BEIRUT (AFP) – Models in G-strings and lacy bras shivered from the cold as they strutted the catwalk at the foot of snow-covered slopes in Lebanon to promote the conservative Middle East’s largest ski resort. The fashion extravaganza aimed to lure visitors to the country’s six winter resorts whose fortunes have gone downhill since last year’s Israeli offensive, a political and economic crisis — and even inclement weather.
A sea of cameras focused on lingerie-clad models parading on the terrace of the five-star Mzaar Hotel nestling amid the snowy peaks of the Faraya-Mzaar resort northeast of Beirut.The models may have been young eastern Europeans familiar with cold weather, but the scene was purely Lebanese in all of its contrast.
Many Arab states are famous for their deserts, but the tiny mountain country dubbed the Switzerland of the Middle East sports groomed slopes for skiers and snowboarders, as well as scenic cross-country ski and snowshoe trails.
A Lebanese tourism slogan boasts that in springtime aficionados can ski from sun-washed peaks, enjoying breathtaking views of the Mediterranean in the morning — and then swim in the sea the same afternoon.Forgetting for a while the problems that plague the country, Lebanon’s happy few and a small number of tourists sipped drinks and enjoyed gourmet dining on the Mzaar terrace as they watched the daring lingerie show.
بداية لاكتشاف امور اخرى لها طابع امني وأدت الى جرائم كبيرة في البلد، مذكرا بأن هذا ما كنا نطالب به منذ زمن. وإذ لفت الى الى ان الاعلام تحدث منذ فترة عن مجيء 150 شخصا الى مخيم نهر البارد، شدد على وجوب اتخاذ الاجراءات الامنية المطلوبة قبل حصول عمليات التفجير.
