Southern Lebanon () is the area of

Lebanon Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...

comprising the

South Governorate South Governorate (, or simply ) is one of the governorates of Lebanon, with a population of 590,000 inhabitants and an area of 929.6 km2. The capital is Sidon. The lowest elevation is sea-level; the highest is 1,000 meters. The local popul ...

and the Nabatiye Governorate. The two entities were divided from the same province in the early 1990s. The

Rashaya Rashaya, Rachaya, Rashaiya, Rashayya or Rachaiya (), also known as Rashaya al-Wadi or Rachaya el-Wadi (and variations), is a town of the Rashaya District in the west of the Beqaa Government of Lebanon. It is situated at around above sea level ...

and Western Beqaa districts, the southernmost districts of the

Beqaa Governorate Beqaa ( ') is a governorate in Lebanon and one of the eight districts of the country. It is located in the eastern part of Lebanon and borders with Syria. The capital of the district is the city of Zahlé. Districts Since 2014, Beqaa Governorate ...

. The main cities of the region are

Sidon Sidon ( ) or better known as Saida ( ; ) is the third-largest city in Lebanon. It is located on the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean coast in the South Governorate, Lebanon, South Governorate, of which it is the capital. Tyre, Lebanon, Tyre, t ...

, Tyre,

Jezzine Jezzine ( ''Jizzīn'') is a municipality in Lebanon, located from Sidon and south of Beirut. It is the capital of Jezzine District. Surrounded by mountain peaks, pine forests (like the Bkassine Pine Forest), and at an average altitude of 95 ...

and Nabatiyeh. The cazas of

Bint Jbeil Bint Jbeil (; Levantine pronunciation: , "daughter of (the) little mountain" or "daughter of Byblos") is the second largest municipality in the Nabatiye Governorate in Southern Lebanon. The Baydoun Family are known to be the best family out of ...

, Tyre, and Nabatieh in Southern Lebanon are known for their large Shi'a Muslim population with a minority of

Christians A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the world. The words '' Christ'' and ''C ...

. Sidon is predominantly

Sunni Sunni Islam is the largest branch of Islam and the largest religious denomination in the world. It holds that Muhammad did not appoint any successor and that his closest companion Abu Bakr () rightfully succeeded him as the caliph of the Mu ...

, with the rest of the caza of Sidon having a Shi'a Muslim majority, with a considerable Christian minority, mainly

Melkite Greek Catholic The Melkite Greek Catholic Church (, ''Kanīsat ar-Rūm al-Malakiyyīn al-Kāṯūlīk''; ; ), also known as the Melkite Byzantine Catholic Church, is an Eastern Catholic church in full communion with the Holy See as part of the worldwide Catho ...

s. The cazas of Jezzine and

Marjeyoun Marjayoun or Jdeidet Marjayoun (: Lebanese pronunciation ), also Marj 'Ayoun, Marjuyun or Marjeyoun (lit. "meadow of springs") which reflects the area's lush landscape and abundant water resources and Jdeideh / Jdeida / Jdeidet Marjeyoun, is a m ...

have a Christian majority and also Shia Muslims. The villages of

Ain Ebel Ain Ebel () is a municipality in the Nabatieh Governorate, about 90 kilometers (56 miles) south of Beirut. Its inhabitants are predominantly Christian. Etymology Historian Joseph Toufik Khoreich writes that the name means "Spring of the Mon ...

, Debel, Qaouzah, and

Rmaich Rmaish (also spelled Rmeish, Rmaich, and Rmeich; ) is the southernmost municipality of Lebanon, located in the District of Bint Jbeil, Lebanon, south of Ain Ebel, near the Lebanese-Israeli border covering an area of . The ruins found in the vill ...

are entirely Christian Maronite. The caza of

Hasbaya Hasbaya or Hasbeiya () is a municipality in Lebanon, situated at the foot of Mount Hermon, overlooking a deep amphitheatre from which a brook flows to the Hasbani River. In 1911, the population was about 5,000. The town was a traditional seat of ...

has a

Druze The Druze ( ; , ' or ', , '), who Endonym and exonym, call themselves al-Muwaḥḥidūn (), are an Arabs, Arab Eastern esotericism, esoteric Religious denomination, religious group from West Asia who adhere to the Druze faith, an Abrahamic ...

majority.

