Rebuilding Beirut’s Cultural Heritage:
The Potentials and Pitfalls of International Support
Five years after the devastating explosion in 2020, Beirut is still dealing with the deep scars left on its cultural heritage. The UNESCO initiative called “LiBeirut” has been instrumental in helping to restore buildings and provide educational support. However, there's an important issue at play: while help from international organizations is crucial, it can sometimes overshadow the efforts and needs of local groups and communities. To truly heal and rebuild, it’s vital to have a collaborative approach that combines global support with the skills and involvement of local people. This way, instead of just seeing heritage as a reminder of loss, it can become a source of strength and unity for the community.
“To Beirut… a glory made of ashes,” sang Fairuz, turning the Lebanese capital into a symbol of both pain and resilience. Those words, describing a city shaped by the labor and emotions of its people yet scarred by deep wounds, have become part of Lebanon’s collective memory, and beyond. It is no surprise, then, that UNESCO chose the same title as the song, LiBeirut, for the program launched after the 2020 explosion, dedicated to the reconstruction of cultural heritage and the revival of urban life. In early September 2025, five years after the tragic event, Director-General Audrey Azoulay returned to Beirut to review the interventions already carried out and announce new initiatives. Her visit offered an opportunity to reflect on the role that culture and international support can play in rebuilding a city that, despite severe economic and social difficulties, continues to seek in its cultural identity the resources to look toward the future.
A Short Cultural History of Beirut
One of the cultural capitals of the Middle East, Beirut has been, and in part remains, a cultural crossroads for the Levant and the Arab world. This role took shape in the nineteenth century with the rise of the Nahda (the Arab “renaissance”) and was consolidated in the twentieth century through institutions, periodicals, and transnational publishing networks. As Jens Hanssen (2005) shows, the city’s transformation into a “provincial capital” and a major Mediterranean port fostered the emergence of scholastic neighborhoods such as Zokak el-Blat and the proliferation of reformist associations and schools, fueling an accelerated circulation of ideas, books, and newspapers that made Beirut a true laboratory of Arab-Ottoman modernity. Within this framework, a vibrant editorial and typographic ecosystem developed which, thanks to the activity of missionary schools, printing houses, and local publishers, turned Beirut into a hub of publishing and translation for the entire Mashreq. It is no coincidence that a famous Arab saying goes: “Cairo writes, Beirut publishes, and Baghdad reads” (Edwards 2019; Kassir 2010). In the second half of the twentieth century, Beirut became a magnet for writers and intellectuals from across the Arab world. The city established itself as the capital of literary journals, with magazines such as Shiʿr and Mawāqif that not only offered a relatively freer space for expression compared to other metropolises of the region but also pushed Arabic poetry toward new modernist forms (Behar 2018). At the same time, universities such as the American University of Beirut and Université Saint-Joseph nurtured bilingual and cosmopolitan knowledge circuits, producing intellectual work that transcended national borders and contributed to the shaping of a translocal Arab public (Kassir 2010; Hanssen 2005). The city’s visual and political dimension, characterized by posters, graphic design, newspapers, and editorial series, also played a structural role in Arab political culture, as demonstrated by Zeina Maasri’s studies (2009; 2020) on the visual cultures of war and the pan-Arab publishing networks that flourished in Beirut, where technical, aesthetic, and market innovations intertwined with struggles for decolonization and with the urban imagination. In conclusion, Beirut emerged as a true platform of exchange, and at times of conflict, between tradition and innovation. It was the place where the Nahda found infrastructures and a receptive audience, where Arab literary modernism experimented with new languages, and where publishing, journalism, and universities created a “cultural sphere” capable of projecting itself across the entire region.
