Lebanese cling to memories of Liberation Day as Israel reoccupies the south

Abeer was 19 when she heard the news on 25 May 2000 that southern Lebanon had been liberated after 18 years of Israeli occupation.

Within hours, her family had left Beirut and was heading south to their hometown Kfar Kila, a centuries-old village right on the border with Israel.

“It was a joy like I had never experienced before,” said Abeer, now an events coordinator for musicians.

Twenty-six years later, she has been displaced from the city of Nabatieh by Israel’s relentless bombardment of southern Lebanon. She now lives in a tent in Beirut’s Biel district with her two dogs.

Israel’s war on Lebanon has displaced more than one million people since 2 March. Hundreds of thousands remain unable to return home as Israeli troops continue to occupy dozens of villages, while 45 percent of towns in southern Lebanon have been damaged or destroyed.

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