Location:  Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Israel and Syria
Industries:   banking, tourism, food processing, wine, jewelry, cement, textiles, mineral and chemical products, wood and furniture products, oil refining, metal fabricating
Geography:  Nahr el Litani is the only major river in Near East not crossing an international boundary; rugged terrain historically helped isolate, protect, and develop numerous factional groups based on religion, clan, and ethnicity
Area:  total: 10,400 sq km
           land: 10,230 sq km
           water: 170 sq km
Budget:  revenues: $6.472 billion
              expenditures: $8.35 billion (2007 est.)
Languages:  Arabic (official), French, English, Armenian
National Holiday:  Independence Day, 22 November (1943)
Currency (Code):  Lebanese pound (LBP)
Capital:  Beirut
Population:  3,971,941 (July 2008 est.)
Labor Force:  1.5 million,  note: in addition, there are as many as 1 million foreign workers (2005 est.)
Exports:  $3.445 billion f.o.b. (2007 est.)
Imports:  $10.75 billion f.o.b. (2007 est.)
Internet Country Code:  .lb
Airports:  7 (2007)  /  Paved Runways:  5
Aircraft Departures:  10,300