_#_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 (5L) = 100 piasters
_#_Exchange rates: Lebanese pounds (5L) 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)
_%_
_@_Lesotho
_*_Geography
_#_Total area: 30,350 km2; land area: 30,350 km2
_#_Comparative area: slightly larger than Maryland
_#_Land boundary: 909 km with South Africa
_#_Coastline: none--landlocked
_#_Maritime claims: none--landlocked
_#_Climate: temperate; cool to cold, dry winters; hot, wet summers
_#_Terrain: mostly highland with some plateaus, hills, and mountains
_#_Natural resources: some diamonds and other minerals, water,
agricultural and grazing land
_#_Land use: arable land 10%; permanent crops 0%; meadows and
pastures 66%; forest and woodland 0%; other 24%
_#_Environment: population pressure forcing settlement in marginal
areas results in overgrazing, severe soil erosion, soil exhaustion;
desertification
_#_Note: landlocked; surrounded by South Africa; Highlands Water
Project will control, store, and redirect water to South Africa
_*_People
_#_Population: 1,801,174 (July 1991), growth rate 2.6% (1991)
_#_Birth rate: 36 births/1,000 population (1991)
_#_Death rate: 10 deaths/1,000 population (1991)
_#_Net migration rate: 0 migrants/1,000 population (1991)
_#_Infant mortality rate: 78 deaths/1,000 live births (1991)
_#_Life expectancy at birth: 59 years male, 63 years female (1991)
_#_Total fertility rate: 4.8 children born/woman (1991)
_#_Nationality: noun--Mosotho (sing.), Basotho (pl.);
adjective--Basotho
_#_Ethnic divisions: Sotho 99.7%; Europeans 1,600, Asians 800
_#_Religion: Christian 80%, rest indigenous beliefs
_#_Language: Sesotho (southern Sotho) and English (official); also
Zulu and Xhosa
_#_Literacy: 59% (male 44%, female 68%) age 15 and over can
read and write (1966)
_#_Labor force: 689,000 economically active; 86.2% of resident
population engaged in subsistence agriculture; roughly 60% of active
male labor force works in South Africa
_#_Organized labor: there are two trade union federations; the
government favors formation of a single, umbrella trade union
confederation
_*_Government
_#_Long-form name: Kingdom of Lesotho
_#_Type: constitutional monarchy
_#_Capital: Maseru
_#_Administrative divisions: 10 districts; Berea, Butha-Buthe, Leribe,
Mafeteng, Maseru, Mohales Hoek, Mokhotlong, Qachas Nek, Quthing,
Thaba-Tseka
_#_Independence: 4 October 1966 (from UK; formerly Basutoland)
_#_Constitution: 4 October 1966, suspended January 1970
_#_Legal system: based on English common law and Roman-Dutch law;
judicial review of legislative acts in High Court and Court of Appeal;
has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
_#_National holiday: Independence Day, 4 October (1966)
_#_Executive branch: monarch, chairman of the Military Council,
Military Council, Council of Ministers (cabinet)
_#_Legislative branch: none--the bicameral Parliament was dissolved
following the military coup in January 1986; note--a National Constituent
Assembly convened in June 1990 to rewrite the constitution and debate
issues of national importance, but it has no legislative authority
_#_Judicial branch: High Court, Court of Appeal
_#_Leaders:
Chief of State--King LETSIE III (since 12 November 1990 following
dismissal of his father, exiled King MOSHOESHOE II, by Maj. Gen.
LEKHANYA);
Head of Government--Chairman of the Military Council Col.
Elias Phisoana RAMAEMA (since 30 April 1991)
_#_Political parties and leaders:
Basotho National Party (BNP), Matete MAJARA (interim leader);
Basutoland Congress Party (BCP), Ntsu MOKHEHLE;
National Independent Party (NIP), A. C. MANYELI;
Marematlou Freedom Party (MFP), S. H. MAPHELEBA;
United Democratic Party, Charles MOFELI;
Communist Party of Lesotho (CPL), Jacob KENYA
_#_Suffrage: universal at age 21
_#_Elections:
National Assembly--dissolved following the military coup in
January 1986; military has pledged elections will take place in June 1992
_#_Communists: small Lesotho Communist Party
_#_Member of: ACP, AfDB, C, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-77, GATT, IBRD, ICAO,
ICFTU, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, INTERPOL, IOC, ITU, LORCS,
NAM, OAU, SACU, SADCC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCL,
WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
_#_Diplomatic representation: Ambassador W. T. VAN TONDER; Chancery at
2511 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington DC 20008; telephone (202)
797-5 534;
US--Ambassador Leonard H.O. SPEARMAN, Jr.; Embassy at address NA,
Maseru (mailing address is P. O. Box 333, Maseru 100); telephone [266]
312666
_#_Flag: divided diagonally from the lower hoist side corner; the
upper half is white bearing the brown silhouette of a large shield with
crossed spear and club; the lower half is a diagonal blue band with a
green triangle in the corner
_*_Economy
_#_Overview: Small, landlocked, and mountainous, Lesotho has no
important natural resources other than water. Its economy is based on
agriculture, light manufacturing, and remittances from laborers employed
in South Africa ($153 million in 1989). The great majority of households
gain their livelihoods from subsistence farming and migrant labor.
