Bourj el-Barajneh entrance - Flickr - Al Jazeera English

Bourj el-Barajneh ( ar, برج البراجنة, lit=Tower of Towers) is a

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...

located in the southern

suburb A suburb (more broadly suburban area) is an area within a metropolitan area, which may include commercial and mixed-use, that is primarily a residential area. A suburb can exist either as part of a larger city/urban area or as a separate ...

s of

Beirut Beirut, french: Beyrouth is the capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, which makes it the third-largest city in the Levant region. The city is situated on a peninsula at the midpoint o ...

, in

Lebanon Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to the north and east and Israel to the south, while Cyprus li ...

. The municipality lies between

Beirut–Rafic Hariri International Airport Beirut–Rafic Hariri International Airport (Arabic: مطار رفيق الحريري الدولي بيروت, (previously known as Beirut International Airport) () is the only operational commercial airport in Lebanon, which is located in the ...

and the town of

Haret Hreik Haret Hreik ( ar, حارة حريك) is a mixed Shia and Maronite Christian municipality, in the Dahieh suburbs, south of Beirut, Lebanon. It is part of the Baabda District. Once an agricultural village, Haret Hreik lost its rural identity due to ...

. In the June 7, 2009 parliamentary election in Lebanon, Bourj al-Barajneh voted in the

Baabda Baabda ( ar, بعبدا) is the capital city of Baabda District as well as the capital of Mount Lebanon Governorate, western Lebanon. Baabda was the capital city of the autonomous Ottoman Mount Lebanon. Baabda is known for the Ottoman Castle (t ...

electoral division. Its local population is mainly

Lebanese Shia Muslims Lebanese Shia Muslims ( ar, المسلمون الشيعة اللبنانيين), historically known as ''matāwila'' ( ar, متاولة, plural of ''mutawālin'' ebanese pronounced as ''metouali'' refers to Lebanese people who are adherents ...

but due to its cheap housing and hospitable locals, it has acquired a sizable

Lebanese Sunni Muslims Lebanese Sunni Muslims ( ar, المسلمون السنة اللبنانيين) refers to Lebanese people who are adherents of the Sunni branch of Islam in Lebanon, which is one of the largest denomination in Lebanon tied with Lebanese people (Shi ...

and some Lebanese Maronite Christian because of its proximity to the town of

, as well as refugee populations like

Kurds ug:كۇردلار Kurds ( ku, کورد ,Kurd, italic=yes, rtl=yes) or Kurdish people are an Iranian ethnic group native to the mountainous region of Kurdistan in Western Asia, which spans southeastern Turkey, northwestern Iran, northern Ir ...

Iraqis Iraqis ( ar, العراقيون, ku, گه‌لی عیراق, gelê Iraqê) are people who originate from the country of Iraq. Iraq consists largely of most of ancient Mesopotamia, the native land of the indigenous Sumerian, Akkadian, Assyrian, ...

(including

Iraqi Assyrians Iraqi Assyrians ( syr, ܣܘܪ̈ܝܐ, ar, آشوريو العراق) are an ethnic and linguistic minority group, indigenous to Upper Mesopotamia. Assyrians in Iraq are those Assyrians still residing in the country of Iraq, and those in the As ...

) and other refugee populations like recently arrived Syrian refugees, who reside mainly in and around the local

Palestinian Palestinians ( ar, الفلسطينيون, ; he, פָלַסְטִינִים, ) or Palestinian people ( ar, الشعب الفلسطيني, label=none, ), also referred to as Palestinian Arabs ( ar, الفلسطينيين العرب, label=non ...

refugee camp A refugee camp is a temporary settlement built to receive refugees and people in refugee-like situations. Refugee camps usually accommodate displaced people who have fled their home country, but camps are also made for internally displaced peo ...

. The town was founded by

Arab The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Western Asia, ...

settlers. It is known as the Barajneh after a rebel who killed a slave of

Fakhr-al-Din II Fakhr al-Din ibn Qurqumaz Ma'n ( ar, فَخْر ٱلدِّين بِن قُرْقُمَاز مَعْن, Fakhr al-Dīn ibn Qurqumaz Maʿn; – March or April 1635), commonly known as Fakhr al-Din II or Fakhreddine II ( ar, فخر الدين ال ...

(1590–1635).

