CathInfo.com

Here's a sad statistic about Lebanon (where Fairuz is from).

The country's last census was in 1932, when Christians outnumbered Muslims [in the 70's, Christians still outnumbered Muslims]. Now the population is estimated to be 60 percent to 70 percent Muslim, including Shiites and Sunni as well as the smaller Muslim sects known as the Alawite and the Druze. The remaining 30 percent to 40 percent of the population is made up of various Christian sects, including Catholic, Protestant and Orthodox [Christians before consisted mainly of the Maronites and some Orthodox who were Armenian who migrated to Lebanon. Now the Protestant missionaries have come into Lebanon and converted many Catholics into their sect].

Here's an interesting story of what brought my father's family from Lebanon to the US:

 In the 70's, the Arab world tried to 'give' Lebanon (a Christian country to this day, as per its constitution decreeing a Christian only (for now) can be president) to the Islamic Palestinians after the Zionist captured Israel.

The war broke out in Lebanon between Muslim's and Christians. The Muslims were vicious monsters. My father's own cousin was chopped up into pieces by them and his father had to go and pick up the pieces and put them in a bag for proper burial. He himself (my dad) was shot through the side of his stomach at 8 years old (thank God not fatally of course). Anyways, they were extremely vicious.

My Grandfather owned a taxi company and mechanics shop in Beirut. He had both Muslims and Christians working for him. In Beirut, the muslim soldiers were ordered to go to every Christian home and kill the head (male) of each family. If a boy was in his teens he would be killed as well. My uncle was sent to the US where a sister of his was already here.

My father and aunts recount this story: One day, a group of masked Muslim soldiers showed up to my grandfather's home to do their deed and wipe him off the face of the earth- and probably rape my grandmother and aunts as they were accustomed to doing.  What happened was that the leader of the band told the other soldiers to say put outside, and he came in and pulled my grandfather apart from the rest of the family. My father and sisters peeked through the window to see what fate would bring their dad. The masked Muslim leader took off his mask and behold- it was a former employee of my grandfather! He told my grandfather that he would spare him this once, but could not hold off any longer and that he would HAVE to depart Beirut ASAP. The next day my grandfather had his flight to France. He arrived in the us and sent for the rest of the family soon afterwards.

Funny thing is is that I always hear my father, aunts and uncles say how they thought they'd only be here for a year or two... till everything settled down.