A City on the Verge of Decline: Beirut Prior to the Explosion. On the eve of August 4, 2020, Beirut was already in a state of extreme fragility, with overlapping economic, social, and cultural crises. Since 2019 the country had entered a deep recession: GDP had collapsed from about 52 billion dollars in 2019 to 23 billion in 2021, with a decline in per capita income of over 36% (World Bank 2021). On the parallel market, the Lebanese pound had lost about 75% of its value, making it impossible for the population to access basic necessities (Reuters 2020). Added to this was the first sovereign default in Lebanon’s history, declared in March 2020, the result of decades of systemic corruption and political paralysis (Dagher and Altug 2023). Popular frustration had already erupted on October 17, 2019, with massive anti-government protests denouncing inequality, mismanagement of public resources, and infrastructural shortcomings. At the same time, the Covid-19 pandemic further exacerbated the situation: Lebanese hospitals, already struggling, were forced to operate at the limits of their capacity, heightening the perception of generalized collapse. The cultural sector, traditionally a driver of the city’s resilience, was not immune to these crises. Despite the vibrancy of neighborhoods such as Gemmayzeh and Mar Mikhael, hubs of artistic, musical, and artisanal life, cultural institutions survived almost exclusively thanks to private initiatives. The budget of the Ministry of Culture did not exceed 1% of the state budget, a clear sign of the sector’s chronic marginalization (Agenda Culturel 2020). This contemporary fragility was layered upon a history of earlier cultural traumas: the civil war (1975–1990) had driven many artists into exile and led to the closure of institutions, causing a severe setback in arts education; only in the 1990s did the city witness a cultural revival, especially in poetry, music, and cinema, which reflected the wounds of society.
After the Explosion: A City in Ruins. The explosion at the Port of Beirut not only devastated families, businesses, and the collective sense of security but also profoundly impacted the city’s historical and cultural heritage. The neighborhoods closest to the epicenter, including Gemmayzeh, Mar Mikhael, Achrafieh, and Karantina, suffered extensive destruction, even though they contained some of the highest concentrations of nineteenth and twentieth century buildings in the city. Many of these structures were reduced to ruins, with no immediate resources available for reconstruction. Gemmayzeh and Mar Mikhael, known for their Ottoman architecture and cultural vitality, lost numerous historic houses and buildings, undermining not only the material heritage but also the community fabric that had animated their streets. Achrafieh, with its villas and mansions from the late Ottoman period and the French Mandate, experienced severe destruction particularly in its northern section, damaging landmarks such as the Sursock Palace and Museum. Karantina, a working class and industrial district, was instead overwhelmed by the blast, which destroyed much of its historic fabric. These neighborhoods, however, represent far more than architectural value: for decades they have served as social and cultural reference points. Gemmayzeh and Mar Mikhael, with their cafés, artisan workshops, and nightlife venues, embodied a unique blend of heritage and contemporary creativity, attracting both Lebanese and international visitors. Achrafieh, more residential in character, was known for its cultural institutions and prestigious boutiques, while Karantina, after its industrial and working-class past, had in recent years been experiencing a cultural revival driven by new artistic initiatives. The 2020 explosion therefore erased not only built spaces but also social networks, daily practices, and collective identities, depriving Beirut of some of its most vital and symbolic places (Serhal 2025).
The Ambiguities of International Support
LiBeirut. In the aftermath, both international and local actors mobilized to assess damage and begin restoration efforts. UNESCO launched the “LiBeirut” initiative to coordinate funding and technical assistance. Local architects and heritage professionals also played a pivotal role, although efforts were hampered by Lebanon’s economic collapse and political paralysis. A key challenge remains ensuring that reconstruction does not result in gentrification or the erasure of cultural authenticity. In an interview published on April 30, 2025 (Saeed 2025) the Lebanese Culture Minister Ghassan Salame, explained that: “After the port explosion, we restored around 70 per cent of the heritage buildings. But it’s not enough and there are heritage buildings in other places still in ruins. I have a list of more than 60 historic houses in Tripoli that are on the verge of collapse. The Lebanese state currently lacks the capacity to handle this.”
UNESCO has taken a leading role in international reconstruction efforts, supporting the cultural and educational revival of Beirut through the LiBeirut initiative. This wide-ranging program has combined the protection of architectural heritage with support for the city’s cultural and educational institutions. In its initial interventions, the organization secured more than six hundred damaged historic buildings, including sites at imminent risk of collapse such as Villa Boustani and the Tobbagi House, preventing their destruction. A tangible symbol of this commitment was the restoration of the Sursock Museum, which reopened in May 2023 after complex structural consolidation works, the installation of solar panels, and technological upgrades, supported by the Italian government. At the same time, UNESCO made a decisive contribution to the education sector, completing the rehabilitation of around two hundred and eighty schools and universities affected by the explosion, enabling more than eighty-five thousand students to resume their studies. To revitalize the city’s cultural scene, the organization also promoted the TERDAD Festival, which brought together more than three thousand participants in a collective celebration of art, music, and resilience. On the technological front, in collaboration with ICONEM, the Lebanese Directorate General of Antiquities, and with financial support from Switzerland, UNESCO launched an innovative digital project: the creation of a 3D geo-referenced model of Beirut, designed to provide an accurate basis for future restoration work and to ensure the documented preservation of the city’s historic and architectural heritage[1].
