LIBAN, State of survival

Lebanon is often described as “the most successful failed state of the 21st century”. This ironic phrase perfectly sums up the reality of a country that has a wealth of life forces and remarkable economic and cultural potential, but which has suffered extreme and inextricable violence for two centuries. Since the 19th century, Lebanon has been constantly buffeted by external interventions from the Ottomans, the Iranians, the Syrians, the Israelis, the British, the Americans, not to mention the French, who continue to play a prominent role there.
Although this gateway to the Middle East has managed to survive and heal its internal divisions, in recent years it has been hit by a succession of unprecedented crises that have caused the departure of many Lebanese and the massive arrival of Syrian migrants - representing half of the indigenous population - driven by the war in their own country. To top it all off, the destructive confrontation between Israel and Hezbollah devastated entire parts of Lebanon.
Like a thriller writer whose hero is a state condemned to constant struggle, Fouad Khoury-Helou brilliantly tells this fascinating story. He also develops the various scenarios on the horizon and tries to provide solutions that would enable the country of the Cedar to get out of its predicament.