليها في موقعها ، وتعديل الخرائط الانشائية من اجل ادماجها في التصميم الجديد، خصوصا ان هذه المعالم محفورة في الصخر الطبيعي مما يجعل امكان تفكيكها لاعادة تركيبها في موضع آخر غير ممكن.
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So,a Phoenician port is discovered ( the first one for Beirut to be discovered so far ) and developers of the Venus Towers been asked to integrate the ruins in the project and that will require changes in the design and a delay ofcourse

[ramynasser]

Originally Posted by Hassoun

Ruins found while digging the site



النهار: اكتشاف أول مرفأ فينيقي في بيروت وأساسات معبد روماني في ميناء الحصن

كتبت مي عبود ابي عقل في صحيفة "النهار":

ميناء بيروت الفينيقي كان يقع في منطقة ميناء الحصن. هذا هو الاكتشاف الجديد الذي توصل اليه المنقبون في العقار 1893 الذي تملكه "شركة فينوس العقارية" وتنوي انشاء ثلاثة مبانٍ عليه، وتبلغ مساحته 7500 متر مربع، ويقع خلف فندق مونرو.

منذ خمسة اشهر يقوم فريق من المديرية العامة للآثار بادارة الخبير هشام صايغ بحفريات اسفرت عن اكتشاف معالم اثرية عدة اهمها:

1- منزلقان متوازيان محفوران في الصخر يبعدان مسافة 120 مترا فقط عن الشاطىء القديم لمدينة بيروت، تبين انهما يعودان الى ميناء فينيقي من القرن الخامس قبل الميلاد. والمنشآت المكتشفة تؤكد انها نموذجية لبناء ميناء فينيقي اذ كان يتم اختيار موقعه على خليج بين رأسين، ومن هنا تسمية المنطقة ميناء الحصن مما يشير الى وجود ميناء على الخليج الصغير. و تذكر المراجع التاريخية حتى بداية العشرينيات وجود ميناء في هذه المنطقة التي تعرضت للردم مرات عدة ايام العثمانيين بفعل شق الطرق، وايام الفرنسيين حيث بني "اوتيل النورماندي"، ثم في الحرب الاهلية حيث اقيم "مطمر النورماندي". وقد استغلت المراكب والسفن هذا الميناء للحماية بسبب وجود حاجز طبيعي للامواج. ويذكر فؤاد دباس في كتابه " بيروت ذاكرتنا" ان المدينة الرومانية امتدت حتى هذه الميناء. وبينت الحفريات ان الميناء طمر بين القرنين الاول والثاني ميلادي. ويعتقد انه الميناء الفينيقي الاول الذي يتم اكتشافه في بيروت.

2- معالم عمرانية رومانية تتمثل بجدارين ضخمين من الحجر الرملي المقصوب يمثلان جزءا من مبنى ضخم، يعتقد انها تعود الى اساسات معبد، ظهر احدهما بطول 25 مترا في الموقع، والجزء الشرقي مقطوع بالمباني الاسمنتية التي شيدت في العقار في الخمسينيات، والباقي تحت الطريق. وتؤكد هذه المكتشفات التي تعود الى بداية الحكم الروماني لبيروت، اهمية المدينة مما جعل الاباطرة الرومان ينشئون فيها مدينة كبيرة ( متروبوليس) ويقيمون في هذه المنطقة بالذات، المنشآت الضخمة مثل ميدان سباق الخيل والفوروم والفيللات الفخمة والمسرح والبرج او الحصن والحمامات وحلبة المصارعة والشوارع الجميلة عند شاطىء ميناء الحصن الزاخر بالمراكب والعائدة كلها الى القرنين الاول والثاني ميلادي ،وقد عثرعليها في حفريات سابقة. كل هذه المعالم تشكل جزءا من مشروع الاعمار الامبراطوري في بيروت مما يدل على دور بيروت كمستعمرة رومانية استثنائية.

