Lebanon 2009: Year of Dramatic Transformations, Unexpected Surprises

A Lebanese ship carrying aid for Gaza was stopped by the "Israeli" navy and taken under escort to the "Israeli" port of Ashdod.

According to two national reports on poverty and living conditions unveiled by the SOCIAL Affairs Ministry and the United Nations Development Program, 28 percent of Lebanese qualified as poor, while 8 percent were living under conditions of extreme poverty and approximately 300,000 Lebanese citizens were unable to meet basic food and non-food needs.

The international commission investigating the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri transferred all documents and evidence related to the case to The Hague where the Special Tribunal for Lebanon is based.

"Israel" shelled southern Lebanon after a rocket -of unknown source- was fired in to its territory.
The Lebanese and Egyptian governments signed a deal to allow the supply of Egyptian electricity to Lebanon.
March

The United Nations Security Council welcomed the opening of a Special Tribunal for Lebanon to investigate the murder of former premier Rafiq Hariri.

The Lebanese government announced that it had successfully swapped $2.1 billion in Eurobonds to finance public debt, the Finance Ministry said.

Lebanon's parliament approved a draft law to lower the voting age from 21 to 18, the measure did not come into effect in time for the June elections.

Lebanon's president Michel Sleiman approved Ali Abdel-Karim Ali as the first Syrian Ambassador to Lebanon, five months after the two neighbours established diplomatic ties for the first time.

April 

Another spy network was allegedly uncovered in Lebanon. News reports said retired Lebanese Army Brigadier General Adib al-Alam has sent pictures of Lebanon and Syria to "Israel".

US Secretary of state Hillary Clinton made a surprise visit to Beirut where she met with President Michel Sleiman and announced that the US would not reach any agreement with Syria at the expense of Lebanon. Hizbullah's spokesman Ibrahim Mussawi said Clinton's visit could have negative impact on the country's pro-US factions.

The registration period for candidates for Lebanon's June elections closed with 702 candidates running for 128 seats.
May

"Israel" suspended discussions of a withdrawal from the Lebanese side of a divided border town until after the Lebanese opposition could gain more power and take control of the area, an official said.

US Vice President Joe Biden arrived in Lebanon two weeks before the elections to promise additional military aid.

Lebanon found "Israeli spies" operating in its territory and filed an official complaint to the UN.
June

A dramatic surge at air traffic at Beirut's Rafiq Hariri International Airport saw nearly 20,000 Lebanese expatriates arrive in 48 hours, according to Lebanon's National News Agency as more than 50,000 security personnel took to the streets to halt any violence during the country's 7 June elections. The March 14 coalition won 71 seats, maintaining their majority, while the opposition won 75 seats.

Nabih Berri was re-elected as speaker of the Lebanese Parliament for a fifth consecutive four-year term.

European Union Foreign Policy Chief Javier Solana met Hizbullah official Hussien Hajj Hassan, while the British ambassador met with Hizbullah parliament Member Mohammad Raad.

July

Parliamentary majority leader Saad Hariri was elected as Lebanon's Prime Minister-designate prompting celebratory gunfire in Beirut that injured several people and reportedly killed one.
Reports emerged that "Israel" may install special underwater systems along its sea border with Lebanon.
September

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon demanded "Israel" compensates Lebanon for damages caused by the 2006 bombing of the Jiyyeh power plant.
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad held bilateral talks with Saudi King Abdullah and met caretaker Lebanese Prime Minister Fouad Siniora following an opening of the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology.

October

A United Nations Development Program report showed that 20,000 educated Lebanese leave the country every year to work abroad.

The "Israeli" press reported five people killed in an explosion in south Lebanon and published satellite images of missiles allegedly being removed from the scene; Hizbullah said that one man was injured and provided contradictory footage of a rolled up metal shutter being carried from the scene.

Two "Israeli" spy devices were detonated remotely by "Israel" near the southern border, according to the UN. The Lebanese Army discovered a third device and destroyed it.
Three hundred Lebanese chefs set the world record for the largest plate of hummus and the larding serving of tabbouleh, wrestling the former distinction away from previous record holder, "Israel".

November

More than five months after the March 14 alliance won a majority in the parliamentary elections, Lebanon's rival politicians finally formed a national unity cabinet headed by Prime Minister Saad Hariri.

Hizbullah announced that Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah was elected for a sixth term as the party's Secretary General.

Hizbullah announced the second 32-page Manifesto since 1985, stating that a new political statement was needed to reflect a change in the region .The statement underlines the right of "Lebanon, its government, its people, its army and its resistance" to liberate all Lebanese territory.