Israelis Operatives Burn UN
Warehouse
All the U.N. had stored there was
blankets, food, and medical supplies
Fire Chief Confirms It Was
Arson
A Family Desperate For Blankets
And Food
Villagers Live In The Rubble
Leaky roofs, no windows, and
winter is coming.
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These People Are Desperate
The Jews have a naval blockade so very few supplies get through. The
older Lebanese live in the outlying villages, and they are panicked.
Typical Article In Arab World
Lebanese villagers desperate for housing
By Jocelyne Zablit
Winter Is Coming
Rasmiyeh Moukdad has enough tuna, chick peas and other canned
foods, even blankets, to last her through the winter, but what she
really wants is a roof over her head.
Like thousands of villagers in southern
Lebanon who endured fierce shelling during the month-long war
between Israel and Hezbollah, Moukdad is desperate for a glimmer of
hope ahead of the fast-approaching winter months.
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Her home in the mountain village of Frun
about 75km southeast of Beirut is but a shell today, with
barely a wall left standing and mounds of rubble, twisted steel and
personal belongings strewn about
Missiles have punched huge holes in the
walls, and the windows and doors are blown out. She and her
ailing parents, both in their 80s, spend their
days in the only room spared from the shelling.
There is no running water or
electricity.
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The same picture of desolate destruction is
repeated through the tiny village where 95 of the 160 homes
have been destroyed and the rest have been
burned out or heavily damaged by the shelling.
Of the 2,000 residents, most of them
farmers, the few that have returned spend
their days in this apocalyptic landscape waiting for someone to show
up and tell them when they can start piecing their lives together
again.
Most spend their nights with friends or
family in nearby villages less damaged by the war.
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Others eat their dinners by candlelight and
sleep in what remains of their homes or in tents donated by aid
organisations.
"The sardines and the tuna are welcome but what
we really need with the bitter winter coming up are prefabricated
homes," lamented Mohammed Hamdoun, a farmer whose home was destroyed.
"People have been waiting for help for nearly a
month and they are going to become like time-bombs if something concrete
doesn’t happen soon." The same complaint is heard in other
war-devastated villages in the region.
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Bombs everywhere
Adding to the despair is the fact that the tobacco, olive and
vegetable fields that are the source of villagers’ income are
littered with unexploded cluster bombs and mines left behind by
Israel.
"Agriculture is our livelihood and we can’t even work the fields
any more because we risk being blown up,"
complained Abu Qasim, 37, a resident of Zawtar al-Gharbiyeh, where
70% of the 300 homes were destroyed or damaged by the war
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Qasim, whose home did not suffer heavy
damage, said he has defused some 2,500 bombs found in the
village and surrounding fields since the war
ended August 14 and displays wounds on his right leg and left thigh
to prove it.
Many homes and surrounding areas are sealed off with red tape
indicating the danger that lurks within.
Though there is little life in these remote
villages and no clear sign of reconstruction, teams from regional
municipalities can be seen walking about assessing the damage and
spraying the front of each home or a stone with red lettering or a
number identifying the owner.UN and Red Cross workers also visit to
provide water and medical assistance.
But that is of little comfort to residents
whose patience is running thin with each passing day.
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"I don’t want any more handouts or
medicines, I just want someone to start rebuilding my home,"
cried Saada Mohammed Dirani, 52, who is living with her 83-year-old
mother in a tent donated by a British Rotary club and pitched
against the only wall left standing in her house.Though
she has received financial aid from Hezbollah to rent a home, she
refuses to leave the village that has been her life-long home.
"Where do you want me to go with my mother?" she asks. "There is
no available housing nearby and I can’t just leave my house and my
onion fields."
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Many of those interviewed said that
although the flags of Hezbollah or fellow Shiite party Amal still
flutter above the remains of their homes, that does not reflect any
active participation on their part with either party.
"Hezbollah has given me nothing but grief,"
said one elderly man. "I’ve lost everything I own and my dignity
because of this war." Another man echoed his feeling, saying:
"May God rid us of the Jews and the enemies of
the Jews." AFP
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