كذلك ظهرت مكتشفات اثرية اخرى من حقبات مختلفة ابرزها: معالم عمرانية عثمانية متأخرة تتمثل باساس منزل وبعض الآبار، مقلع للحجر الرسوبي الكلسي من الصخر بنيت منه معظم المكتشفات العمرانية العائدة الى النصف الثاني من الالف الاول قبل الميلاد اي الى الفترات الفينيقية الفارسية والهلنستية. وعثر كذلك على لقى فخارية متنوعة تعود الى الفترات العثمانية اي الى نهاية القرنين التاسع عشر والعشرين، والرومانية الممتدة بين النصف الثاني من القرن الاول ميلادي والنصف الاول من القرن الميلادي الثاني وجدت مع اساسات المعبد، ولقى فخارية تعود الى النصف الثاني من القرن الاول والنصف الاول من القرن الثاني وجدت في طبقات الردم داخل المنزلقين الكبيرين ما يؤكد انهما طمرا في تلك الفترة. كذلك عثر على لقى فخارية في مقلع الحجر تعود الى القرن الخامس قبل الميلاد .

وفي تفسير لأهمية الموقع، يعتبر صايغ انه "يتفرد بمعالمه البحرية الفينيقية التي تعطي فكرة مختلفة عن فهمنا لمدينة بيروت في تلك الحقبة، وعن امتدادها واساليب الحياة البحرية ذات الاهداف المختلفة من صيد او عسكرية او صناعية التي عاشها اهل المدينة. ويشكل الميناء مادة اساسية تشهد على الدور الذي أدته منطقة ميناء الحصن كمحتوى جغرافي واقتصادي حيوي لبيروت في الفترة الفينيقية، وتعكس مشهدا عمره اكثر من 2500 عام عن تفاصيل حياة الفينيقيين وتفاعلهم مع بيئتهم وحسن استخدامهم لمواردها لتأمين حاجاتهم في البناء والصيد والابحار والاتجار والتطور والتواصل مع بقية المدن والشعوب على حوض البحر الابيض المتوسط مما اعطاهم تميزا ساعدهم على استعمار معظم شواطىء هذا الحوض. كذلك يؤكد من خلال اسم المكان ( ميناء الحصن) الذي ما زال حيا في ذاكرة البيروتيين واللبنانيين على استمرار التميز الفينيقي كإرث متجذر في طبيعة سكان هذه المدينة خصوصا واللبنانيين عموما".

ونظرا الى الاهمية العلمية والتاريخية لهذه المكتشفات اقترح الفريق الاثري ادخال الموقع في لائحة الجرد العام وابلاغ مالكي العقار بضرورة الحفاظ عليها في موقعها ، وتعديل الخرائط الانشائية من اجل ادماجها في التصميم الجديد، خصوصا ان هذه المعالم محفورة في الصخر الطبيعي مما يجعل امكان تفكيكها لاعادة تركيبها في موضع آخر غير ممكن.
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So,a Phoenician port is discovered ( the first one for Beirut to be discovered so far ) and developers of the Venus Towers been asked to integrate the ruins in the project and that will require changes in the design and a delay ofcourse

that's great!! maybe they will change this ugly design!

[AmeriLEB]

Amazing...The State should buy the sites...and connect a garden trail from the hippodrome etc etc. That area is so important to the history of Beirut, Lebanon, and the world. Besides i dont like the building either LOl

[Leb10452km]

you are dreaming

[GAJ1992]

im glad they are changing the designs... thank god this one is ugly...

[Leb10452km]

wait they are changing them ?? who said so ?

[Hassoun]

the article,,it's to preserve the ruins,design has to change to include the ruins.

[GAJ1992]

hassoun, do you have any idea if they are going to become public?? cz they can't keep anything this important private.. right?

[Hassoun]

ofcourse they are going to become public,otherwise the whole thing wouldn't make any sense.

[Leb10452km]

hahahahah sorry Hassoun, i didn't read the entire article at first now i realize what you guys are talking about well i hope the modified design wont be even worse than the original one

[AmeriLEB]

Venus towering over Phoenician past

By Karah Byrns

May 2011

Luxury development unearths ancient port

The threat that cultural heritage faces in Beirut as a result of rising land prices and the scarcity of empty plots is a familiar theme. There seems to be no shortage of fresh cases to highlight and local and international media, as well as local NGOs devoted to preserving national heritage, are doing their part to raise the issue.

