Status Complete Location Sawfar, Mount Lebanon, Country Lebanon Opened 1998 Height 80 m Renovated August 2008 | Type Bridge Town or city Mdeirej Completed 1998 Elevation 1,320 m Cost 44 million USD | |
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Similar Platinum Tower, Beiteddine Palace, Chabrouh Dam, Crowne Plaza Beirut Hot, Grand Serail | ||
The Mudeirej Bridge or Mdairej Bridge is a notable bridge in Lebanon. It was completed in 1998 as the tallest and highest bridge in Lebanon and the Middle East. The bridge was built as part of Rafik Hariri's vision of rebuilding and developing Lebanon and its infrastructure. The bridge served as a connecting route for the Beirut-Damascus Highway aiming to improve the main road that links Syria's capital city Damascus, to Lebanon and its capital city Beirut.
Destruction
On the 12th of July during the 2006 Lebanon-Israel conflict the Israeli Air force bombed the Mdeirej Bridge causing partial damage to its base and pillars, and critical damage to the road it uplifted. The destruction of the bridge which was a symbol of Lebanese architectural pride was considered by many in Lebanon to be unjustified because in their opinion, there was no strategic value to the bridge in Israeli's conflict with Hezbollah. According to one observer of the bombing, “The bombing of this bridge, which is the pride of the Lebanese people, clearly proves that Israel is committed to destroying the infrastructure of the whole country. This bridge is not used by Hezbollah since it lies in a mountain resort area of Mount Lebanon, far away from the south of Lebanon."
In 2008, USAID announced that it would be involved in an extensive reconstruction of the bridge, due to Lebanon's political victory which put Israel and the United States in an awkward position in regards to the destruction and reconstruction of the bridge.