European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - February 3, 1978, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Doily Magazine Post bombardment boutique shopping in East new life in battered Beirut How Park sajm9e sorting out belongings on return to Home in moslem Section of divided capital by mahv1ne Howe new York times the heart of Beirut still broken More than one year after the end of the devastating civil but there is new life pulsing on All lovers of old where christians and mos lems used to mix will find much of it the place Des the crowded the hotels Bod the Center for night the Elnel Al were virtually destroyed in 19 months of ferocious the cites free spirit has been badly the which was one of the freest in die has been choked by Arab peacekeeping soldiers in effect an occupation consisting mainly of syrian checkpoints in and outside the Bui there is a new or rather two with the City Center now in the capital has been split into a largely moslem West Beirut and a Christian East the two rarely pfc in West Beirut is practically at least in the and cast is enjoying a tote Tan Lar rents on both have increased spectacularly the nod land u wiling for Premium there is no Legal separation of Peoples in but Here is a de Facto christians by and Large fuel More comfortable in the Christian areas and moslem re reluctant to leave their West Beirut was the location of us main restau foreign government entertainment and it remains almost intact but is much More East an the other was essentially a residential District with both working class Quarter and palatial Homes and survived the War but is now striving to rival West Beirut in availability of goods and some people Are alarmed by what is clearly a partition of the capital and fear it will undermine National others consider it Only natural after the bitter in which about lives Are believed to have been mostly those of the fighting pitted lebanese supported by Israel and in the end by against lebanese moslem and palestinian Arab guerrilla organizations from the refugee backed by left Wing arabs and the soviet both East and West Beirut have developed since the West Beirut is now shopkeepers whose property was destroyed downtown have opened new shops on the popular Mazuran poorer tradesmen have set up stalls along the businessmen who want to move to the ele Gant Flam a area now must pay or More just to get an this is 12 times the prewar tit f Ashla Naue beaches of Saint Simon and Riviera have Burn occupied by Coral with i polynesian restaurant and it still a meeting place for Beirut society but it is now mostly just Dawn the a streamlined tourist Complex with 141 two pools and an underwater will be opened next nearly completed when the War broke u served As a Hospital for the moslem in the drive for residents of East Beirut have opened new Art galleries and a at the same line Many West Beirut Banks and february 1978 noticing the reluctance of their Christian customers to Cross the dividing have opened Branch offices in East Hamas expensive leather goods be has established a Branch in the Center of East the Aziz and Melki supermarkets in the Christian suburbs Are clearly striving to replace West Beirut which has been closed since the i still have to go to Hamra to get even though Charles Jourdan has opened a Branch in East an Eastside socialite remarked adding that she to wild find everything else on the Christian even the american University of Beirut and the Leba Nese which Are both on the West opened sections in the East during the War and have kept then open one of the most controversial issues today it what to do with the lebanese the Modem deputies centrally want to restore the old Parlia ment Bouse at the place de Etoile in old Beirut but us christians want to move it to their there is one thing that still Doest exist on the Eastern Side fifty percent of the hotel Industry was de but no one seems to be in a hurry to invest Large sums in new since the tourists have not re Lumen in great easterners Are not at All sure they will be Able to attract the tourists they want arabs from prosperous Oil producing countries to their segregated Side of the Many christians Are not very Happy about the soul East Beirut is like living in a a Christian artist complained the other Day As she visited Neutral armenian friends in West the stars and stripes Page 13