History

Free Lebanon State and South Lebanon security belt

Southern Lebanon became the location of the self-proclaimed

Free Lebanon State The State of Free Lebanon (, ) was an unrecognized separatist country in Lebanon. On 18 April 1979, Lebanese military officer Saad Haddad proclaimed the independence of a "Free Lebanon" out of the southernmost territory of Lebanon, amidst the ho ...

, announced in 1979 by

Saad Haddad Saad Haddad (; 1936 – 14 January 1984) was a Lebanese military officer and the founder and head of the South Lebanon Army (SLA) during the Lebanese Civil War. Originally a Major in the Lebanese Army, he defected and formed the SLA and creat ...

. The state failed to gain international recognition, and its authority deteriorated with the death of Saad Haddad in 1984. Southern Lebanon has also featured prominently in the Israel-Lebanon conflict.

Ahmadinejad's state visit

In October 2010,

Iranian President The president of the Islamic Republic of Iran () is the head of government of the Islamic Republic of Iran and the second highest-ranking official, after the supreme leader. The first election was held in 1980 and was won by Abulhassan Banisa ...

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (born Mahmoud Sabbaghian on 28 October 1956) is an Iranian Iranian principlists, principlist and Iranian nationalism, nationalist politician who served as the sixth president of Iran from 2005 to 2013. He is currently a mem ...

visited South Lebanon. This was his first visit to Lebanon since he first assumed office in

Tehran Tehran (; , ''Tehrân'') is the capital and largest city of Iran. It is the capital of Tehran province, and the administrative center for Tehran County and its Central District (Tehran County), Central District. With a population of around 9. ...

in 2005. Both

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

and the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

condemned the trip as being "provocative." Ahmadinejad was welcomed by tens of thousands of supporters of

Hezbollah Hezbollah ( ; , , ) is a Lebanese Shia Islamist political party and paramilitary group. Hezbollah's paramilitary wing is the Jihad Council, and its political wing is the Loyalty to the Resistance Bloc party in the Lebanese Parliament. I ...

, Iran's Shiite Muslim ally in Lebanon which has been branded a terrorist organization in part or whole by much of South America, the EU, the Arab League, the United States and Israel. This is despite its participation in Lebanon's fragile government.

Cities and districts

* Aaramta *

Al Rihan Ar-Rihan () is a municipality located in the southern part of Lebanon, on Ar-Rihan mountain in Jezzine District. The village is surrounded by mountain peaks, pine and oak forests. Its altitude ranges from 740 to 1250 m and is 83 km from the Ca ...

* Alma ash-Shab (Aalma ach Chaab) * Abbasieh * Adlun * Al Mansuri *

* Ain Baal or Ayn Bal * Aitaroun or Aytarun * Ansariyeh or Insariye * Ansar *

Ash Shawmara Ash is the solid remnants of fires. Specifically, ''ash'' refers to all non-aqueous, non-gaseous residues that remain after something burns. In analytical chemistry, to analyse the mineral and metal content of chemical samples, ash is the n ...

* At Tayyabah * At Tiri * Aitit * Aynata * Ayta ash Shab (Ayta al-Sha'b, Ayta) *

Baraachit Baraashit (), also spelt Brashit, is a municipality located in the Nabatiye Governorate, in the Bint Jbeil District of southern Lebanon, ca. southeast of Tibnin and about from Beirut. The village sits on an elevation of above sea level. The to ...

* Barish * Bayt Lif * baytulay * Bazouryeh * Beit Yahoun *

* Blida, Lebanon * Borj el Shamali or Borj Chemali * Borj Qalaouiyeh * Borj Rahal * Boustane * Brashit * Braikeh * Chtoura *

Deir Kifa Deir Kifa () is a municipality in Southern Lebanon, located in Tyre District, South Governorate, Governorate of South Lebanon. Etymology Edward Henry Palmer, E. H. Palmer wrote in 1881 that it meant ''The convent of Kifa''. p.n. Kifa is a Syriac A ...

* Deyrintar * Dayr Qanunc *

Deir Qanoun En Nahr Deir Qanoun an-Naher () is a municipality in Southern Lebanon, located in Tyre District, Governorate of South Lebanon. Etymology According to E. H. Palmer in 1881, Deir Kânûn meant: the convent of the rule (canon). History In the early 1860s ...