Manufacturing depends largely on farm products to support the milling,
canning, leather, and jute industries; other industries include textile,
clothing, and light engineering. Industry's share of GDP rose from
6% in 1982 to 15% in 1989. Political and economic instability in South
Africa raise uncertainties for Lesotho's economy, especially with respect
to migrant worker remittances--over one-third of GDP.
_#_GDP: $420 million, per capita $240; real growth rate 4.0% (1990
est.)
_#_Inflation rate (consumer prices): 15% (1990 est.)
_#_Unemployment rate: 23% (1988)
_#_Budget: revenues $280 million; expenditures $288 million, including
capital expenditures of $NA (FY92 est.)
_#_Exports: $66 million (f.o.b., 1989);
commodities--wool, mohair, wheat, cattle, peas, beans, corn, hides,
skins, baskets;
partners--South Africa 53%, EC 30%, North and South America 13%
(1989)
_#_Imports: $499 million (f.o.b., 1989);
commodities--mainly corn, building materials, clothing, vehicles,
machinery, medicines, petroleum, oil, and lubricants;
partners--South Africa 95%, EC 2% (1989)
_#_External debt: $370 million (December 1990 est.)
_#_Industrial production: growth rate 7.8% (1989 est.); accounts
for 15% of GDP
_#_Electricity: power supplied by South Africa
_#_Industries: food, beverages, textiles, handicrafts, tourism
_#_Agriculture: accounts for 18% of GDP and employs 60-70% of
all households; exceedingly primitive, mostly subsistence farming and
livestock; principal crops are corn, wheat, pulses, sorghum, barley
_#_Economic aid: US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $268
million; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments
(1970-88), $754 million; OPEC bilateral aid (1979-89), $4 million;
Communist countries (1970-89), $14 million
_#_Currency: loti (plural--maloti); 1 loti (L) = 100 lisente
_#_Exchange rates: maloti (M) per US$1--2.5625 (January 1991),
2.5863 (1990), 2.6166 (1989), 2.2611 (1988), 2.0350 (1987), 2.2685
(1986), 2.1911 (1985); note--the Basotho loti is at par with the South
African rand
_#_Fiscal year: 1 April-31 March
_*_Communications
_#_Railroads: 1.6 km; owned, operated, and included in the statistics
of South Africa
_#_Highways: 5,167 km total; 508 km paved; 1,585 km crushed stone,
gravel, or stabilized soil; 946 km improved earth, 2,128 km unimproved
earth
_#_Civil air: 2 major transport aircraft
_#_Airports: 28 total, 28 usable; 3 with permanent surface runways;
none with runways over 3,659 m; 1 with runways 2,440-3,659 m;
2 with runways 1,220-2,439 m
_#_Telecommunications: rudimentary system consisting of a few land
lines, a small radio relay system, and minor radiocommunication stations;
5,920 telephones; stations--2 AM, 2 FM, 1 TV; 1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT
earth station
_*_Defense Forces
_#_Branches: Royal Lesotho Defense Force (RLDF; includes Army, Air
Wing), Royal Lesotho Mounted Police
_#_Manpower availability: males 15-49, 394,829; 212,967 fit for
military service
_#_Defense expenditures: $55 million, 8.6% of GDP (1990 est.)
_%_
_@_Liberia
_*_Geography
_#_Total area: 111,370 km2; land area: 96,320 km2
_#_Comparative area: slightly larger than Tennessee
_#_Land boundaries: 1,585 km total; Guinea 563 km, Ivory Coast 716 km,
Sierra Leone 306 km
_#_Coastline: 579 km
_#_Maritime claims:
Continental shelf: 200 m (depth) or to depth of exploitation;