00:00When you hear the name Lebanon, you may think of Hezbollah fighters and a war-torn country.
00:12But until a few decades ago, this Western Asian country, especially its capital Beirut,
00:17was a major attraction for the richest tourists in the world.
00:21It was a very beautiful country.
00:23At that time, Lebanon was about coastal beaches, crowded roads, and freedom-loving people.
00:30People used to come here with a lot of beauty and enjoy this beautiful country.
00:35But the political and economic crisis that pushed Lebanon, which was called the Switzerland of the Middle East,
00:41has pushed it towards a downturn in today's era.
00:44Beirut, which was once called the Paris of the Middle East, still has some remnants.
00:49Although it is now plagued by news of violence and bloodshed,
00:53the livelihood of the Lebanese people is such that when the bombings stop, the party starts.
00:59Lebanon used to be a Christian-dominated country at one time.
01:02But with time, some incidents took place,
01:05after which today, Beirut, which was once called the Paris or Switzerland of the Middle East,
01:10is now seen in a completely different way.
01:13The current situation is that Lebanon has now reached a situation
01:17where the number of Christians is only 15%.
01:20In 1920, there used to be 75-80% Christians here.
01:24But after the independence of France, the population of Lebanon changed significantly.
01:29The Sharia leaders from Palestine and Syria also made this situation more complicated.
01:34During this time, the Arab nation rose up,
01:36and the struggle between Christians, Sunnis, and Shia Muslims for power began.
01:41The civil war from 1975 to 1990 completely changed Lebanon.
01:47During this civil war, 100,000 Christians were killed,
01:50and about 100,000,000 Christians fled.
01:53In 1975, the population of Lebanon was 50% Christian and 37% Muslim.
01:58When the civil war ended in 1990,
02:01the Christian population decreased to 47% and the Muslim population to 53%.
02:06By 2010, the number of Christians decreased to 40%.
02:11In this video, we will understand how the city of Beirut,
02:14which was the main economic identity of Lebanon,
02:17has lost its identity today.
02:26Namaskar, my name is Abhishek Pandey and you are watching Daily Line Explainer.
02:29Lebanon's Beirut city, which was once the most developed and lively city of the Middle East,
02:35has been turned into a ruin in recent years due to conflicts and recent attacks by Israel.
02:40In the period of 1975, it was known as the old Paris.
02:44Tourists used to come to this city from Europe.
02:46The culture, cinema, and way of life of the people here were spread far and wide.
02:51But today, the situation of Beirut is very bad.
02:54Or we can say that the situation of Lebanon is getting worse.
02:57In the present time, neither people want to live here,
03:00nor does a tourist have the courage to go there.
03:03In recent days, the killing of many leaders led by Hassan Nasrullah,
03:06the leader of Hezbollah, in Israeli attacks, has increased instability in Lebanon.
03:10Lebanon has now become the home of extremist Islamic organizations.
03:14This country is still known for its hatred of Christians and Jews.
03:19However, 50 years ago, the population here was more Christian
03:23and Muslims were less than 30%.
03:26In the 1950s, there were more than 70% Christians in Lebanon
03:30and the remaining 30% were Muslims and followers of other religions.
03:34In 1932, the last census was conducted here
03:37and since then, there has been no census in the country.
03:40However, according to a report by the US State Department,
03:42there are now about 70% Muslims in Lebanon,
03:44including Shiites, Sunnis, and Israeli Muslims.
03:48The rest of the population is Christian and Middle Eastern.
03:51Until 1970, Lebanon was the only non-Muslim country in the entire Middle East.
03:57There was a Jewish-Israeli population there.
03:59Since many people from Africa, Asia, and Europe used to come here for business,
04:03and it was associated with business,
04:05the economic outlook here had also changed a lot.
04:08People here were reluctant to follow their religion.
04:11In the beginning of the 20th century,
04:13religious institutions began to change here
04:15and many incidents played a role in this.
04:17First of all, let's talk about the civil war in Lebanon.
04:20In one of the bloodiest battles of the Middle East,
04:23Christians and Muslims came face to face.
