Lebanese Return to Beirut’s Southern Suburbs with Bags Packed for Quick Exit

A resident films his home in a building hit by airstrikes in Beirut’s southern suburbs (AP)
A resident films his home in a building hit by airstrikes in Beirut’s southern suburbs (AP)
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Lebanese Return to Beirut’s Southern Suburbs with Bags Packed for Quick Exit

A resident films his home in a building hit by airstrikes in Beirut’s southern suburbs (AP)
A resident films his home in a building hit by airstrikes in Beirut’s southern suburbs (AP)

Nour Hammoud and her family live in constant fear as Israel issues warnings to residents of Beirut’s southern suburbs, after deciding to return to their home in Ghobeiry, an area frequently hit by Israeli airstrikes.

“We’d rather die in our home than suffer humiliation outside of it,” says the young woman in her twenties.

She describes the difficult decision faced by her family and others who, despite the risks, have returned to their homes.

Many, including her family, rely on the alerts from Israeli army spokesman Avichay Adraee on X (formerly Twitter), where targeted buildings are announced shortly before they are attacked. Families often leave after each warning, only to return when it is safe.

For some, the return is driven by financial hardship, as they can’t afford rent or find safer places.

For the Hammouds, however, the decision was prompted by increasing harassment, especially toward her younger brothers, in the area they had fled to in Mount Lebanon.

“Security checks were becoming more intense, with authorities scrutinizing my brothers’ identities whenever they left or entered,” she explained.

This increased pressure follows attacks on Hezbollah-linked individuals in areas outside the southern suburbs, previously considered safe. This has caused fear and hostility in host communities, impacting displaced families.

After a month in a rented house in Mount Lebanon, the Hammoud family returned to the southern suburb, which has been calm in recent days despite being bombed five days earlier.

Speaking by phone amid the sound of Israeli drones overhead, Hammoud said: “We came back ten days ago, cleaned our house, bought what we could from the market to avoid going out too much, and packed small bags with essentials. We wait for the warnings to leave again.”

The beach has become their refuge.

“After each warning, we go to the beach, wait for the bombing to stop, then return to our home, hoping it’s still standing,” she added.

Asked about living in constant fear in a neighborhood almost destroyed by repeated strikes, Hammoud replied: “We’re not afraid. It’s better to die in our homes than to live in shame. Whatever is meant for us will happen... We either win, which we believe in, or we become martyrs.”

As the war continues, estimates from Mohammad Shamseddine at Information International suggest that 240 buildings have been destroyed in the southern suburbs, with 360 more partially damaged, affecting around 12,000 housing units in neighborhoods like Haret Hreik, Lailaki, Jamous, and Ghobeiry.

While the Hammoud family can afford rent, many others are unable to find safe places to stay.

Um Mohammad, another displaced woman, says she and her family were asked to leave a school in Beirut where they had taken refuge. With schools reopening, they were told to vacate by Thursday.

Although the private school director in Ain el-Remmaneh who hosted them did all he could to help, Um Mohammad told Asharq Al-Awsat: “The decision has been made, and we have to leave.”

“Our problem is that we have nowhere else to go. If the situation doesn’t improve, my sick husband, son, and I will return to Chiyah in the southern suburbs, just like many other families,” she added.



Kremlin Says It Wants Syria to Swiftly Restore Order after Opposition Attack

Fighters take over the district of Khan al-Assal following fierce fighting between Syrian government forces and opposition forces along with their Turkish-backed allies in the northern Syrian Aleppo province, on November 29, 2024. (Photo by Aaref WATAD / AFP)
Fighters take over the district of Khan al-Assal following fierce fighting between Syrian government forces and opposition forces along with their Turkish-backed allies in the northern Syrian Aleppo province, on November 29, 2024. (Photo by Aaref WATAD / AFP)
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Kremlin Says It Wants Syria to Swiftly Restore Order after Opposition Attack

Fighters take over the district of Khan al-Assal following fierce fighting between Syrian government forces and opposition forces along with their Turkish-backed allies in the northern Syrian Aleppo province, on November 29, 2024. (Photo by Aaref WATAD / AFP)
Fighters take over the district of Khan al-Assal following fierce fighting between Syrian government forces and opposition forces along with their Turkish-backed allies in the northern Syrian Aleppo province, on November 29, 2024. (Photo by Aaref WATAD / AFP)

The Kremlin said on Friday it wanted the Syrian government to restore constitutional order in the Aleppo region as soon as possible after an insurgent offensive there that captured territory for the first time in years.
Russia, a staunch ally of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, intervened militarily on Assad's side against insurgents in 2015 in its biggest foray in the Middle East since the Soviet Union's collapse, and maintains an airbase and naval facility in Syria.
Opposition led Hayat Tahrir al-Sham group launched an incursion on Wednesday into a dozen towns and villages in the northwestern province of Aleppo, which is controlled by Assad's forces.
It was the first such territorial advance since March 2020 when Russia and Türkiye, which supports the opposition, agreed to a ceasefire that led to the halting of military action in Syria's last major opposition stronghold in the northwest.
Russian and Syrian warplanes bombed an opposition-held area near the border with Türkiye on Thursday to try to push back the insurgents, Syrian army and opposition sources said.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Moscow regarded the attack as a violation of Syria's sovereignty and wanted the authorities to act fast to regain control.
"As for the situation around Aleppo, it is an attack on Syrian sovereignty and we are in favor of the Syrian authorities bringing order to the area and restoring constitutional order as soon as possible," said Peskov.
Asked about unconfirmed Russian Telegram reports that Assad had flown into Moscow for talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Peskov said he had "nothing to say" on the matter.