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The untold story of how Congress is helping save a Lebanese cultural jewel

A US senator created the American Committee for Tyre 35 years ago, and now former Hill staffers are bringing it back to life.

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A symposium dedicated to Tyre Day was hosted at the Library of Congress on June 3, 2015, in Washington, Aug. 28, 2015. — FACEBOOK/AIST Tyre Foundation- UNESCO Partners

For a brief moment this spring, Washington became the de facto capital of the long-lost Phoenician civilization.

A who’s who of DC power-players — current and former lawmakers, ambassadors and former administration officials — gathered at the Library of Congress on June 3 along with some 50 guests from around the world to celebrate Tyre Day. They were there to breathe new life into efforts to save the historic Lebanese port city — and to commemorate the late Sen. Claiborne Pell, who helped birth the US movement 35 years ago.

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