Over the last several weeks, Venus Real Estate has been in the spotlight over the discovery of what local news media has claimed is an ancient Phoenician port on "lot 1398", an approximately 7,000-square-meter site where the company is preparing to construct a luxurious three-tower high rise complex called Venus Towers.

"I haven't seen the site; it is closed to the public and even to archaeologists -- this is what happens every time there is an important discovery in the Beirut town center," said Leila Badre, museum director of the Archeological Museum of the American University of Beirut. The Directorate General of Antiquities (DGA) has been carrying out work on the site since the discovery of the ruins by the Ministry of Culture nearly two months ago. At present, the ministry is consulting with local and international experts to determine the value of the site, and as of April 27 five reports had been submitted, signifying that a final decision is coming soon. "We found slopes going down toward the sea that can be interpreted in many ways," said caretaker Minister of Culture Salim Warde. "It might be a port, a shipyard, or even a quay, but it is surely something very interesting, and we are seeing how we can work with the owners of the land to save this site," he said.

Over the month of April, An-Nahar criticized Venus Real Estate in two reports that cited numerous experts on the potential archeological value of the site. On April 27, Venus Towers issued an official statement to "clarify" the situation to the general public, threatening media outlets with legal action for making damaging accusations. The statement contends that the plot is too far from the sea to have been used as a port, and too far above sea level, but did not address any historic changes in sea level since the period when the ruins are thought to have originated from.

"The coast of Beirut today is not as it was over 2,000 years ago," said Warde. "We know for a fact that over the last century this area was covered by stones at least four times. Before then, we don't know how many times this occurred." The last time land reclamation like this occurred was by Solidere, whose damage of historic sites was notorious during the post-civil war reconstruction boom. Disturbed by the situation and what he referred to as yet another challenge between the national interest and the private sector, member of Parliament Walid Joumblatt expressed his concern to Executive following the issuance of the Venus Real Estate statement. "I don't believe a word they say; it's all rubbish. They will find any excuse for the sake of a few square meters," he said.

Prior to the publication of the statement from Venus Real Estate, Venus Towers spokesperson Wajih al-Bazri told Executive on April 25 that there was a great difference of professional opinion from archeological experts about the importance of the site. Bazri claimed that while local experts believe the site is important, the international expert brought by Solidere ruled the site unimportant. "The Ministry of Culture and Solidere are working together to get more opinions," said Bazri. "There is no final opinion yet, but they are working to finalize as soon as possible to be able to go ahead with the project." He added that the real estate company will abide by the ruling of the Ministry of Culture, whatever it may be. In the worst case scenario, "we will build around it," said Bazri, explaining that the ruins only cover about 1,000 square meters of land, then adding: "The newspapers are making a bigger fuss out of this than it really is."

© Executive 2011

[jeffrysaade1]

very very nice, look amazing

[AmeriLEB]

Al Mawarid arranges USD 28,000,000 loan syndication deal with top financial institutions for real estate transaction

Initiative to provide boost to Lebanese real estate sector


Beirut, 26 October 2011: In a bold step that reaffirms its increasingly strong standing in the Lebanese banking scene, Al Mawarid Bank s.a.l., one of the leading banks in Lebanon, has announced the signature of a USD 28,000,000 syndication agreement with a consortium of local banks to fund a real estate transaction for Venus Real Estate. Al Mawarid is the lead mandated bank who arranged the agreement, which attracted funded commitments from 4 banks: Jammal Trust Bank (JTB), Lebanese Swiss Bank (LSB), Fenicia Bank, First National Bank (FNB) in addition to the mandated lead arranger.

The landmark initiative was made public during a special signing ceremony held at the Four Seasons Hotel in Beirut, on the 26th of October. The ceremony gathered selected members of the Lebanese business community, including Mr. Ghanem Al Chammaa, the client's representative, the chairmanship of the participating banks comprising His Excellency Marwan Kheireddine, State Minister and Chairman of Al Mawarid Bank s.a.l., Mr. Anwar Jammal, Chairman and General Manager of Jammal Trust Bank s.a.l., Mr. Rami El Nimer, Chairman of First National Bank s.a.l., Mr. Abdelrazzak Achour , Chairman and General Manager of Fenicia Bank s.a.l. , as well as Mr. Camille Haddad , assistant general manager and Mr. Youssef Fakih credit manager from Lebanese Swiss Bank s.a.l. Also attending the event were the Arabian Civil Works' General Manager, Mr. Mohammad Kassem and the company's lawyer Me. Hussein Khalil alongside Me. Elie Chamoun from AMNCC Law Firm and Me. Gabriel Maalouly representing the Oreiji & Maalouly Law Firm.