Refugee camp

The Bourj el-Barajneh Refugee camp is located at the edge of the municipality. In October 1948 families from

Tarshiha Ma'alot-Tarshiha ( he, מַעֲלוֹת-תַּרְשִׁיחָא; ar, معالوت ترشيحا, ''Maʻālūt Taršīḥā'') is a city in the North District in Israel, some east of Nahariya, about above sea level. The city was established in 1 ...

began arriving in Beirut shortly after the conquest by the

Israeli army The Israel Defense Forces (IDF; he, צְבָא הַהֲגָנָה לְיִשְׂרָאֵל , ), alternatively referred to by the Hebrew-language acronym (), is the national military of the State of Israel. It consists of three service branc ...

of their village in Western Galilee. The village had been the most prosperous in their district. Initially families lived in rented rooms around Bourj el Barajneh which at that time was a suburb on the fringe of the city. About half of the 3,000 villagers from Tarshiha arriving in Lebanon settled there in what became Bourj el-Barajneh refugee camp, established by the

League of Red Cross Societies The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) is a worldwide humanitarian aid organization that reaches 160 million people each year through its 192-member National Societies. It acts before, during and after disast ...

. Those villagers who were unable to reach Beirut in 1948 were rounded up and sent by train to

Allepo )), is an adjective which means "white-colored mixed with black". , motto = , image_map = , mapsize = , map_caption = , image_map1 = ...

were they became the largest group in al-Neirab Camp. Villagers from Tarshiha took on most of the leadership roles and remained the majority population of Bourj el-Barajneh camp for many years. In 1981 it was estimated 4-5,000 Tarshihans were living in the camp. The camp was laid

siege A siege is a military blockade of a city, or fortress, with the intent of conquering by attrition warfare, attrition, or a well-prepared assault. This derives from la, sedere, lit=to sit. Siege warfare is a form of constant, low-intensity con ...

to by the

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

i army and Lebanese

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

Phalangists The Kataeb Party ( ar, حزب الكتائب اللبنانية '), also known in English as the Phalanges, is a Christian political party in Lebanon. The party played a major role in the Lebanese Civil War (1975–1990). In decline in the la ...

during 1982, after

invaded

earlier that year. It (and other Palestinian Camps) was also laid siege to by

Amal militia The Lebanese Resistance Regiments ( ar, أفواج المقاومة اللبنانية , ''ʾAfwāj al-Muqāwama al-Lubnāniyya'', ʾAMAL), also designated Lebanese Resistance Battalions, Lebanese Resistance Detachments, Lebanese Resistance Leg ...

from February 1984 to February 1987 for the control of

West Beirut Beirut, french: Beyrouth is the capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, which makes it the third-largest city in the Levant region. The city is situated on a peninsula at the midpoint o ...

. According to

UNRWA The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) is a UN agency that supports the relief and human development of Palestinian refugees. UNRWA's mandate encompasses Palestinians displaced by the 1948 P ...

more than 20,000 Palestinian refugees live in the camp, though originally only 10,000 were planned to live in the one square kilometer site. After the crisis in Syria, many Syrian refugees moved to the camp, dramatically increasing its population. The camp conditions are horrible, and many deaths are recorded every year from electrocution and collapsing buildings.

November 2015 bombings

On 12 November 2015, the town of Bourj el-Barajneh was the scene of twin suicide bombings. At least 37 people were killed and more than 180 were injured. One man, father of two, Adel Termos, threw himself on the second bomber and saved countless lives at the cost of his own.

Notable people

Ahmad Jalloul Ahmad Adnan Jalloul ( ar, أحمد عدنان جلول, ; born 23 January 1992) is a Lebanese footballer who plays as a midfielder for club Safa. Career statistics International Honours Safa * Lebanese Premier League: 2011–12, 201 ...

(born 1992), Lebanese footballer * Ali Sabeh (born 1994), Lebanese footballer *

Maher Sabra Maher Mohammed Sabra ( ar, ماهر محمد صبرا; born 14 January 1992) is a Lebanese footballer who plays as a defender for club Nejmeh and the Lebanon national team. International career Sabra scored his first international goal f ...

(born 1992), Lebanese footballer

References

External links

Burj Barajneh
articles from

UNWRA The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) is a UN agency that supports the relief and human development of Palestinian refugees. UNRWA's mandate encompasses Palestinians displaced by the 1948 P ...

Burj el-Barajneh Camp: A Photo Essay
Alternative Media Centre of Québec (CMAQ), 7 November 2005. {{Palestinian refugee camps Lebanese Civil War Neighbourhoods of Beirut Populated places established in 1948 Foreign relations of Lebanon Palestinian refugee camps in Lebanon Shia Muslim communities in Lebanon Sunni Muslim communities in Lebanon Maronite Christian communities in Lebanon