Nowruz celebrations fell on a stormy Saturday this year so only a few in the Kurdish community came out:
Later that evening, a group of activists from the Civil Campaign to Save Dalieh held a Nowruz bonfire in solidarity with the community, who stand to loose this gathering space due to a major Rem Koolhaas project planned for the site. (You can read more about the project and the politicians behind it here)
But today, with the sun shining, crowds came out to celebrate in Dalieh, despite the barbed wire fences and concrete barricades that have been put up by the property developers.
The concrete blocks that developers have placed here leave little room for a stage seen in previous years’ celebrations, but people still improvised in the few open spaces that remain:
For now, Dalieh is the only surviving natural coastal outcrop in Beirut, walled in by luxury towers:
But if developers have their way–and build a sprawling seafront project here– this space may no longer be available the public, as the free picnic and recreational grounds it has been for generations:
You can read more about the Civil Campaign to Protect Dalieh and keep up with their upcoming activities on their Facebook page.