His Excellency Marwan Kheireddine stated: "This agreement leaves its mark in the banking industry, as it represents a first in this sector where prominent mid size banks join hands to execute a large transaction that will benefit the whole economic cycle in Lebanon.

He added: "Signing this agreement constitutes a great opportunity to the Lebanese financial sector which reconfirms its ability in playing a dynamic role in the country's economic growth; this encourages all active stakeholders to plan and execute more key initiatives in the near future."

-Ends-

Al Mawarid Bank was established in 1980; historically the bank has positioned itself as a leader in the banking industry in Lebanon. Al Mawarid Bank has maintained its leadership over the years, it was the first bank to introduce credit cards into the country back in 1995 and again it is the first bank to introduce mobile banking in Lebanon in 2010.

© Press Release 2011
from ASDA'A Public Relations
Access to this article is subject to specific terms and condition.

[AmeriLEB]

Phoenician Port in Beirut faces Mega Project

25 June 2012

BEIRUT: Activists and a construction firm have been in a standoff for more than a year over a half-billion dollar development project and the fate of first Phoenician port discovered in Beirut, with cultural groups recently challenging new developments at the site.

Civil society activists fear that the construction firm would destroy an archeological treasure that is considered public property according to a 1933 Law. The construction firm Venus wants to go ahead with plans to erect three skyscrapers and a garden in its 7,500 square meter land.

That project has been halted by the city’s municipality and the Culture Ministry for more than a year now, but Culture Minister Gaby Layyoun has remained silent on the matter.

Dozens of activists demonstrated against the project at Mina al-Hosn last week and called on President Michel Sleiman to take urgent measures to protect the site.

When Venus first bought plot 1398 in Mina al-Hosn behind Hotel Monroe, a team from the General Directorate of Antiquities discovered an ancient Phoenician port dating back to at least 500 B.C.

Roman structures dating between the first and third centuries A.D. were also unearthed at the site, making up approximately 1,200 square meters of the land owned by the firm.

Among the findings were two large sandstones of a huge structure that archeologists said they believe were the foundations of a temple.

The name of the area Mina al-Hosn in Arabic suggests a “port of the fort.”

The Directorate General of Antiquities has also unearthed two canals at the site that archeologists believe are part of the ancient port. The precise date of the foundation of the port has yet to be determined.

Following the findings of the Directorate General of Antiquities in 2011, then Culture Minister Salim Wardy issued a ministerial decree that designates part of the land bought by Venus as an archeological site that should not be tampered with in any way.

Addressing the construction firm, Wardy said in a letter that Block B of Venus Towers conflicts with the area where the ancient port is located and called on the owners to make new arrangements for their project.

But Venus denies that remnants discovered at the site belong to an ancient port and has tasked its own archeologists with carrying out an investigation. Officials at Venus told the LBCI television channel over the weekend that the experts and archeologists they tasked in the investigation believe that there is no chance that the findings belong to a port because the land is far from the Mediterranean shore.

Venus has blocked access to the plot where the discovery of the port was made and is preventing anyone from entering and filming in the area.

Challenging the firm’s measures at the site, protesters climbed nearby trees and threw handmade paper boats reading “Hands off our Phoenician Port” over a wall built by Venus.

Civil society activist Raja Noujaim told The Daily Star that owners of project Venus Towers have completely stood against preserving the port even within their project.

“They want to get rid of the port.”

“They do not have the right to make secret arrangements for a land which has archeological treasures like this one, this is part of the Lebanese history,” said Noujaim. “But if they want to challenge us, we will take it to court.”

© Copyright The Daily Star 2012.

[Mak@LSE]

I was there today. The remains have been completely destroyed.

