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The Litani River (; transliterated
Arabic transliteration

Different approaches and methods for the romanization of Arabic language exist. They vary in the way that they address the inherent problems of rendering written and spoken Arabic in the Latin alphabet; they also use different symbols for Arabic phonemes that do not exist in English language or other European languages....
: Nahr al-Litani; classical name: Leontes from the Greek word "????te?" which means Lions) is an important waterway in southern Lebanon
Lebanon

Lebanon , officially the Republic of Lebanon or Lebanese Republic , is a country in Western Asia, on the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea....
. It rises west of Baalbek
Baalbek

Baalbek is a town in the Bekaa Valley of Lebanon, altitude 1,170 m , situated east of the Litani River. It is famous for its exquisitely detailed yet monumentally scaled temple ruins of the Roman Empire period, when Baalbek, known as Heliopolis was one of the largest sanctuaries in the Empire....
 in the fertile Beqaa Valley
Beqaa Valley

Beqaa is a fertile valley in east Lebanon. The Roman Empire considered the Beqaa Valley to be a major agricultural source, and today it remains Lebanon?s most important farming region....
 valley and empties in the Mediterranean Sea
Mediterranean Sea

The Mediterranean Sea is a sea or Ocean off the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Europe, on the south by Africa, and on the east by Asia....
 north of Tyre, one of Lebanon’s largest cities.






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Lebanese Rivers Litani
The Litani River (; transliterated
Arabic transliteration

Different approaches and methods for the romanization of Arabic language exist. They vary in the way that they address the inherent problems of rendering written and spoken Arabic in the Latin alphabet; they also use different symbols for Arabic phonemes that do not exist in English language or other European languages....
: Nahr al-Litani; classical name: Leontes from the Greek word "????te?" which means Lions) is an important waterway in southern Lebanon
Lebanon

Lebanon , officially the Republic of Lebanon or Lebanese Republic , is a country in Western Asia, on the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea....
. It rises west of Baalbek
Baalbek

Baalbek is a town in the Bekaa Valley of Lebanon, altitude 1,170 m , situated east of the Litani River. It is famous for its exquisitely detailed yet monumentally scaled temple ruins of the Roman Empire period, when Baalbek, known as Heliopolis was one of the largest sanctuaries in the Empire....
 in the fertile Beqaa Valley
Beqaa Valley

Beqaa is a fertile valley in east Lebanon. The Roman Empire considered the Beqaa Valley to be a major agricultural source, and today it remains Lebanon?s most important farming region....
 valley and empties in the Mediterranean Sea
Mediterranean Sea

The Mediterranean Sea is a sea or Ocean off the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Europe, on the south by Africa, and on the east by Asia....
 north of Tyre, one of Lebanon’s largest cities. Exceeding 140 km, it is the longest river
River

A river is a natural stream of water, usually freshwater, flowing toward an ocean, a lake, or another stream. In some cases a river flows into the ground or dries up completely before reaching another body of water....
 that originates and flows entirely within the borders of Lebanon. Most of its catchment area
Drainage basin

A drainage basin is an extent of land where water from rain or snow melt drains downhill into a body of water, such as a river, lake, reservoir, estuary, wetland, sea or ocean....
 was under Israeli
Israel

Israel officially the State of Israel , is a country in the Middle East located on the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea. It borders Lebanon in the north, Syria in the northeast, Jordan in the east, and Egypt on the southwest, and contains geographically diverse features within its relatively small area....
 control during 1978
Operation Litani

The 1978 South Lebanon conflict was an invasion of Lebanon up to the Litani River carried out by the Israel Defense Forces in 1978. It was a military success, as Palestine Liberation Organization forces were pushed north of the river....
 and from 1982 to 2000
1982-2000 South Lebanon conflict

-|During the South Lebanon conflict Hezbollah, was created as a result of Israel's invasion of Lebanon. Along with Hezbollah, the mainly leftist and secular groups in the Lebanese National Resistance Front, waged a guerrilla campaign against Israeli forces occupying Southern Lebanon as well as their allies in the South Lebanon Army, follo...
. It is a major water supply
Water supply

Water supply is the process of self-provision or provision by third parties in the water industry, commonly a public utility, of water resources of various qualities to different users....
 for Southern Lebanon
Southern Lebanon

Southern Lebanon is the geographical area of Lebanon comprising the South Governorate and the Nabatiye Governorate. These two entities were divided from the same province in the early 1990s....
.

