PHOENICIA

This is song by George Wassouf. It's touching esp. for those frustrated ones…

They said patience is good…
It's enough, my lifetime goes by, and I still in my place.
Everything goes will not back again
Those whom I gave them my life forgot me in seconds
And those I sacrificed for them didn't sacrificed for me.

Those whom I gave them my life forgot me in seconds
And those I sacrificed for them didn't sacrificed for me.
I found no one is good, and no one cures my wound

Archaeological discoveries: Two mural paintings portraying Heaven and Hell were discovered at al-Marqab Citadel in Tartous, Director-General of Ruins and Museums Bassam Jamous said to Syrian al-Thawra Daily on Saturday.

Jamous indicated that the paintings reveal the sophisticated capabilities of the Syrian artists and highlight social and religious rituals.

He added the analysis of the two paintings would lead to important results that give an insight into the social and ritualistic connotations.

Jamous said that the national mission at Tal al-Mosherfa unearthed a number of tombs dating back to the Middle Bronze era, around 700 B.C., as well as dozens of ancient pieces like earthenware containers, stressing that decoding them would expand knowledge of that era.

al-Marqab Citadel located only 6 Km from Banias, this magnificent castle sits on the side of an extinct volcano, over watching the sea. Called Qalaat Al Marqab in Arabic it means Castle of the watchtower. This is where Richard the Lionheart landed at the beginning of the third crusade.

Founded in 1062 by the Muslim Arabs it was then taken over by the Byzantines then somehow passed into the hands of the principality of Antioch at an unknown date. It was then sold to the Hospitallers in 1186 and was rebuilt to the latest Frankish military standards of architecture and used by the crusaders until it fell into the hands of Sultan Qalaun in 1285, after only 5 weeks of battle.

The most important aspects and features of this fortress, are the keep and the chapel. The round keep is a massive tower of strength, and at a diameter of nearly 29 meters and walls of 5 meters thick it is quite typical of 12th century Hospitallers work. From
the top magnificent views of the mountains and the coast can be seen, not to mention the beautiful view of the Mediterranean.

As for the chapel, it is entered by two entrances one from the north and the other from the west (up some steps). This chapel, also built in the 12th century is a magnificent example of Gothic art, with traces of Romanesque. Although this chapel is relatively small the fact that there are no aisles makes it quite spacious, this is typical of Gothic art. There are three pointed arches, one decorated in black and white, one undecorated but supported with Corinthian capitalized columns. The rounded apse is two steps higher than the rest of the chapel, and there are two small rooms behind it. The chapel is beautiful in its simplicity.

Angelina Jolie met with Iraqi refugees in Syria, Then she visited Old Damascus and its markets. It was Friday so markets were nearly closed! Anyway here you are some photos

DAMASCUS, Syria — Angelina Jolie met with Iraqi refugees in Syria on Friday and urged the world not to forget the plight of those among them who cannot return home because of the trauma they suffered and the country's instability.

Jolie visited Syria in her role as a goodwill ambassador for the United Nations' refugee agency, UNHCR, and was accompanied by her partner, Brad Pitt, the agency said.

Tens of thousands of Iraqi refugees have returned home from Syria and other neighboring countries over the past year, but many more are unable or unwilling to return to a country still shaken by violence.

"Most Iraqi refugees cannot return to Iraq in view of the severe trauma they experienced there, the uncertainty linked to the coming Iraqi elections, the security issues and the lack of basic services," a UNHCR statement quoted Jolie as saying. "They will, therefore, be in need of continued support from the international community."

She was referring to Iraqi parliamentary elections scheduled for Jan. 16.

It was the Academy Award-winning actress' second visit to Syria in two years. On Friday, she visited Damascus' poorest suburbs where she was welcomed by two Iraqi families.

She also discussed the Iraqi refugee crisis with Syrian President Bashar Assad and his wife, Asma, UNHCR said.

UNHCR estimates that more than 4.2 million Iraqis have left their homes since the beginning of the conflict in 2003. To date, 215,000 Iraqi refugees are registered with UNHCR in Syria, the majority of whom are dependent on food and other material support.

The actress has worked with UNHCR since early 2001. In 2007, a foundation set up by Jolie and Pitt donated $1 million to help those affected by the conflict in Sudan's Darfur region and neighboring Chad.

Jolie has visited Iraq three times. Her last trip was in July, when she visited a settlement for displaced Iraqis in northwest Baghdad.

The number of people killed in mudslides caused by heavy rains in southern Italy will rise to 50, Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has warned.

Rescuers are still searching for some 40 people still missing after the country's worst mudslides for 10 years.

Twenty-one deaths and 80 injuries have been confirmed since torrential rains caused violent mudslides around the Sicilian city of Messina early Friday.

The mudslides swept away cars, toppled buildings and blocked transport links.

"In the end there'll be at least 50 dead," Mr Berlusconi told reporters in the early hours of Saturday.

He reportedly called off a visit to the region as he did not want to get in the way of rescue efforts.

Some 250 mm (10 inches) of rain fell on north-eastern Sicily in just a few hours before dawn on Friday, sparking widespread floods.

In places people did not have time to scramble out of their cars before they were struck by a wall of mud that swamped entire streets.

Many Italian newspapers on Saturday questioned why houses had been built so close to river-beds and the seafront in an area known to be at risk of landslides.

Analysts suggest deforestation and over-development had weakened the soil on the hills surrounding Messina, increasing the likelihood of mudslides in heavy rainfall.

A massive mudslide near Naples in 1998 killed some 150 people.