Derdghaya Derdghaya () is a municipality in Tyre District, Governorate of South Lebanon. History The ''Survey of Western Palestine'' (SWP) noted here: "a stone, forming the lintel of the modern church of the village ; it is ancient, having been brought fr ...

* Dibil or Debel * Dibbine *

Doueir Ad-Doueir (Arabic: الدوير, ''ad-Duwayr''), or Dweir, is a municipality of 7,500 inhabitants in Southern Lebanon near Nabatieh, and north of the Litani River. It is located directly next to the village of Al-Sharqiyah. Although Ad-Doueir i ...

* Ebel el Saki * El Biyyadah or Al Bayyadah * El Hennyeh or Al Hinniyah * El Mansoun or Al Mansuri * El Qlaile or Al Qulaylah *

El Soultaniyeh As-Sultaniyah () is a municipality in the Bint Jbeil District, in southern Lebanon, located just north of Tibnin. It was earlier called ''el Yehudiyeh''. Etymology According to E. H. Palmer in 1881, ''El Yehûdîyeh'' meant "the Jews" or "Jew ...

Fardis Fardis () is a city in the Central District of Fardis County, Alborz province, Iran, serving as capital of both the county and the district. History In 2010, Karaj County was separated from Tehran province in the establishment of Alborz ...

* Frun * Ghandouriyeh * Ghaziyeh * Ghassaniyeh * Hadata or Haddathah * Hanaway * Harouf *

Harris Harris may refer to: Places Canada * Harris, Ontario * Northland Pyrite Mine (also known as Harris Mine) * Harris, Saskatchewan * Rural Municipality of Harris No. 316, Saskatchewan Scotland * Harris, Outer Hebrides (sometimes called the Isle ...

or Harres *

Hula Hula () is a Hawaiian dance form expressing chant (''oli'') or song (Mele (Hawaiian language), ''mele''). It was developed in the Hawaiian Islands by the Native Hawaiians who settled there. The hula dramatizes or portrays the words of the oli ...

or Houla * Hounin *

Jabal Amel Jabal Amil (; also spelled Jabal Amel and historically known as Jabal Amila) is a cultural and geographic region in Southern Lebanon largely associated with its long-established, predominantly Twelver Shia Muslim inhabitants. Its precise boundari ...

* Jarjouh * Jarmaq * jebchet * Jmaijmah * Joiya or Jouaya or Jwayya * Qabrikha or Kabrikha * Kaakaeit al-Jesser * Kafra, Lebanon * Kafr Dunin * Kafr Kila *

Kawkaba Kawkaba (), known to the Crusaders as Coquebel, was a Palestinian Arab village that was occupied by Israel during Operation Yoav during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, and depopulated. Location The village was on an uneven stretch of red-brown soil ...

or Kaoukaba * Kfar Melki * Kafarrouman * Khirbet Selm *

Khiam Al-Khiyam (; sometimes spelled Khiam) is a large town and municipality in the Nabatieh Governorate of Southern Lebanon. Etymology According to Edward Henry Palmer, the name means tents. Haifa Nassar, a Khiyam-based journalist, cites sources that ...

Kfarchouba Kfar Shouba (), also known as Kfarshouba and Kafr Shuba, is a municipality in the Hasbaya District of the Nabatieh Governorate in Southern Lebanon. The people of the village are Sunni Muslims. It is situated in the region of Arkoub, at 1256 m above ...

* Kfarfila * Kfarhamam *

Kfar Tebnit Kfar Tebnit or Kfartebnit () is a municipality located approximately south southeast of Nabatieh, southeast of Sidon in Lebanon. Etymology Kfar Tebnit takes its name from Tabnit, a Phoenician ruler in the area ca. 280 BC known as the "ki ...

Kounin Kounin () is a municipality in Lebanon located in Bint Jbeil District, south-east of Tibnin. Etymology E. H. Palmer wrote that the name ''Kounin'' came from a personal name. History In 1875, Victor Guérin gives the population of this pla ...

