Conventional Long Form Name of Country: Lebanese Republic Capital City: Beirut Type of Government: Parliamentary Republic Date of Independence: November 22nd, 1943 (from French) National Holiday: Independence Day (November 22nd) Chief of State: President Michel AWN (since October 31st, 2016) Head of Government: Prime Minister Saad al-HARIRI (since December 18th, 2016), Deputy Prime Minister Ghassan HASBANI (since December 18th, 2016) Suffrage: 21 years of age; required for all males, authorized for women with elementary education and excludes military personnel Executive Branch: - Cabinet: Cabinet chosen by the Prime Minister in consultation with the President and National Assembly - Elections/Appointments: President indirectly elected by the National Assembly with 2/3 majority vote in the first round and if needed absolute majority vote in a second round for a 6 year term 9 eligible for non-consecutive terms). Next election will be held in 2022; Prime Minister and Deputy Prime Minister appointed by the president in consultation with the National Assembly. Legislative Branch: Unicameral National Assembly or Majlis al-Nuwab in Arabic or Assemblee Nationale in French: 128 seats, members are directly elected in multi-seat constituencies by majority vote; members serve 4 year terms... National Assembly cannot conduct regular business until it elects a president when the position is vacant. Judicial Branch: - Highest Courts: Court of Cassation (organized into 8 chambers, each with a presiding judge and 2 associate judges); Constitutional Council (10 members) - Judge selection and term of office: Court of Cassation judges appointed by Supreme Judicial Council, a 10 member body headed by chief justice, and includes other judicial officials; Constitutional Council members appointed - 5 by the Council of Ministers and 5 by the parliament members (serve 5 years) Embassy in the U.S.: 2560 28th Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 Ambassador to the US: Charge d'Affaires Carla JAZZAR (since January 28th 2016) Embassy in Lebanon: Awkar, Lebanon (Awkar facing the Municipality) Ambassador to Lebanon: Elizabeth H. RICHARD (since May 2016) Location of Consulate: Detroit, New York, Los Angeles Representative in the United Nations: Nawaf Salam Flag Symbolism: Three horizontal bands consisting of red, white, and red with a green cedar tree centered in the white band; red band symbolizes blood shed for liberation, the white band denotes peace, the snow of the mountains, and purity; the green cedar tree is the symbol of Lebanon and represents eternity, steadiness, happiness, and prosperity. - National Anthem:www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/anthems/LE.mp3 National Symbols: - Cedar tree - National colors: red, white, green Description of International Disputes: Lacking a treaty or other documentation describing the boundary, portions of the Lebanon-Syria boundary are unclear with several sections in dispute; since 2000, Lebanon has claimed Shab'a Farms area in the Israeli occupied Golan Heights. Refugees: - 423,669 (Palestinian Refugees) - 7,234 (Iraq) - 1,033,513 (Syria 2016) Internally Displaced Persons: - 12,000 (2007 Lebanese security forces' destruction of Palestinian refugee camp) Stateless Persons: - Undetermined; tens of thousands of persons are stateless in Lebanon, including many Palestinian refugees and their descendants. Description of current human trafficking issues related to this country: Lebanon is a source and destination country for women and children subjected to forced labor and sex trafficking and a transit point. Women and girls from South and Southeast Asia and an increasing number from East and West Africa are recruited by agencies to work in domestic service but are subject to conditions of forced labor. Lebanese children are reportedly forced into street begging and commercial sexual exploitation, with small numbers of Lebanese girls sex trafficked in other Arab countries; Syrian refugees are vulnerable to forced labor and prostitution. - Tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List; Lebanon does not fully comply with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking; however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Description of Illicit drug trafficking/use: Cannabis cultivation dramatically reduced to 2,500 hectares in 2002 despite continued significant cannabis consumption; opium poppy cultivation minimal; small amounts of Latin American cocaine and Southwest Asian heroin transit country on way to European markets and for Middle Eastern consumption; money laundering of drug proceeds fuels concern that extremists are benefiting from drug trafficking.