In southern Lebanon, residents flee Israeli army bombings

Tens of thousands of Lebanese are fleeing southern Lebanon to seek shelter from the bombings. Franceinfo has collected testimonies from several of them.

A day of terror and anguish in Lebanon. As Israel launched an intensive bombing campaign on southern Lebanon and the Bekaa Valley, these strikes, which left hundreds dead and wounded, spared almost no village in southern Lebanon. Even the southern suburbs of Beirut were hit.

As a result, tens of thousands of frightened Lebanese have set off to flee. A huge traffic jam quickly formed along the coastal highway leading north on Monday, September 23. A truck is carrying about twenty Syrian refugees, who are desperate.There were bombings! We’re going back to Syria… I don’t know where you want us to go!” exclaims one of them.

Tens of thousands of southerners like Hassan, originally from Srifa, are fleeing north. Men, women and children are crammed into his car: “We’ve been driving in traffic for 6 hours and we’re far from there. We’re halfway there. The kids can’t take it anymore, they’re sleeping in the back. All we’re looking for is a safe haven. We want to go to Beirut, but we don’t know anyone there..”

Despite the chaos, solidarity is being organized. Residents of coastal villages are distributing water. Schools, mosques and churches are opening their doors to the displaced. In a shooting school on the border with the Hebrew state, many families have crowded together: “We suffered a lot today. The bombing was incessant.” Amira has just arrived to leave her house in a hurry: “I really thought it was the last day of my life. Now our fear is that we will become the new Gaza.”

These displaced people are caught in the spiral of war and do not know when they will return home. Khadija is from Naqoura, near the border, which is being pounded by the Israeli air force: “Why all this? This is our land, this is our home village. Let Netanyahu leave us alone. He is killing our youth, our children, our women. It is our legitimate right to defend ourselves.”

However, no one dares to criticize Hezbollah, except discreetly and out of sight. Like Moustapha, who regrets that the Shiite movement has gone to war against Israel: “They made a big mistake. Nobody thought it would have such consequences. Today we are witnessing a massacre.” These displaced people now fear an Israeli ground invasion which could cause a new population displacement.