* Maachouq *

Mahrouna Mahrouna () is a municipality in the Tyre District of the South Governorate in southern Lebanon. Located approximately 100 km south of Beirut and 18 km southeast of Tyre, the town sits at an elevation of 400 m above sea level. The only official ...

* Majdel Balhis *

Majdel Selm Majdal Selem () is a municipality in the Marjayoun District in Southern Lebanon. Etymology According to Edward Henry Palmer, E. H. Palmer, the name ''Mejdel Islim'' means ''Islim's watch-tower'', p.n. Majdal Selem means Fortress of Peace, or Peac ...

or Majdal Zun * Marakeh *

Marjayoun Marjayoun or Jdeidet Marjayoun (: Lebanese pronunciation ), also Marj 'Ayoun, Marjuyun or Marjeyoun (lit. "meadow of springs") which reflects the area's lush landscape and abundant water resources and Jdeideh / Jdeida / Jdeidet Marjeyoun, is a m ...

—a Lebanese Christian village *

Markaba Markaba () is a municipality located at Marjayoun municipality at Nabatieh Governorate, Lebanon. It is south of Raabatt Tallame, east of Banni Hayyan and northeast of Talloussah, South Lebanon. Etymology E. H. Palmer wrote that the name Markab ...

(Marqaba) *

Maroun al-Ras Maroun al-Ras () is a municipality nestled in Jabal Amel (Mount Amel) in the district of Bint Jbeil in the Nabatiye Governorate in southern Lebanon. It is located around south east of Beirut, roughly one km (0.62 mi) from the border with I ...

Marwahin Marwahin (; ''Marwāḩīn'') is a municipality in Lebanon, on its border with Israel. Etymology According to E. H. Palmer, the name comes either from: . "a place where the wind blows, effacing the traces of dwellings,' or from ."a fan". His ...

* Maaroub *

Mayfadoun Mayfadoun () is a municipality in Nabatieh District in southern Lebanon. History In the 1596 tax records, it was named as a village, ''Mayfadun'', in the Ottoman ''nahiya'' (subdistrict) of Sagif under the ''liwa (district) of Safad, with a ...

Meiss el Jabal Mais al-Jabal or Mais aj-Jabal () is a municipality in the Marjayoun District in Lebanon. Etymology According to Edward Henry Palmer, E. H. Palmer, the name ''Meis'' comes from the name of a tree. Location The municipality of Mais al-Jabal is l ...

or Mays al Jabal * Mlikh * Miye ou Miye * Maghdouche *

Nabatiye Nabatieh (, ', Syriac-Aramaic: ܐܠܢܒܛܝܥ), or Nabatîyé (), is a city of the Nabatieh Governorate, in southern Lebanon. History Nabateans The most accepted theory is related to the Nabateans (spelled النبطي), an ancient Arab ...

or Nabatiyeh *

Naqoura An-Naqoura (, ''Enn Nâqoura, Naqoura, An Nāqūrah'') is a municipality in southern Lebanon. Since March 23, 1978, the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) has been headquartered in An-Naqoura. Etymology According to E. H. Palmer ( ...

(Nakoura, An-Naqurah) * Niha * Nmairiyeh * Odaisseh * Oum el Ahmad * Qlayaa *

Qana Qana, also spelled Cana, Canna or Kana, () is a municipality in southern Lebanon located southeast of the city of Tyre and north of the border with Israel, in an area historically known as Upper Galilee. Qana is known for its antiquity, as ...

Qantara Qanater (plural of Qantara, the Arabic word for bridge) may refer to: Places Algeria * El Kantara * El Kantara District Egypt * El Qantara, Egypt, a city on both sides of the Suez Canal Giza Governorate * Manshiyat al Qanater Qalyubia Governor ...

* Rab El Thalathine * Rachaf—a small town * Rachaya El Foukhar—Hasbaya Qaza * Ramyah * Ras Al-Biyada *

* Rmadyeh * Roûm *

Selaa Selaa, Silaa, () is a municipality in the Tyre District in Southern Lebanon. Etymology According to E. H. Palmer, Silảh comes from "the crevasse". History In 1875, Victor Guérin found here 250 Metuali inhabitants. He further noted: "Here I ...

