About this episode
At the start of the Lebanese civil war in 1975, Beirut’s luxury hotel district was turned into a battlefield, with rival groups of gunmen holed up in some of the most expensive accommodation in the Middle East. We hear from two former employees of the Holiday Inn about what came to be known as the Battle of the Hotels. Also in today's programme, the first radar, the invention of the ventilator, and how women in Turkey overhauled decades-old laws on rape and sexual assault.
Photo: The ruins of the Holiday Inn. (Credit: Getty Images)
Get every episode summarized
Each time The History Hour publishes, we email you a written briefing from the transcript — the topics, who appeared, and any specific claims, with the ad reads skipped.
Email me new episodesFree for 3 shows. No card needed.
No transcript yet
This episode has not been transcribed. Request it and it moves to the front of the queue.
More episodes
More from The History Hour
The world’s first perfume archive and Dutch car-free Sundays in the global oil c...
The History Hour
Cleaning up Chernobyl and Canada’s war in the woods
The History Hour
Winning the Booker Prize and discovering a lost fairytale
The History Hour
Hitler’s teeth and the Leaning Tower of Pisa
The History Hour