Displaced Beirut residents vow to return
Key Takeaways
- Families evacuated Beirut's southern suburbs after Israel announced new strikes on Hezbollah targets.
- Displaced residents say repeated evacuations will not force them to abandon their communities.
- The displacement comes amid renewed fighting and ongoing US-backed ceasefire negotiations.
Families leave southern suburbs after Israeli strike order but some say evacuation will not break their ties to the area
For some residents of Beirut's southern suburbs, Monday's evacuation was not seen as a final departure, but another forced pause in daily life.
A video from Viory showed long convoys of cars and motorcycles leaving the area after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced new strikes on the southern suburbs. Small trucks carrying personal belongings were also seen transporting families away.
Displaced resident Jaafar Wazni said he expected to return despite the repeated danger.
"We are leaving today, but we will return tomorrow. We may have to leave again tomorrow, and then return the day after. I will continue like this until the last day of my life," said Wazni.
He also rejected the idea that displacement amounted to defeat.
"Netanyahu and Trump should not think that by forcing us to leave the southern suburbs they have won," he added. "I will remain devoted to this community and this cause until my final day and my last breath."
Earlier on Monday, Netanyahu and Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz ordered the IDF to strike Hezbollah "terror targets" in the southern suburbs. Israel accused Hezbollah of violating the ceasefire and firing on northern Israel.
Hezbollah has reportedly expanded rocket and drone attacks on northern Israel over the past 24 hours, with strikes reaching as far as Haifa. Israel also said over the weekend that it had taken control of Beaufort Castle in southern Lebanon.
The latest movement of residents comes as a fragile ceasefire remains in place between Israel and Lebanon. US-mediated talks are still ongoing.
President Donald Trump announced a 10-day ceasefire between both sides on April 15, then extended it by three weeks on April 23 after direct talks between Lebanese and Israeli officials in Washington. The United States later announced another 45-day extension in mid May.
The Israeli military has also set up a "Yellow Line" in southern Lebanon to stop residents from returning to areas under its control. Israel has previously said it plans to establish a "security zone" inside Lebanon, stretching from the border to the Litani River.
This story is written and edited by the Global South World team, you can contact us here.
