[LCM Articles] [Leb4ever] Lebanon Ranks as 8th Least Peaceful Country in the World

[Loai Naamani]

Lebanon is one of the least peaceful countries in the world, Norway is the
safest and Iraq is the worst, according to a study released Wednesday. 

The Global Peace Index (http://www.visionofhumanity.com/rankings/),
published a week before a Group of Eight (G8) summit in Germany, rates 121
countries from Algeria to Zimbabwe on factors including levels of violence,
organized crime and military expenditure.

According to the study, Iraq is the least peaceful and Lebanon is 8th from
the bottom and ranked 114th.

The United States fell to rank 96 while Russia occupied 118, or the fifth
bottom-up.

The index had Japan near the top, while Israel was worst than trouble-ridden
Lebanon.

"This is a wake-up call for leaders around the globe," said Steve Killelea,
who commissioned the study from the Economist Intelligence Unit, which is
linked to the news weekly The Economist.

"Countries like Japan and Germany can give hope and optimism to countries
further down the Index that there can be light at the end of what may seem
at the moment like a very dark tunnel," he added.

Overall the study found that small, stable countries which are part of
regional blocs such as the 27-nation European Union are most likely to be
more peaceful. Income and education are crucial in promoting peace, it said.

"I believe there is a link between the peacefulness and the wealth of
nations and therefore business has a key role to play in peace," said
Killelea.

(AFP-Naharnet)


Here are the top 10 and bottom 10 countries in the index: 

TOP 10 
1. Norway 
2. New Zealand 
3. Denmark 
4. Ireland 
5. Japan 
6. Finland 
7. Sweden 
8. Canada 
9. Portugal 
10. Austria 

BOTTOM 10
112. Angola
113. Ivory Coast
114. Lebanon
115. Pakistan
116. Colombia
117. Nigeria
118. Russia
119. Israel
120. Sudan
121. Iraq 


 



Beirut, 30 May 07, 12:53

 

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