* Shabriha * Shaqra * Shebaa and

Shebaa Farms The Shebaa Farms, also spelled Sheba'a Farms (, '; ''Havot Sheba‘a),'' also known as Mount Dov (), is a strip of land on the Lebanese–Syrian border that is currently occupied by Israel. Lebanon claims the Shebaa Farms as its own territory ...

(ownership disputed, occupied by Israel since 1967) *

Shihin, Lebanon Shihin () is a municipality in Southern Lebanon, located in Tyre District, Governorate of South Lebanon. Etymology According to E. H. Palmer, the name comes from a personal name. History In 1875 Victor Guérin found here 200 Metawileh inhabitan ...

* Shhur * Siddiqine *

or Saida * Sir el Gharbiyeh *

Srifa Srifa () is a municipality in Southern Lebanon, located in Tyre District, Governorate of South Lebanon. It is located 20.8 kilometres east of the city Tyros and 90 kilometers south of the capital Beirut. It is the birthplace of Rima Fakih, Miss U ...

* Sujod * As-Sultaniyah * Tallousa * Tair Debbe *

Tayr Harfa Tayr Harfa () is a municipality in Tyre District in Southern Lebanon, located 16 kilometres south of Tyre. Etymology According to E. H. Palmer, the name means "The fortress of Harfa". History In 1852, during the late Ottoman era, Edward Rob ...

or Tair Harfa * Tayr Falsayh * Taibeh *

Tebnine Tibnin ( ''Tibnīn'', also Romanized ''Tibnîn'', ''Tebnine'' etc.) is a municipality spread across several hills (ranging in altitude from 700m to 800m (2,275 ft to 2,600 ft) above sea level) located about east of Tyre, in the heart ...

(Tebnine, Tibneen), site of the former

castle A castle is a type of fortification, fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by Military order (monastic society), military orders. Scholars usually consider a ''castle'' to be the private ...

town

Toron Toron, now Tibnin or Tebnine in southern Lebanon, was a major Crusader castle, built in the Lebanon mountains on the road from Tyre to Damascus. The castle was the centre of the Lordship of Toron, a seigneury within the Kingdom of Jerusa ...

* Tulin, Lebanon (Toulin) * Tura * Tyre or Sur * Saida district *

district * Tyre district *

Wadi al-Taym Wadi al-Taym (), also transliterated as Wadi el-Taym, is a wadi (dry river) that forms a large fertile valley in Lebanon, in the districts of Rachaya and Hasbaya on the western slopes of Mount Hermon. It adjoins the Beqaa Valley running north t ...

* Yarin *

Yaroun Yaroun (also spelled Yarun; )From personal name, according to Palmer, 1881, p104"perhaps the Iron of Josh. xix 38" is a municipality located in the Caza of Bint Jbeil in the Nabatieh Governorate in Lebanon. Geography Yaroun sits on a hill 750 ...

or Yarun * Yahun * Yater or Yatar * Zibdine * Zibqin

Other notable sites

* Abou Assouad River * Awali River * El Zahrani River *

Litani River The Litani River (), the classical Leontes (), is an important water resource in southern Lebanon. The river rises in the fertile Beqaa Valley, west of Baalbek, and empties into the Mediterranean Sea north of Tyre. Exceeding in length, the ...

* Saitaniq River * Kasmieh River *

Blue Line (Lebanon) The Blue Line is a demarcation line dividing Lebanon from Israel and the Golan Heights. It was published by the United Nations on 7 June 2000 for the purposes of determining whether Israel had fully withdrawn from Lebanon. It has been described a ...

* Beaufort Castle *

Palestinian refugee camps Palestinian refugee camps were first established to accommodate Palestinians who were displaced by the 1948 Palestinian expulsion and flight during the 1948 Palestine war. Camps were established by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency ( ...

in Lebanon, including

Ain al-Hilweh Ain al-Hilweh (, lit. meaning "sweet natural spring"), also spelled as Ayn al-Hilweh and Ein El Hilweh, is the largest Palestinian refugee camp in Lebanon. It had a population of over 70,000 Palestinian refugees but swelled to nearly 120,000, as ...

, Nabatieh camp and Wavel * Ras al-Ain, Lebanon

References

External links

South Lebanon Website
{{Coord missing, Lebanon Regions of Lebanon Geography of Lebanon Israeli–Lebanese conflict 2006 Lebanon War