By Nohad Topalian | 2024-10-09

BEIRUT -- On the eve of October 7, 2023, Fatima and Mahmoud Sweid were preparing to harvest the olive crop in the southern Lebanon village of Dhaira.

But before they could begin, Hizbullah launched an attack on Israel from their village, forcing the couple, along with other residents of the south, Bekaa Valley and other Hizbullah-dominated areas, into displacement and homelessness.

By mid-September, Hizbullah had dragged Lebanon into the middle of a war that has so far killed 1,928 people in Lebanon and wounded 9,290, according to the government's Disaster Management Unit.

Around 127 children have been killed -- 100 in the last few days alone -- according to the Ministry of Health, and 890 children have been wounded.

There are more than 1,200,000 internally displaced persons (IDPs), 160,020 of whom are registered at about 874 shelters, the Disaster Management Unit said October 4.

Destruction and displacement

While well-off families rented apartments, thousands of families are sleeping in the streets, gardens, squares and beaches of cities like Sidon and Tripoli.

The Beirut seafront and downtown areas have been transformed into open-air housing for thousands of families.

"We are paying the price of the false promises that have brought us nothing but displacement, destruction and humiliation," said Samar Faqih, who was displaced from the south and now sleeps on the ground in Beirut's Martyrs' Square.

In Achrafieh, families displaced from the south settled in rented houses, and do not hide their resentment towards Hizbullah.

"Hizbullah destroyed our home and our country," Rabab Atwi told Al-Fassel as she finished her shopping at a supermarket. "What did it gain from its war other than the destruction of our homes and villages?"

"It is continuing to destroy Lebanon."

Civilians pay the price

"Hizbullah has held the Shia -- and Lebanon -- hostage since its inception, for the sake of Iran, which is abandoning it today," Atwi's friend, Ranim Khalifa, told Al-Fassel.

"We are paying the price with our displacement and thousands of families are facing homelessness and the loss of their dignity."

Before October 7, 2023, Lebanon was already mired in an economic crisis, which many blame on Hizbullah, and 80% of the population is now living below the poverty line.

Prime Minister Najib Mikati has made an urgent appeal for $426 million to provide humanitarian and relief aid.

The World Bank has allocated $250 million for emergency aid to the displaced.

The United States on October 4 announced it is providing nearly $157 million to address urgent humanitarian needs in Lebanon and the region.

The European Union has pledged humanitarian aid worth 40 million euros ($44 million).