04:26In the war from the 70s to the 90s,
04:28political groups related to religion were also involved.
04:31After 1975, Lebanon completely changed
04:34when the Christian militia and PLO rebels fought for 15 years
04:39and the country went into a deep slump.
04:42In this war, about 150,000 people were killed,
04:45most of whom were Christians,
04:47and more than 10,000,000 Christians had to leave the country.
04:50In this, Lebanon's economy was completely destroyed
04:53because the Christians were prosperous,
04:55were connected to Europe,
04:56but when they left, the economy was also destroyed.
04:59From which Lebanon has never been able to emerge.
05:02Lebanon's Christian population also felt weakness for the first time at this time.
05:07A large number of Palestinians had also taken refuge in the country.
05:10They were also against the Christians in the fight.
05:12By the way, one of the reasons for the war is also believed to be these rebels.
05:15With the agenda of free Palestine, they kept inciting Israel.
05:19In return, the Israeli army also attacked Lebanon many times.
05:22In this, Lebanese Christians were also crushed like wheat grains.
05:25This also increased the distance between communities.
05:28In the early 90s, this compromise took place between many religious and political groups in the country.
05:33According to this, both wanted equal share in the country's power.
05:37The presidency was reserved for Christians,
05:40which is currently vacant,
05:42while the prime ministerial post will be reserved for Sunni Muslims forever.
05:45Even the distribution of seats in the parliament took place on a religious basis.
05:50After this, Lebanon's religious structure suddenly changed.
05:53Or you can say that the change began to look clear.
05:55Many Christians left Lebanon and went to Western countries during the Greek war.
06:00This exile continued in later years as well.
06:03After the end of the war, Muslim refugees from Syria and Jordan also came to Lebanon.
06:10The political system here helped them.
06:13Because the prime minister there was reserved for Sunni Muslims.
06:18In this way, the country's religious structure changed rapidly.
06:21Now, due to the high population, political power was also in the hands of Muslim leaders.
06:26After the Greek war, the government was in debt.
06:29And Lebanon was stuck in a deep financial crisis.
06:32The banks went bankrupt and people lost their lives.
06:35According to a report by Reuters,
06:37the reason was that Lebanese religious leaders,
06:40who had heavy loans,
06:42continued to take loans.
06:47Experts called Lebanon's financial system a national-level financial scheme.
06:53Where new money was used to pay old expenses.
06:57It worked until new money stopped coming.
07:01In the meantime, Lebanon ran its economy with foreign aid and financial industries.
07:06In 2011, when the Shiite terrorist organization Hezbollah took effect,
07:10Sunni countries became distant from Lebanon.
07:13Lebanon's economic downturn began
07:15when leaders approved the salary increase of government officials before the 2018 elections.
07:20And foreign aid was stopped due to unnecessary reforms.
07:24According to a report by First Post,
07:26there were about 60 Christian minorities in Lebanon.
07:29And the country was quite prosperous.
07:31In 1949 and then in 1967,
07:33after the arrival of thousands of Palestinians,
07:36the population changed.
07:39And the Muslims became a Christian minority.
07:42The beginning of unrest in Lebanon
07:44started with the arrival of Fatah and the Palestinian Liberation Movement.
07:48The constant arrival of many Muslim extremists from the Middle East
07:51to Lebanon was a religious divide
07:54that worsened the situation in the country.
07:57The story of Lebanon is a difficult and deep journey.
08:01At one time, it was a source of prosperity and prosperity.
08:04But now it is trapped in the web of religious struggles.
08:07This story is not only about Lebanon,
08:09but also a warning for the whole of the Middle East
08:12that how instability and struggle can destroy a prosperous country.
08:16Today's Lebanon, which used to be the center of cultural and economic development,
08:20has now become a symbol of war and unrest.
08:23The parliament here was also a Christian majority,
08:25but gradually the religious atmosphere here changed.
08:28Today, 70% of the population here are Muslims.
08:31And this is increasing rapidly.
08:34At one time, the country was a Christian majority.
08:37Today, it has become a Christian minority.
08:40That's all for today's Explainer.
08:42To get more such informative videos,
08:44keep watching Daily Line.
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