Two large explosions have devastated Lebanon’s capital city, Beirut. Footage taken in the immediate aftermath shows windows blown out, streets littered with debris and cars upturned by the strength of the blasts. The impact was felt 200km away in Cyprus.
Beirut is the capital and largest city of Lebanon. No recent population census has been conducted, but 2007 estimates ranged from slightly more than 1 million to 2.2 million as part of Greater Beirut, which makes it the third-largest city in the Levant region and the fifteenth-largest in the Arab world.
Cyprus, officially called the Republic of Cyprus, is an island country in the Eastern Mediterranean.
The Republic of Cyprus is de facto partitioned into two main parts: the area under the effective control of the Republic, located in the south and west and comprising about 59% of the island’s area, and the north, administered by the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, covering about 36% of the island’s area. Another nearly 4% of the island’s area is covered by a UN buffer zone.
The Sovereign Base Areas of Akrotiri and Dhekelia, remain under the UK’s control according to the London and Zürich Agreements.
The Republic of Cyprus has been a member of the Commonwealth since 1961 and joined the European Union on 1 May 2004.
Lebanon, officially known as the Lebanese Republic, is a country in the Levant region of Western Asia, and the transcontinental region of the Middle East.
The official language, Arabic, is the most common language spoken by the citizens of Lebanon. Its capital is Beirut.
Lebanon was a founding member of the United Nations in 1945 and is a member of the Arab League (1945), the Non-Aligned Movement (1961), Organisation of the Islamic Cooperation (1969), and the Organisation internationale de la francophonie (1973).
