Beirut City Lebanon: Lebanese Republic: Links to Information, Tourism, Work, Culture, People, Government, History & More

City of Beirut
Lebanese Republic

Beirut (Arabic: بيروت, transliteration: Bayrūt) is the capital, largest city, and chief seaport of Lebanon. It is sometimes referred to by its French name, Beyrouth. There are wide-ranging estimates of Beirut's population, from as low as 938,940 people, to 1,303,129 people, to as high as 2,012,000. The lack of an exact figure is due to the fact that no "comprehensive" population census has been taken in Lebanon since 1932.

Beirut had undergone major reconstruction in recent years and has hosted the Francophonie and the Arab League summits in 2002. In 2007, Beirut hosted the ceremony for Le Prix Albert Londres, which rewards outstanding Francophone journalists every year. The city is set to host the Jeux de la Francophonie in 2009.

Beirut was considered as a possible candidate for the 2024 Summer Olympics games. The massive $1.2 billion Sannine Zenith project will make Lebanon capable of holding the games.

The city is home to numerous international organizations. The United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA) is headquartered in Downtown Beirut while the International Labour Organization (ILO) and UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) both have regional offices in Beirut covering the Arab world. The Arab Air Carriers Organization (AACO) is also headquartered in Beirut.

In Travel and Leisure magazine's 'World Best Awards 2006', Beirut was ranked the 9th (out of 10) city in the world, falling just short of New York City and coming ahead of San Francisco.

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