In Beirut, streets almost empty after 10 p.m. (Credit: Matthieu Karam / L'Orient Today)
Ayla* slips off her sneakers and, with an apron around her waist, clears tables barefoot in a restaurant emptied of regulars after 10 p.m. Hidden in a commercial alley in Hamra, this “world specialties” bistro hired her and two other young adults in late September, after the war between Israel and Hezbollah intensified across Lebanon. “Those who worked here before Nasrallah’s assassination left in fear. The desperate, the ones just trying to survive without resisting, took their places,” says the aspiring artist, who had to leave her job singing in obscure Beirut bars. “Not being able to perform felt like losing a piece of myself, like being forced to keep quiet,” she says, her eyes brimming with tears.Earbuds in and hands faintly stained with red sauce, the musicology student hopes no one will recognize her as she leaves, while iron...
Ayla* slips off her sneakers and, with an apron around her waist, clears tables barefoot in a restaurant emptied of regulars after 10 p.m. Hidden in a commercial alley in Hamra, this “world specialties” bistro hired her and two other young adults in late September, after the war between Israel and Hezbollah intensified across Lebanon. “Those who worked here before Nasrallah’s assassination left in fear. The desperate, the ones just trying to survive without resisting, took their places,” says the aspiring artist, who had to leave her job singing in obscure Beirut bars. “Not being able to perform felt like losing a piece of myself, like being forced to keep quiet,” she says, her eyes brimming with tears.Earbuds in and hands faintly stained with red sauce, the musicology student hopes no one will recognize her as she leaves,...