[Lebneni]

Originally Posted by Mak@LSE

I was there today. The remains have been completely destroyed.

the developer of this project and whoever is behind the decision to destroy our heritage should be put in prison a.s.a.p.

until when will we let our history be ruined by S.O.Bs who only care about making more profit

[Lebneni]

Construction workers began bulldozing an ancient Phoenician port in Beirut on Tuesday, sparking outrage from activists who had hoped to see the heritage site protected by the Lebanese government.

The site had been earmarked for development earlier in the year, but was held up due to continued protests directed at Lebanese Minister of Culture Gaby Layoun.

Giorgio Tarraf, spokesperson for the Save Beirut Heritage group, said Tuesday's shock construction work breached an understanding that was supposedly reached with Layoun to preserve ancient stones while leaving room for development.

"They (government) were talking about some sort of mitigation approach where they move the stones and preserve them in a way that would be leave room for development. Not even that happened – today nothing is going to remain," Tarraf told Al-Akhbar.

Tarraf was taken by complete surprise at the construction work, and rushed to the site when news reached him of bulldozers destroying the ancient port.

He said that they were destroying "absolutely everything. There was no trace of the site."

"The first bit has been completed and now they have started to dig into the bedrock," he said angrily.

Save Beirut Heritage, along with a number of other groups, called for an immediate rally in front of the Ministry of Culture in Beirut to demand an explanation from Layoun.

"We want to go there and try to get the minister to talk to us. We have been trying to get a meeting and we haven't been able to get hold of him for a few weeks. We have to talk to him to know what happened so it doesn't happen again," Tarraf said.

Beirut's heritage sites are under continuous threat from real estate developers seeking to wash away the city's 5,000 year old history.

Activists and archaeologists have long campaigned to protect the city's heritage sites from development.

But Lebanon is also one of the most corrupt countries in the world, and real estate companies enjoy strong political backing.

Tarraf said activists had tried to lobby the UN's cultural body, UNESCO, to intervene to protect the Phoenician port from developers, and the corrupt political elite indifferent to Beirut's heritage.

"We sent a report to ESCWA (Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia). They [in turn] sent a letter to the ministry, but we have no idea what was the ministry's response. Obviously it was not positive," he said.

Leila Badre, Director of the Archaeological Museum at the American University of Beirut (AUB), said she was "disappointed" that the destruction went ahead, and criticized developers for not allowing another expert to survey the archaeological ruins.

"I'm disappointed that they didn't allow another expert [to survey the site]," she said.

Beirut has very few Phoenician ruins, whose Canaanite civilization flourished along the Levantine coast roughly 4,000 years ago.

(Al-Akhbar)

[AmeriLEB]

OMG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!WTF!

[pipolebnene]

Originally Posted by Lebneni

the developer of this project and whoever is behind the decision to destroy our heritage should be put in prison a.s.a.p.

until when will we let our history be ruined by S.O.Bs who only care about making more profit

its a shame how our histroy and its traces are treaten in lebanon! old beautiful houses and ruins vanish from one day to the other and nobody does anything about it

[Save Beirut Heritage]

The site was bulldozed yesterday.

We tried our best to stop the archeological site from being demolished. We contacted ICOMOS, urging for international intervention which was disregarded by the ministry; Independent archaeologists were banned form the site; APLH organized not one but two demonstrations; the press covered the finds extensively and the Lebanese were proud to find Phoenician archeology even after their priceless treasures were looted, razed and bulldozed into the sea.

Greed, incompetence and clientelism still wins, even 25 years later.
We would like to note that a high ranking official in the Beirut municipality is a major architect on this project.

We were there to witness the demolition, along with the APLH. They had begun work even at 6am, even before Minister of Culture Gaby Layoun had made public the declassification of the site.
As they seem to have planned, we had no time to act.

The Judicial powers were summoned to stop the work but alas, it only takes minutes for a bulldozer to erase - not hundreds this time - but thousands of years of our proud history in the name of parkings and exploitation coefficients.

This monstrosity is nothing but a tombstone to a national treasure which was stolen from Lebanon.

I will let the pictures speak for themselves:






You can follow us on our facebook group: http://savebeirutheritage.org

APLH is calling for the resignation of Minister Layoun at a demonstration tomorrow, Thursday at noon in front of the Ministry of Culture:
https://www.facebook.com/events/168641726601555/