BEIRUT, Sept. 13 (Xinhua) -- At the entrance of the Hasbaya town, on a hill overlooking the Hasbani River, rises one of the largest and oldest archaeological monuments in south Lebanon -- the Chehabi Castle.
Dating back to the 11th century, the 40-meter-high castle features slender columns and arched windows, and is listed by the Lebanese Ministry of Tourism as an archaeological site.
However, the landmark, now scarred with cracked and fissured walls, eroded surfaces, collapsed stairs and stone structures, is on the brink of collapse and extinction after nearly a millennium of occupation and war, combined with a lack of maintenance.
Adla Chehab, who conducted a valuable study on the castle's history, told Xinhua, "In the days of the Mamluks (1250-1517), Prince Munqith Al-Chehabi expelled the Crusaders during a battle that took place in the Al-Khan market, west of Hasbaya, after which the castle became the property of the Chehabists," adding that one of the castle's wings hosts a free exhibition of hundreds of ancient crafts from the days of the Chehabi rule (from early 18th to mid-19th centuries) in this region.
She also disclosed the estimated rehabilitation cost of the place, a staggering number of 12 million U.S. dollars.
Eighty-year-old Munzer Chehab, one of the 43 members of the Chehab family who still live in the castle, told Xinhua that they spare no efforts at their expense to protect the historical monument from collapsing.
"During the reign of former President Fouad Chehab, the Directorate of Antiquities in 1962 decided to classify the castle as a tourist site free of charge, however, unfortunately, the castle did not receive the attention of the authorities concerned," Munzer lamented, expressing his worries about potentially disastrous collapse with the onset of winter.
55-year-old Adel Chehab said he appealed to the authorities to conduct a quick inspection of the building to identify its actual danger and take quick steps to save it and protect its occupants.
Lebanese Culture Minister Mohammad Wissam Mortada told Xinhua that the ministry will send specialized engineers to identify the damage to this landmark and prepare for its restoration accordingly, adding that the ministry aims to transform the Chehabi Castle into a cultural tourism edifice in the coming few months.
Meanwhile, Joe Kreidi, UNESCO's national program officer for culture in Beirut, said UNESCO is working, in cooperation with the Lebanese Ministry of Culture, on a law to protect heritage buildings all over the country. ■
