Marjayoun
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Marjayoun (Arabic مرج عيون, also Marj 'Ayoun, Marjuyun or Marjeyoun - meaning "meadow of springs") is a Lebanese town and administrative district in Southern Lebanon.
The town of Marjayoun has a mixed population - Greek Orthodox, Maronite and Catholic Christians, as well as Druze and some Muslims. However the majority is Christian, thus Marjayoun is considered by most as a Christian town; most of the villages in the mountains surrounding it are predominantly Muslim.
During the Lebanese civil war the town was shelled by Palestinian militias.
It also was the headquarters of the of the South Lebanon Army, the Israel-affiliated militia that controlled southern Lebanon during Israel's occupation of the region after the 1982 Lebanon War until Israel's withdrawal from the region in 2000.[1] It has a population of about 3,000 people.
After cease-fire negotiations stalled on August 10, 2006, Israeli forces took control of Marjayoun.[2] Next day, a convoy of 3,000 people fled from the town. The convoy was attacked by an Israeli air-strike at Joub Jannine.
James Jabara, an American pilot and hero of the Korean War, was born to a family of Lebanese Americans originating from Marjayoun.
[edit] Reference
- ^ Hirst, David. 1999. South Lebanon: The war that never ends? Journal of Palestine Studies 28(3).
- ^ http://www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/meast/08/10/mideast.main/index.html
