Churches in southern Lebanon open doors to those displaced by Israeli airstrikes

Christian churches in Lebanon have opened their doors to those seeking refuge from the devastating impact of ongoing military action as the standoff between Hezbollah and Israel escalates.

Israeli airstrikes targeting the Islamist militia Hezbollah, designated a terrorist group by the UK government and which is based in Lebanon, are “affecting everyone”, says Marielle Boutros, project coordinator at Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) in Lebanon.

“All south Lebanon is being targeted,” Boutros says, adding that this is resulting in many residents seeking shelter in churches. “These are not purely Shia or Hezbollah areas, and we have a lot of Christian families living there.”

Historically the southern area of Lebanon has been populated by a large Christian population.

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ACN is working with local Church partners to look at ways of helping the thousands who have become displaced since the bombardment began on 23 September.

In addition to swathes of the local population fleeing the impacted area, at least 558 people were killed in the 23 September airstrikes, including 50 children, according to Firass Abiad, Lebanon’s Health Minister.

Boutros explains: “Some have lost their houses, and they are moving now from the south to other places in Beirut, Mount Lebanon and the north, to find safety.”

The attacks have also taken place in parts of Beirut, where Hezbollah has most of its support, Boutros says.

“Beirut is not a big city, so if a part of Beirut is targeted, all Beirut will feel it, and all day people hear the sound of military aircraft or drones.”

She highlights that the escalating conflict may lead to yet another wave of Christians leaving Lebanon – adding to an exodus which has been ongoing for decades – further diminishing the Christian presence and influence in the region.

Boutros says ACN has supported more than 300 projects in the country, including providing emergency aid since last October and the attack by Hamas against Israel, which also impacted southern Lebanon as the larger conflict affecting the region spilled over the border Lebanon shares with Israel.

Since last October, the situation at the shared border has been described as “low-level” conflict but now it has escalated enormously with fears of a full-scale war breaking out between Israel and Hezbollah.

Boutros notes local schools that the charity has also been supporting “are closed, but this is temporary, and they are now moving to online teaching”.

She added: “People are now living in church halls, so they will need food, sanitary products, mattresses, blankets. And if it continues, we will need heating for winter, though of course, we hope it will not last that long.”

RELATED: Christian villages in south Lebanon empty amid daily exchanges of rocket fire

Photo: A priest leads Mass at a church in the village of Qlayaa, on the southern border with Israel, amid ongoing cross-border tensions as fighting continues between Israel and Hamas militants in Gaza, 21 December 2023. (Photo by AFP via Getty Images.)

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