Israeli attacks

“Largest refugee movement in Lebanon’s history”

Displaced people from the suburbs of Beirut(Bild: APA/AFP/JOSEPH EID)

The ongoing Israeli airstrikes on targets in Lebanon have triggered the largest refugee movement in the country's history, according to head of government Najib Mikati. According to the UN, around 100,000 people have already fled to Syria.

According to the UNHCR, 60 percent of those who have fled to Syria are Syrians who had once sought refuge from the civil war in their own country in Lebanon, while 40 percent are Lebanese. According to the UN organization, the number of refugees at the north-western border crossing towards Homs in Syria doubled following the Israeli bombing raids in Beirut on Friday, which killed the leader of the Hezbollah militia, Hassan Nasrallah, among others. 

Air strikes on targets in Lebanon continue.(Bild: AFP/Rabih DAHER)

Held out for days at the border with Syria
Some people had been waiting at the border crossing for days because Syria actually requires every person entering the country to exchange at least 100 US dollars into the local currency, the pound. Many do not have this money. The rule has now been lifted for a week. According to the UNHCR, this has now eased the situation.

For the past week, Israel has been carrying out massive airstrikes against targets of the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militia in Lebanon, which is allied with the radical Islamic Palestinian organization Hamas. Hezbollah fire on Israel from Lebanon has also increased in recent days.

Will Israeli tanks soon be rolling in Lebanon too?(Bild: AFP)

Ground offensive: Is Israel now falling into a trap?
There can only be a diplomatic solution to the current conflict with Israel: "There is no choice for us but diplomacy," explained Grandi. But ceasefire negotiations are currently being wiped off the table by the Israeli government. There is growing concern that Israel's army could launch a ground offensive in the south of the neighboring country. Following the killing of Nasrallah, Israel's army chief Herzi Halevi hinted at this possibility on Saturday. He had approved plans for the northern command of the armed forces. "Challenging days lie ahead," he said. The Israeli army is "on high alert, both defensively and offensively, on all fronts". It is prepared for what comes next.

Experts speak of a possible "trap" that Israel could fall into. Despite the death of Nasrallah and almost the entire top leadership, Hezbollah still has thousands of experienced fighters and an extensive arsenal of weapons with which it could inflict considerable losses on Israel's troops in its southern Lebanese strongholds on prepared terrain, wrote the Wall Street Journal. Hezbollah cannot wait for Israel to invade southern Lebanon, the newspaper quoted a former Israeli MP and current employee of the Atlantic Council think tank.