Through these wide-ranging initiatives, the LiBeirut program has established itself as a pillar of hope and renewal, strengthening UNESCO’s commitment to protecting cultural heritage and promoting community resilience in the aftermath of tragedy. Five years after the port explosion, in September 2025, Audrey Azoulay returned to Beirut to take stock of the Organization’s main achievements and to announce new programs. On this occasion, the Director-General also laid the foundation stone for the rehabilitation of the Mar Mikhael railway station. Once a strategic hub connecting three continents, this iconic space of more than 10,000 square meters, now in ruins, will be transformed by UNESCO and UN-Habitat into a cultural and community venue for the residents of the capital. Thanks to a 3.5-million-dollar contribution from Italy, which had already supported the restoration of the renowned Sursock Museum, the new cultural space is set to open its doors in 2027.
Another symbol of Beirut’s cultural landscape, the Grand Theatre, closed since 1990 and further damaged in 2020, will also be at the center of an ambitious restoration project. The first phase, supported by the United Arab Emirates with a one-million-dollar contribution, foresees the stabilization of the building and the launch of a cultural project developed in collaboration with the Municipality, the Ministry of Culture, and civil society. These interventions highlight the crucial role of the international community in the city’s reconstruction. Beyond Italy and the Emirates, other countries have also expressed their support: Japan, for example, on the first anniversary of the explosion, issued a message of solidarity, drawing a parallel with Hiroshima and Nagasaki to underline the shared experience of catastrophic loss[2]. In March 2021, in collaboration with UN-Habitat, Japan allocated a contribution of 2.16 million dollars for the restoration of the Rmeil Cluster, an intervention that made it possible to rehabilitate eleven historic buildings, public spaces, and community infrastructure. At the same time, the project offered vocational training programs to more than one hundred residents, contributing not only to the preservation of architectural heritage but also to the strengthening of local skills and social resilience[3]. Taken together, these initiatives show how international cooperation has supported not only material reconstruction but also social and cultural recovery, highlighting the importance of safeguarding heritage in times of crisis (Bou Serhal 2025).
Between Heritage and Humanitarian Needs: The Dilemmas of Post-Conflict Reconstruction. Beirut’s recent history clearly shows how reconstruction processes can be both essential and problematic. Already in the 1990s, after the civil war, with the project led by SOLIDERE the rebuilding of the historic center resulted in systematic demolitions that erased entire archaeological and historical sectors of the city, in what Naccache (1998, 140) defined as a true “memoricide,” with profound effects on collective identity (Fricke 2005; Sandes 2017). This experience left an indelible mark on the city’s memory, demonstrating how reconstruction can take the form of cultural violence when carried out without the involvement of local communities. The Minister of Culture, Ghassan Salome, in an appeal to the younger generations, reminded them: “In rebuilding your identity, don’t forget your past or you will lose your future.”
On the eve of the 2020 explosion, Beirut appeared as a culturally vibrant city but at the same time economically and socially exhausted: a place where art and creativity functioned as tools of collective survival, while economic crisis, political mistrust, and social decay undermined its stability on a daily basis (Time 2020; New Yorker 2020). In this context, international intervention in reconstruction seemed indispensable: the devastation of historic neighborhoods and cultural institutions required financial resources and technical expertise that the Lebanese state, in default and paralyzed, was unable to provide. Salame said these challenges stem not only from the financial turmoil and political paralysis that have embroiled Lebanon in recent years, but also from a broader lack of international support for such efforts. “Countries in distress, like Lebanon, can no longer depend on aid the way they used to,” he said. “We have to be realistic. The golden era of international organizations and generous foreign aid is behind us. We must rely more on ourselves, on youth training in heritage conservation, on nurturing local expertise, and on knowledge-sharing, especially among Arab countries.”
