Beqaa Valley
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Beqaa (Arabic: البقاع, lit. "valley") is a valley in east Lebanon.
The Bekáa or Al Biqâ‘ or Becaa is a fertile valley in Lebanon and Syria, located about 30 km (about 19 miles) east of Beirut. The valley is situated between the Mount Lebanon to the west and the Anti-Lebanon Mountains to the east. It forms the northeastern most extension of the Great Rift Valley, which stretches from Syria through the Red Sea into Africa. Beqaa Valley is about 120 km (about 75 miles) in length and has an average width of about 16 km (about 10 mi). It has a Mediterranean climate of wet, mild winters and dry, warm summers. The region receives limited rainfall, particularly in the north, because the Lebanon Mountains create a rain shadow that blocks precipitation coming from the sea. The northern section has an average annual rainfall of 230 mm (9 inches), compared to 610 mm (24 inches) in the central valley. Two rivers originate in the valley: the Orontes (Asi), which flows north into Syria, and the Līţānī, which flows south and then west to the Mediterranean Sea.
From the 1st century BC, when the region was under Roman rule, Beqaa Valley served as a source of grain for the Roman province of Syria. Today the valley makes up 40 percent of Lebanon's arable land. The northern end of the valley, with its scarce rainfall and less fertile soils, is used primarily as grazing land by pastoral nomads. Farther south, more fertile soils support crops of wheat, corn, cotton, and vegetables, with vineyards and orchards centered around Zahlah. The valley also produces hashish and cultivates opium poppies, which are exported illegally. Since 1957 the Litani hydroelectric project, a series of canals and a dam located at Al Qir‘awn in the southern end of the valley, has improved irrigation to farms in Beqaa Valley.
Zahlah (or Zahle) is the largest city in Beqaa Valley. It lies just north of the main Beirut–Damascus highway, which bisects the valley. Most of Zahlah's residents are Christian Arabs, including Armenians, Greek Catholics, Maronites, and members of the Greek Orthodox Church.
The overwhelming majority of the inhabitants of the Bekaa, however, are the Lebanese Shia. And they are growing fast both in the absolute numbers as well as the proportions of the entire population of the area. Due to the wars, unstable economic and political condition, the strong presence of the Hizbullah in the Bekaa, many Christians have, on the other hand, left the Bekaa for the coastal cities of Lebanon or emigrated from the country altogether. The historic city of Baalbek now serves as the center of the Shia Bekaa.
Beqaa Valley is home to Lebanon's tallest mosque, located in the town of Kherbet Rouha.
The valley has gained infamy as a training ground for many guerrilla organizations, such as the PKK and the PLO. Many of the organizations were also harbored and supported in Syria, which was the de facto supporter of these organizations and the channel by which these organizations found the opportunity to settle in Beqaa.
[edit] Roman ruins in Baalbek
The most noted historic site in the valley is Baalbek, an ancient city named for the Canaanite god Baal. Baalbek has impressive Roman ruins, including temples to Bacchus, Jupiter, Venus, and the sun. For many years the ruins were the site of the Baalbek festival, which attracted performance groups from around the world.
More recently, Baalbek has been a center of operation for two militant Muslim organizations. One is Hezbollah (Party of God), a Shiite Islamist group that advocates the creation of an Islamic state in Lebanon. The other is the Revolutionary Guards, a powerful military force based in Iran that is involved in enforcing all aspects of Iran's Islamic revolution and extending it to other countries, including Lebanon.
