Israeli Airstrikes Do Not Exempt Sunni Towns in Lebanon

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Dozens of displaced people from southern Lebanon were killed in a strike targeting the outskirts of the Sunni town of Barja, located about 28 kilometers from Beirut. Thousands fleeing the horrors of war are now struggling to find shelter to protect themselves from the ongoing Israeli bombardments.

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In a room where belongings are scattered and a large hole pierces one of the walls, Moussa Zahra sits, mourning his neighbors who fled from southern Lebanon and were killed overnight by an Israeli airstrike. They had thought they found safety in Barja, south of Beirut.

Zahra, still in shock with his feet bandaged, speaks from the hospital where his wife and only child are receiving treatment: “They fled from death, but death awaited them here.”

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On Tuesday night, an Israeli airstrike hit an apartment on the lower floor of a four-story building on the outskirts of Barja, housing displaced families from southern Lebanon. The strike, conducted without warning, left 20 people dead, according to a nighttime report from the Ministry of Health. However, on Wednesday morning, a field officer from Lebanon’s Civil Defense reported that nearly 30 bodies, mostly women and children, had been retrieved from the rubble.

Retired Brigadier General Hassan Saad, the mayor of Barja, said three displaced families had been living in the targeted apartment, and all the victims were from outside the town.

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Behind the building, which sits on a hill overlooking the sea, rescue teams are diligently searching for victims still trapped under the debris of the targeted floor, now buried beneath collapsed layers from the upper floors. A bulldozer works to clear the rubble as a Civil Defense worker throws heaps of clothes and fabric from the first floor. Another rescuer retrieves three school bags filled with books, one pink and decorated with hearts, and sets them aside.

Outside his apartment in a nearby building untouched by the blast, Zahra, who has lived in the town for about a decade, repeatedly thanks God for sparing his only son. Recounting the terrifying moments, he says, “I was about to sleep, holding my child close, when I heard a loud noise and the world exploded around me.” He adds, “The flames reached my feet… my wife and child were injured.”

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After exiting his home, Zahra realized that the strike had targeted the neighboring apartment. “Most of the residents were families who had rented apartments,” he explains. One of these families had arrived only six weeks ago. “I had given them chairs and mattresses… Their children used to play outside my apartment,” he says, deeply saddened, “They all died. I grieve for them.”

Civil Defense personnel continue clearing the debris. A field officer, speaking anonymously, says, “There are still victims in the basement, but there’s conflicting information from neighbors about their numbers.” He recounts emotionally, “We found children’s bodies on the stairs… and fragments everywhere.”

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From an apartment with a damaged back facade, a living room remains with a mounted television and two chairs. In another apartment, kitchen items are scattered, and the ground is littered with clothing, wires, mattresses, window frames, and large stones.

This is not the first time a residential apartment has been targeted in Barja, a Sunni-majority town in the Shouf region. On October 12, an Israeli airstrike on a residential apartment in the town killed four people and injured 18 others.

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In response, Barja’s crisis cell at the time issued a statement urging “anyone targeted or at risk to move away from the town” and called on the authorities to work toward calming the situation and protecting innocent civilians from the divisions the Israeli enemy seeks to create.

On Wednesday, the mayor reiterated his plea to “ensure that we do not endanger our residents and guests, with the town now hosting more than 27,000 displaced people from areas affected by Israeli bombings.”

Barja, one of the largest towns in the Shouf region, is home to 35,000 residents, along with approximately 10,000 Syrian refugees, according to the municipality.

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Israel occasionally carries out deadly airstrikes on towns and villages outside the traditional Hezbollah strongholds, targeting vehicles, individuals, or residential apartments. Reports have often linked these targets to Hezbollah, fueling sensitivities, suspicion, and tension in areas where residents wish to remain outside the conflict.

A few meters from the targeted building, Mahmoud, 54, a retired soldier, sits with his family outside their home, where the windows were shattered by the blast. He explains, “There’s no military presence here; we were supposed to feel safe, but suddenly everything changed.” He continues, “This is Israel’s tactic—to spread fear, terror, and division, to make people feel unsafe no matter where they are.”

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In a related development, Israel’s Airports Authority confirmed on Wednesday that operations at Ben Gurion Airport, near Tel Aviv, remain unaffected following Hezbollah’s announcement of rocket launches toward a nearby military base.

Airport Authority spokesperson Liza Dvir stated, “Ben Gurion Airport is open and operating normally for takeoffs and landings; no incidents occurred on the runway.”