Southern flow

After heading south parallel to the Syrian border, as the Litani nears northern Israel and the Golan Heights
Golan Heights

The Golan Heights is a contested, strategic plateau and mountainous region at the southern end of the Anti-Lebanon Mountains. The term Golan Heights actually has two separate meanings, one geography and one political:...
, the course of the river bends dramatically westward. Near this bend, the Litani comes within five km of the Hasbani River
Hasbani River

The Hasbani River , also known as Snir Stream within Israel, is a tributary of the Jordan river.The Hasbani River derives most of its discharge from two spring in Lebanon, the Wazzani and the Haqzbieh, the latter being a group of springs on the uppermost Hasbani....
 and four km from the Israeli border.

Qasimiyeh

The portion of the river flowing west is called the Qasimiyeh. The Qasmieh-Ras-el-Aïn region, irrigated from the river's lower reaches from main irrigation canals, to south and north, is one of the largest irrigated areas in the nation, consisting of 32.64 km², shared among 1257 irrigating farmers, who concentrate on citrus crops and bananas (Raad 2004). For the entire stretch of the Qasimiyeh as it flows into the Mediterranean Sea
Mediterranean Sea

The Mediterranean Sea is a sea or Ocean off the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Europe, on the south by Africa, and on the east by Asia....
, the Litani River remains nearly parallel to (and about north of) the Israeli-Lebanese border.

Litani River Dam

Qaraoun, an artificial lake of 11 square km, was created by the Litani River Dam, 60 meters high and 1,350 meters in length, which was completed in 1959. A spillway of 6503 meters carries the water to the underground station where generators produce a maximum of 185 megawatts of electricity, the largest hydroelectric project in Lebanon. The dam was intended eventually to provide irrigation for 310 km² of farmland in South Lebanon and 80 km² in the Beqaa Valley. The office is at the southern (dam) end of the lake on the left side. The lakeside has a hotel and a number of restaurants specializing in fresh trout.

The Litani River Authority

The Litani River Authority (LRA) was formed in 1954 to facilitate the integrated development of the Litani River Basin. Shortly after its formation, the LRA engaged in a massive hydroelectric development project that tapped the 850 meter head potential between Lake Qaraoun and the Mediterranean. This development has brought about major hydrological changes to the Litani River Basin, where the flows from its upper reaches above Lake Qaraoun, referred to as the Upper Litani Basin (ULB), are diverted through a system of tunnels, ponds and plants, to meet the Mediterranean several kilometers north of its original natural tailwater. These changes have resulted in the effective hydrological separation between the ULB and the Litani lower reaches.The advent of a protracted civil strife in the 1970s followed by a prolonged occupation in the 1980s that lasted into the 1990s, have plunged the country into disarray, freezing development and investment in infrastructure. The subsequent return to normal conditions has encouraged the LRA to initiate several major water diversion projects from the ULB worth hundreds of millions of US dollars.

See also

  • Battle of the Litani River
    Battle of the Litani River

    Battle of the Litani River - As part of the advance on Beirut in the Syria-Lebanon campaign of World War II, the Australian 7th Division, commanded by Major-General John Lavarack, first had to cross the Litani River....
  • Operation Litani
    Operation Litani

    The 1978 South Lebanon conflict was an invasion of Lebanon up to the Litani River carried out by the Israel Defense Forces in 1978. It was a military success, as Palestine Liberation Organization forces were pushed north of the river....