Middle East & Africa | The view from Beirut

The flight from southern Lebanon has been swift

Israel’s attacks have left the Lebanese fearful and suspicious

Displaced Lebanese flee the Israeli bombing of southern Lebanon.
Photograph: Ali Hashisho/Xinhua News Agency/Eyevine
|BEIRUT

After almost a year of waiting for war, the exodus from south Lebanon came in a dramatic instant. Tens of thousands of Lebanese grabbed whatever and whoever they could and squeezed ten or more to a car to travel north, fleeing Israeli air strikes. The coastal highway was rammed. Aid agencies say over 200,000 Lebanese have been displaced since October 8th.

Explore more

This article appeared in the Middle East & Africa section of the print edition under the headline “A swift exodus”

From the September 28th 2024 edition

Discover stories from this section and more in the list of contents

Explore the edition

Discover more

A man inspects the damage at the site of an overnight Israeli airstrike that targeted the Shayyah neighborhood in Beirut's southern suburbs on November 26, 2024

Israel and Hizbullah strike a fragile deal to end their war 

Joe Biden’s last roll of the dice on peace in the Middle East

Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu and Defence Minister Yoav Gallant hold a press conference in Tel Aviv

The arrest warrant is a diplomatic disaster for Netanyahu

But may also undermine the International Criminal Court


Food distributed to displaced Palestinians in Gaza

Israel’s hardliners reckon Gaza’s chaos shows they must control it

Only 11 out of a recent convoy of 109 aid trucks managed to get in


Why GM crops aren’t feeding Africa

Despite decades of research, few countries grow them there

A genocidal militia’s quest for legitimacy

A warring party in Sudan claims it wants to talk peace

Get ready for “Maximum Pressure 2.0” on Iran 

The Trump White House may bomb and penalise the regime into a deal