The Myconian Deos Hotel, designed by Galal Mahmoud and his firm. (Credit: GM)
The Beirut Memorial Park awarded by Build Magazine Architecture
Carlos Moubarak's ambitious project has been awarded the prize for Best Civil Design Project in the Middle East and for Best Cultural Architecture and Design Practice.
This double recognition is presented by Build Magazine Architecture in 2025, an internationally renowned British publication dedicated to promoting excellence in the building world and its environment.
Both awards highlight "an approach that includes societal, urban, and architectural considerations." Following the double explosion that struck Beirut port on Aug. 4, 2020 — leaving over 200 dead, thousands injured or homeless, and destroying entire neighborhoods rich in architectural and urban heritage — Moubarak developed the plans for a memorial "offering the dead, their families, and the entire Lebanese people a place for remembrance and reflection, one that does justice to the magnitude and significance of the event."
Conceived as a public park where architecture, landscape and infrastructure merge, the memorial rises from the ruins of the site on a vast 11-hectare plot. A black concrete monument measuring 120 meters in diameter is its centerpiece.
It stands at the epicenter of the explosion, that is, above the crater created by the blast. This is "the ring of remembrance based on the figure of the circle, the absolute symbol of unity. It is the architectural crystallization of the explosion."
The Myconian Deos by GM, among the most beautiful hotels
The experts at Architectural Digest Middle East, a regional edition of the prestigious international magazine, have compiled a list of the "World's Best Hotels 2025."
Among the 31 hotels across 18 countries, from Mallorca to Marrakech, the review spotlights the Myconian Deos designed by GM Architects, the international multidisciplinary design agency founded and led by Galal Mahmoud and his partners Randa Chahine, Anwar Hajj, and Élie Waked.
Perched on a hill in Mykonos, with breathtaking views of the old port and the Cyclades, the Myconian Deos Hotel combines traditional Greek architectural elements with modern luxury.
Its white walls, private pools, and green or pergola-shaded spaces stretch over a 12,000-square-meter estate, extending like a Cycladic village.
"The hotel was designed to recreate a Cycladic village as seen in the old port of Mykonos and neighboring islands, but with a more contemporary minimalist style," Mahmoud explained to Architectural Digest.
"It's a very vernacular style, but at the same time, not a copy-paste. The building materials we use today are totally different from those used in the past, which gives it this unique character. So we decided to extract the language and features that would create the same atmosphere and experience, and contextualize and adapt them to current sensibilities."
The magazine writes, "carefully finished local touches and custom furniture contribute to a strong sense of belonging." History quietly blends into the hotel's contemporary fabric.
Saïd Bitar's exceptional contribution to USJ
The Beirut School of Engineering (ESIB-USJ) popped the champagne to celebrate the 50th graduating class of young architects and engineers.
During the event held on Sept. 1, the dean of the faculty, Wassim Raphaël, read a message from University Saint Joseph Rector, Father Salim Daccache, who praised "the excellence of Professor Saïd Bitar, a great architect and engineer. We recognize the university’s good fortune in writing its history thanks to the exceptional contribution of Bitar, whose pivotal role as teacher and director has given special meaning to the 150th anniversary of USJ, making it more memorable and precious."
It should be noted that in 2016, in recognition of forty years of teaching at ESIB, he received the university’s centennial commemorative medal.
After studying at the Saint-Luc Institute in Brussels, Belgium, he founded the agency "Saïd Bitar architecture," engineering, and urban planning in 1967, known since 2011 as 4b Architects.
His career, spanning five decades, totals four million square meters built in Lebanon and one million abroad. Notable projects in Lebanon include the Rizk Tower, the rehabilitation of the Foch-Allenby district, the Beirut Sports City (with Michel Chakar and Laceco), the renovation of the Notre-Dame de Harissa basilica, and the new campanile of Saint George Cathedral in downtown Beirut. In 2005, he was named Officer of the Order of Leopold (the highest honor in the Kingdom of Belgium).
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