Refugees return to southern Lebanon
Thousands of Lebanese displaced by war head south after truce. Drivers honk their horns, hundreds of cars jam narrow road leading south from Sidon. 'Hizbullah kept its promise to bring us home,' they say
Lebanese civilians streamed back to their homes Monday after a UN-brokered truce went into effect to end five weeks of fighting between Israel and Hizbullah that killed more than 1,250 people and wounded thousands.
Thousands of Lebanese displaced by the war headed south after the truce - some to check damage to their houses, others hoping to return home for good. Drivers honked their horns, and hundreds of cars jammed a narrow road leading south from Sidon.
Many began arriving also at the Dahiya quarter in southern Beirut, an area considered a Hibzullah stronghold, and discovered great damage following the Israel Air Force's strikes in the area.
In several sites among the wreckage, they began hanging Lebanese flags and support signs. An al-Jazeera correspondent reported of high morale among those returning, but warned the refugees of duds left by Israel containing toxic substances such as uranium, which may hurt them.
"The will of life is larger than the tons of explosives Israel dropped on Dahiya, the south, the Bekaa Valley and the other areas in Lebanon. The families of this area are helping to examine their property and their houses. They will return to the area proud and erect after the resistance brought upon this great victory for them," said Lebanese Parliament Member Hassan Fadlala, a Hizbullah member.
Refugees return to southern Lebanon (Photo: AP)
In the meantime, it was reported that IAF aircraft dropped leaflets over Beirut, according to which Israel would retaliate if it is attacked by Hizbullah.
Simultaneously, the Lebanese army distributed an announcement to residents returning to their homes not to approach suspicious objects, military equipment and duds, due to the many duds scattered in residence areas and following an incident in which a child was killed and three people were injured Monday morning. The Lebanese army instructed the residents to turn to the security organizations if they find military equipment and not to touch it themselves.
"I came today to celebrate this victory and tell the Jews – even if you destroy our houses we will win. I came out of loyalty and support for Hizbullah and Nasrallah," said a resident of the village of Lif in southern Lebanon.
"I came to the Dahiya to see the barbarism of the Israeli enemy. The Dahiya looks like Stalingrad which was destroyed by Hitler," said another resident, who was surrounded with people raising Nasrallah pictures and chanting support for him.
Another resident tried to join the celebration, but broke into tears while talking.
"I came to see the barbaric aggressiveness and the destroyed house," he said before breaking into tears.
'Thank you, Nasrallah'
"I'm going to make sure my house is okay," Said Adel Abbas, from a village near Tyre. "If Israel sticks to its word and continues to stick to the ceasefire, I'll take my family back home later today."
Many drivers honked to mark their happiness and the car passengers marked the V sign with their fingers for victory.
"From the first day Hizbullah told us that it would return us to our homes and now it is keeping its promise," said one of the passengers. "Thank you, Nasrallah."
Diplomats expect the truce to be fragile – tens of thousands of Israeli troops remain in southern Lebanon, and they are not expected to withdraw fully until an international peacekeeping force arrives alongside Lebanese troops.
Security sources in south Lebanon said Israeli air strikes and artillery fire continued until just a few minutes before the truce took effect at 0500 GMT. Then there was silence.
Israel said some soldiers began pulling out of Lebanon after the truce began. "There are forces going out but there are enough forces that are staying," amilitary spokesman said.
There were no reports of any Hizbullah rockets being fired at Israel after the truce took hold.
News agencies contributed to the report
