A neighborhood of Bab el-Tebbaneh in Tripoli, July 15, 2025. (Credit: Yara Sarkis/L’Orient-Le Jour.)
Under a sun-worn parasol, three men in swimsuits wait for the day's rare customers to take them out to sea off the coast of Mina, Tripoli. It's an opportunity for them to discuss the recent rumors about a possible territorial deal between Damascus and Tel Aviv involving the Israel-occupied Syrian Golan and the capital of North Lebanon. For them, it is "unthinkable" that their hometown could be "stolen" by their Syrian neighbors."If the Syrians take Tripoli, it will be a second occupation of the country," Ahmad* protests, referencing Israeli troops still present at five positions in South Lebanon after the recent conflict with Hezbollah. "If that happens, I won't take up arms, I'll leave my city. We could never coexist with them: our customs, our traditions, our values [...] they're...
Under a sun-worn parasol, three men in swimsuits wait for the day's rare customers to take them out to sea off the coast of Mina, Tripoli. It's an opportunity for them to discuss the recent rumors about a possible territorial deal between Damascus and Tel Aviv involving the Israel-occupied Syrian Golan and the capital of North Lebanon. For them, it is "unthinkable" that their hometown could be "stolen" by their Syrian neighbors."If the Syrians take Tripoli, it will be a second occupation of the country," Ahmad* protests, referencing Israeli troops still present at five positions in South Lebanon after the recent conflict with Hezbollah. "If that happens, I won't take up arms, I'll leave my city. We could never coexist with them: our customs, our traditions, our values [...] they're...