Awali (river)

The Awali (/ ALA-LC: Nahr al-Awalī, ancient Bostrenus / Bostrenos) is a perennial river flowing in Southern Lebanon. In ancient times, it was known as the Asclepius River. The Awali, which is 48 kilometres (30 mi) long, originates from the Barouk mountain at an elevation of 1,492 metres (4, 895 ft) and from the Niha mountain. Two tributaries, the Barouk and Aaray rivers, supplement the Awali. The river is also called the Bisri river in its upper section. It flows along the western face of Mount Lebanon and empties into the Mediterranean. The Awali has a discharge rate of approximately 10.1625 m3/s (358.89 cu ft/s) and drains a watershed covering about 294 km2 (114 sq mi). The river flows into Joun Lake, part of the Bisri Dam project aimed at improving the region’s fresh water supply. A significant portion of funding for the Bisri Dam project, provided by the World Bank, was canceled in September 2020.

Flows through: Lebanon.

River data from Wikidata (CC0); lengths normalised to a common unit.