Sandwiched between Syria and Israel, Lebanon is perhaps fated to be engulfed in the frequent bouts of violence that plague the wider Middle East region. In summer 2006, Beirut found itself once more under siege as Israeli missiles rained upon the capital. More often than not, however, the fighting has been internal – Lebanon has suffered frequent civil wars throughout the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.

CONTENTS
Foreword, George Asseily; Introduction, Youssef M. Choueiri
PART I The Historical Context: Movements of the Past and Deadlocks of the Present, by Ahmad Beydoun l Explaining Civil Wars in Lebanon by Youssef M. Choueiri l Is Lebanese Confessionalism to Blame? by Mohammad F. Mattar;
PART II Memories of War and Forgiveness l Breaking the Vicious Circle! Contributions of the 25-35 Lebanese Age Group, by Pamela Chrabieh l Breaking the Cycle of Violence in Lebanon, by Alexandra Asseily l Memory as Representation and Memory as Idiom, by Sune Haugbolle
PART III The Politics of Reform l An Agenda for the Future l Managing Political Change in Lebanon: Challenges and Prospects, by Michael Johnson l Education - A Means for the Cohesion of the Lebanese - Confessional Society, by Maha Shuayb l From Beirut Spring to Regional Winter? by Mark Farha l The Philosophy of Lebanese Power-Sharing by Michael Kerr l Intifada 2005: A look Backwards and A Look Forward by Halim Shebaya l Democratic System Reform in Lebanon: An Electoral Approach by Rudy Jaafar l Ta’if’s Dysfunctions and the Need for Constitutional Reform by Nawaf Salam

Pubished October 2007

See also The Centre for Lebanese Studies