Scottish marathon runners are being called on to pound the streets of Beirut for peace.
May El-Khalil, the Lebanese campaigner who founded the Middle East's first peace marathon 10 years ago, has invited athletes to join the run and "show solidarity".
In Edinburgh yesterday, El-Khalil said the impact of the run would be stronger if there were runners coming from Scotland to carry the message of peace, whether for Lebanon or the world.
The idea of a community running side-by-side for peace is potent in a country which suffered many years of civil war and sectarianism – and which borders on the current meltdown in Syria.
On the day of the Beirut women's 10K this year, missiles hit a Shi'ite area of the city, raising fears that violence in Syria was about to spill over into the country but the women still ran. When El-Khalil organised the first marathon 10 years ago, the idea of such an event was unheard of in Beirut. The project came out of her own trauma, recovering from a serious road accident.
Her injuries were so severe she can no longer herself run, but the marathon she organises has gathered force and now draws more than 30,000 runners.
In recent years, she has been invited by the governments of Syria, Iraq and Egypt to stage similar marathons.
She said: "Peace making is not a sprint. It is a marathon."
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