Children pick olives in Rmeich, southern Lebanon, on October 23, 2024, while an Israeli strike is visible in the background. Archive photo by Vincenzo Circosta/AFP
Israeli attacks in southern Lebanon are mounting pressure on the Christian villages — whose residents had until now refused to flee — following a strike on Qlaya (Marjayoun district) that killed parish priest Father Pierre al-Rai.
Under the supervision of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), residents of Alma al-Shaab (Sour) were forced Tuesday to abandon their village and head north.
In the nearby village of Rmeish, a threatening phone call from someone claiming to be an Israeli soldier prompted local authorities to relocate displaced people from neighboring villages to Sour.
Rmeish's mokhtar, or local official, Hassane al-Hage, said he received the call Monday night, reported our correspondent. In an audio recording reviewed by L'Orient Today, the caller identified himself as an Israeli soldier and objected to the presence in Rmeish of people displaced from the neighboring villages of Aitaroun, Yaroun and Bint Jbeil.
"We do not want your village to be evacuated. But if the displaced people are in contact with Hezbollah, we will strike, and you will have to leave the town," the caller said.
Following the warning, Hage said authorities arranged to relocate roughly 50 displaced people from neighboring villages, finding them accommodation in Sour. A second mokhtar was also reported to have received a similar call.
"Given the threats, and knowing the locality has 6,500 inhabitants, we will do everything to protect our population and will not let our own residents be displaced too," Hage told our correspondent.
According to a source in the village, only displaced people from the Shiite community were asked to leave; displaced Christians from other villages in the area were permitted to stay.
'No one will remain' in Alma al-Shaab
Until now, Christian villages in the far south had refused evacuation orders despite Israeli strikes and repeated calls to clear the entire area south of the Litani River, where Israeli ground forces continue to advance.
But on Tuesday morning, residents of Alma al-Shaab were forced to leave following calls urging them to evacuate by the cease-fire monitoring committee yesterday, a municipal council member told our correspondent. Images reviewed by L'Orient Today showed a column of dozens of cars lined up to follow a U.N. peacekeeping vehicle out of the village.
"The situation is currently very chaotic. We are completely evacuating the village, and everyone is leaving — no one will remain," said Chadi Sayah, president of the village municipality.
The evacuation came after a series of deadly incidents. On Sunday, a man in his 70s was killed by an Israeli drone strike while watering his garden in Alma al-Shaab. On Monday, Israeli artillery fire struck the Christian majority village of Qlaya, killing Father Rai and wounding five others.
Rai's death drew swift condemnation. Maronite Church Patriarch Bechara Rai called Tuesday on Lebanese authorities to act without delay to disarm Hezbollah, in line with decisions by the Lebanese government. Lebanese Forces party leader Samir Geagea denounced the presence of what he called "infiltrated elements" from Hezbollah, whom he said were the intended targets of the strikes.
Geagea's remarks echoed the Israeli military's account. The army said it had struck "a Hezbollah cell entering a site located in a Christian village" in the south, without identifying the village.
However, that version of events was disputed by Qlaya Municipality president Hanna Daher, who told L'Orient Today's correspondent in the south that the Israeli account was "lies." No other Christian village was struck on Monday.
According to the latest figures published Monday by the Health Ministry, Israeli bombardments across the country have killed 486 people and wounded 1,313.
