CDR Boss Says Reconstruction Can Start as Soon as War Ends--Daily Star,Leb

[Gloria]

I don't see any US contractors in there yet.....From the new WMW up now at http://www.zianet.com, Tomorrow at Buzzflash.com


2//The Daily Star, Lebanon Friday, August 04, 2006

http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=1&ca...



CDR BOSS SAYS RECONSTRUCTION CAN START AS SOON AS WAR ENDS

Some funds are already on the way to finance recovery

By Osama Habib, Daily Star staff

BEIRUT: The vast destruction of infrastructure and properties caused by the Israeli strikes on Lebanon will be countered by a massive building effort immediately following the cessation of hostilities, a top development official said Thursday. The initial cost of the destruction was estimated by Fadel Shalak, chairman of the Council for Development and Reconstruction (CDR), at more than $2.5 billion.



"This war has ruined everything the previous governments built over the past few years," Shalak told The Daily Star. "But what is certain is that the rebuilding of these areas will kick off immediately once a real cease-fire is declared."



Shalak said that funding for reconstruction would not be a problem for Lebanon because some Arab states such as Saudi Arabia and Kuwait have already pledged over a $1 billion toward the purpose.



Shalak said Lebanese contractors will be very busy in the next three years and these projects will help revive their sector.




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But experts say that Beirut's southern suburbs, home for 500,000 mostly Shiite residents, bore the brunt of the Israeli attacks, leaving most parts of this area in total ruin.

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One contractor wondered who would finance the rebuilding of the suburbs and whether Hizbullah's leader, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, would raise money for this purpose.


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