Divided over the conflict between the Party of God and the Jewish State, the movements and parties appear compact in the defense of territorial sovereignty. The humanitarian emergency and the escalation of displaced people continue to grow, but gestures of solidarity also multiply. A political analyst speaks of a “war of religion”, encouraged by the Israeli prime minister, which aims to divide society and the Lebanese mosaic.
Beirut () – “There are 10,452 square kilometers, not a single piece of land less.” This phrase written in a small superimposed window has appeared for some time permanently on the screen of the television channel of the OTV network, which is part of the Free Patriotic Movement (CPL) of the former Lebanese president (and last, since the headquarters has remained vacant for almost two years) Michel Aoun.
The phrase is addressed, first of all, to Israel. And it means that although the CPL – like many other personalities and parties – repudiates the open war that Hezbollah has declared against it since October 2023, to the detriment of all of Lebanon and in defiance of any official authority, at the same time it opposes and will oppose any Israeli intention to annex any part of Lebanese territory under the pretext of defending the security of the Jewish State. In this sense, the photograph of the Israeli flag flying in the border town of Maroun el-Ras, published yesterday by the Israeli army (IDF), did not reassure public opinion. On the contrary, many are happy about the resistance opposed to the advance of the Israeli army, which aims to free the Lebanese from the strong control of the Shiite party, but which in reality since September 23 has already left 2,000 dead and 10,000 injured in the country. , and thrown 1.2 million people onto the roads.
“Some Israeli officials have spoken of their intention to reoccupy Lebanon up to the Awali River, where the tomb of an Old Testament prophet is supposedly located,” a cautious political analyst who prefers to remain anonymous tells . “With Benjamin Netanyahu the war is taking an increasingly religious turn,” he continues. “The systematic destruction of some southern cities and the suburbs of Beirut – he continues – suggests that Israel wants to forcibly displace the Shiite population and reshape Lebanon’s demographics. Furthermore, MP Jamil Sayed believes that this war is not being fought against Hezbollah but against the Shiites. This is a pre-established plan.” At the same time, he concludes, “I believe that Israel is trying to lay the groundwork for a future sectarian conflict between the Shiite and Christian communities in Lebanon. In fact, the places of refuge for the displaced are about all the Christian regions”.
Evacuation orders
At the level of the humanitarian emergency, the evacuation orders of the Israeli army affecting dozens of Lebanese villages in the region south of the Awali River – which has been closed to the population – have deeply shocked and wounded the affected populations. Verbal assurances have been given that this eviction is temporary, but the Lebanese, who abandon their homes and property with wounded hearts, know that the Jewish State is a master in the art of disinformation. Needless to say, from a logistical point of view, the daily bombings and the displacement of such a large number of people are causing an unprecedented humanitarian crisis in the Cedar Country, which has been taken by surprise by its enormous magnitude.
Ghassan A, a porter at a media company in Akkar (northern Lebanon), is hosting 20 members of his wife’s family from southern Lebanon. “It’s really not a good time,” says the man, who has just become a father for the first time and is thinking about the approaching winter. International aid has begun to arrive, but it is going to official institutions and shelters that were hastily organized. Consequently, displaced people who have taken refuge in relatives’ homes or in private homes are denied this help due to lack of “visibility.” Furthermore, the flow of displaced people increases day by day, especially in Beirut, where almost half of the newly homeless live and where the low-cost housing complexes built by Hezbollah – and devoid of military interest – have been demolished for pure revenge.
But the trail of blood and suffering left by the Shiite militia does not stop there. In the capital, men from the Amal movement forcibly requisitioned Christian schools. Although examples of spontaneous reception compensate for this black mark. Indeed, “beyond political disagreements, this internal exodus offers the country many valuable opportunities for inclusion,” explains Father Elias Chataoui, Greek-Catholic priest director of a school in the capital. A 58-year-old housewife, who spoke with On condition of anonymity, she recounts the fear that gripped her neighborhood when a very religious family arrived at her building, whose women were covered in black veils from head to toe. Elijah, who only wanted to give his first name, says that in his Christian village near Beirut no one has wanted to rent to displaced people for fear of harboring a Hezbollah leader and becoming the target of an Israeli attack. Finally, people also fear that the displaced will settle permanently.
The red lines
In the border region, however, there are Christian cities and towns that continue to live safe from bombing. This is the case of the town of Rmeich, with a Christian majority, which yesterday received a convoy from the Solidarity association escorted by the army and placed under surveillance by Unifil. Rmeich has been kept out of the war thanks to the uninterrupted surveillance carried out over the last year by the city’s men to keep the militiamen away from its perimeter. Both sides also continue to respect the “red lines”, undoubtedly as a reciprocal deterrent. Beirut airport, for example, continues to operate, although the only airline operating flights is the national airline, MEA, just as Hezbollah has not caused any inconvenience to the Israeli Karish oil platform.
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