From this interview with UAE Minister of State Noura Al Kaabi it also emerged that a model of the kind of regional collaboration needed, Al Kaabi said, is the Revive the Spirit of Mosul initiative launched by UNESCO in partnership with the UAE government, which was youth led and had an impact that extended far beyond the rebuilt structure. The reconstruction of cultural sites undoubtedly constitutes a crucial element in post-conflict recovery processes, but it should not overshadow the more urgent priorities of local communities, which concern above all humanitarian assistance, development, and peace. While residents recognize the importance of safeguarding heritage, they often express frustration when international initiatives privilege the revival of iconic monuments at the expense of essential services. A telling example is the Revive the Spirit of Mosul initiative: although aimed at reconstructing cultural identity through the restoration of symbolic places such as the al-Nouri Mosque, it has been criticized for paying little attention to the immediate needs of the population. The experiences of Mosul and Beirut show how local communities demand a more balanced approach, one that combines the recovery of major monuments with the valorization of everyday religious and cultural spaces, while at the same time encouraging community reappropriation of restored sites and the transfer of decision-making power to those directly affected (Kiwan 2023). Only a participatory model can prevent cultural reconstruction from turning into an externally imposed intervention that risks deepening the fractures of collective memory and instead make it a process capable of generating social cohesion and shared renewal.
Rethinking the Reconstruction of Beirut’s Cultural Heritage
The reconstruction of Beirut’s cultural heritage cannot take place without the support of the international community, which represents both an extraordinary opportunity and a potential source of ambiguity. Organizations such as UNESCO, the European Union, the World Bank, and numerous NGOs have already demonstrated their capacity to mobilize funds, technical expertise, and global networks to safeguard historic sites and neighborhoods (UNESCO 2020; World Bank 2013). In the absence of adequate local resources, such contributions are vital to launch urgent interventions, introduce innovative tools such as digital heritage mapping (UCL 2021), and ensure protection standards in line with international best practices. However, the extensive reliance on external actors risks marginalizing national institutions and local communities, reducing them to mere beneficiaries rather than protagonists of reconstruction (Bechir 2018). Externally driven projects can easily lead to fragmentation, duplication of efforts, or priorities that serve donors’ interests more than those of the population. It is within this tension between potential and ambiguity that the central challenge lies: international support is indispensable, but it must be framed as a complementary, not a substitutive, lever. To ensure a positive impact, international partners must commit to stable and long-term funding models, avoiding the short-term logic of project cycles (Legacy Landscapes Fund 2021) and instead adopting broader and forward-looking paradigms, such as the Historic Urban Landscape (HUL), which interprets neighborhoods as dynamic ecosystems composed of buildings, public spaces, social practices, and community networks (UNESCO 2011). They must also promote transparent, coordinated processes focused on strengthening the capacities of Lebanese institutions rather than replacing them, and create genuine spaces for participation that also involve the diaspora in setting priorities and determining the modalities of intervention (Saeed 2025). When well calibrated, international support can be transformed from an emergency tool into a strategic long-term investment, capable of uniting heritage preservation, economic recovery, and social cohesion. When poorly managed, however, it risks reproducing dynamics of dependency and decision-making dispossession that undermine the sustainability of reconstruction. Alongside this, equally strong national commitment is required. The reconstruction of cultural heritage must be conceived as an integral part of the country’s social, economic, and political recovery. The legal framework must be updated and expanded: current laws protect only buildings constructed before the seventeenth century, excluding much of the nineteenth and twentieth century architecture that constitutes Beirut’s urban identity (UNESCO 2020). It is therefore essential to introduce more inclusive legislation, accompanied by binding protection measures, tax incentives for private restoration, and transparent monitoring mechanisms to counteract real estate speculation and arbitrary demolitions (World Bank 2013). Equally important is the strengthening of institutional capacities: the Directorate General of Antiquities and local authorities require greater resources, technical training, and cooperation with universities, research centers, and specialized NGOs. The experience of other countries affected by conflict, such as Bosnia and Herzegovina or Syria, shows that capacity-building programs and institutional partnerships with foreign museums and cultural organizations can accelerate professionalization and reduce dependency on external consultants (Raymond 2008). Only through a balanced synergy between international support, national political will, and community participation can a future emerge in which Beirut’s heritage becomes not merely a fragile treasure to be preserved, but a resource for a more resilient, inclusive, and cohesive society.
Notes
[1] UNESCO Press Release: https://www.unesco.org/en/articles/li-beirut-taking-stock-unesco-led-initiatives-preserve-heritage-and-culture-one-year-after-beirut
https://www.unesco.org/en/articles/terdad-youth-unesco-innovates-education-through-arts
[2] Embassy of Japan in Lebanon, “Message by Ambassador Okubo in commemoration of the victims of the Beirut Port Explosion,” August 3, 2021, https://www.lb.emb-japan.go.jp/itpr_ja/11_000001_00160.html
[3] UN Press Release: UN-Habitat and the Embassy of Japan complete the rehabilitation of residential heritage buildings heavily damaged by the Beirut port explosion | United Nations in Lebanon
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