People post photos to protest Lebanon beach closure

If you've ever enjoyed a day at the beach in Batroun, it was probably in the beautiful coastal village of Kfaraabida, 2 kilometers south of the city.

But the stretch of rocky shores that hosts hundreds Lebanese people every week might soon become usurped by yet another illegal beach resort.

Activists are sounding alarm bells after cabinet moved to grant large parts of Kfaraabida’s coast to an unnamed private company--all for $30,000 per year, which in Lebanese real estate terms is a pittance. Elie Fares from A Separate State of Mind  points out that the sum is "less money than a private beach makes per week."

The Kfaraabida project is set to cover 37,000 square meters of the coastal area.  To add insult to injury, the company has also acquired 4,000 square meters of the sea itself. 

Lebanon's legal code under article 25 states that “the sea’s shore until the farthest area reached by waves during winter, as well as sand and rock shores belong to the public.”

"The law is clear in stating what can and what cannot be done ... it seems some ministers in Cabinet are attempting to bend the rules by using certain decrees," writes Nadine Mazloum of Newsroom Nomad

The Lebanese Broadcasting Company citing government sources reports that an unnamed cabinet minister received a generous bribe to bring the draft proposal (the proposal was presented to government in 2007) to fruition. 

Below is a video found by Mazloum, showing a sizeable yachting resort complete with overwater bungalows and a bar off the shore The video puts graphics of the project alongside natural rock formations that the resort hopes to be built on and around.

The video was taken down shortly after it was posted, but not before Mazloum downloaded the video and showed it to a concerned public on Newsroom Nomad's Facebook page.

The project is will not come into effect until the Directorate of General Urban Planning authorizes it, and this is still pending. 

Meanwhile, activists and beachgoers--many of whom rarely take an interest in civil society movements--are up in arms. They have taken to social media to pressure authorities and to show the public just how much is at stake, and in the clearest terms possible. They're doing it through pictures they snapped over the years, putting the beauty and biodiversity of the area on full display. The pictures also show us the value of public spaces, such as Kfaraabida, to friendships, family and community.