Al-Ahram Weekly On-line 21 - 27 September 2000 Issue No. 500
Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875

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Southern scars

By Zeina Khodr

As Israeli forces retreated hastily in late May from the zone they occupied in southern Lebanon for 22 years, over 6,000 Lebanese left with them. The majority were members of the defunct South Lebanon Army (SLA) -- the militia that served as Israel's ally during its occupation of the south.

Hundreds of former militiamen stayed behind and surrendered themselves to the Lebanese authorities. Over 900 have already received prison sentences -- ranging between three weeks and fifteen years -- from Beirut courts for collaborating with Israel.

Although most who fled were senior officers and their families, a substantial number -- many of whom are Christian and neither served in the militia nor its civil administration -- decided to leave out of fear for their lives.

"There was a lot of talk that Christians living in the occupied zone would be harmed by armed men once Israel left the area," 23-year-old Maroun, who refrained from revealing his family name, told Al-Ahram Weekly.

Maroun, along with his wife, brother and sister-in-law, were among those who went to Israel last May. However, they recently returned to their home in the predominantly Christian village of Qlaila in the Marjayoun district. "Some of us decided to return once we realised that there was no bloodshed and our lives were not in any danger."

There were fears that Hizbullah, the Shi'ite group that led the struggle against Israeli occupation, would carry out revenge killings following the Israeli withdrawal. That did not happen. In fact, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, in a report to the Security Council, praised "the manner in which the group's members conducted themselves."

Hizbullah deputy, Abdullah Kassir told the Weekly, "I do not know why people were afraid of us. We are not fighting the Lebanese but the Israelis. Those who worked with the occupiers were handed over to the Lebanese authorities. Hizbullah has also repeatedly said that it would not serve as a substitute for the state in maintaining law and order in the zone.

The main reason Maroun and his family decided to return to Lebanon was due to the state's decision to take control of the liberated zone, which had been effectively in the hands of Hizbullah. Earlier in August, 1,000 soldiers and policemen were deployed in the area just days after the UN peacekeeping force, UNIFIL, took up positions in liberated areas.

"Of course now that the army is present, we feel more secure," Maroun explained.

Even though there were no serious incidents reported over the past two months, many Christians have complained of "harassment."

"That's absurd," said Ali Khreis, a former detainee in the Israeli-run Khiam detention center in southern Lebanon.

"The only case of harassment was when a former inmate saw one of the detention center prison guards working in a bank. He beat him up and I believe it was his right. It was an individual act. We prisoners were subjected to torture and maltreatment by the SLA and Israeli soldiers while in prison."

Despite statements made by officials praising national reconciliation, tension remains high in the liberated areas. The state presence in the area is expected to ease the atmosphere, but many, particularly Christians, are dissatisfied with the Lebanese government's performance.

"Do not get us wrong; we do not want the Israelis to come back, but during the occupation years, we were able to survive economically," Maroun's mother said. "There were jobs for people. Many worked in Israel or the SLA. Every family earned at least $2,000 a month. Today, many are jobless and cannot find enough to eat."

Then why did they return? At least 400 have come back complaining of poor living conditions in Israel. But according to Maroun, "That is not true in all cases." He added "Israel paid for our hotel accommodation, food and pocket money. But we decided to come back because this is our country. We were investigated at the Lebanese border and once they made sure we were not wanted for any crime, we were free to return to our village."

The cash-strapped government has yet to carry out development projects in the area and international aid has still not arrived.

"During the occupation, hospitals were receiving patients. We all paid the SLA $10 a month for health insurance," Maroun's mother said. "Now the hospitals are out of supplies, doctors are not being paid and we are forced to go to Beirut for treatment. We do not have the money to do that," she added.

But not all southerners shared her grievances. Umm Ali, who was forced to leave her home in the village of Khiam and live in Beirut during the Israeli occupation has no complaints. "We are happy to be able to return to our home. We left because I had sons and I was worried the SLA would force them to join their ranks. Now we are back and my son opened a shop and we are surviving. If it were not for them [Christians] the Israelis would not have been able to stay here as long as they did. "

Who was responsible for allowing Israel to maintain its occupation? Who willingly collaborated with them? and, who was forced? are questions that remain in every southerner's mind. Mistrust between religious communities are high even though they are kept beneath the surface. Reconciliation seems only skin deep.

But the deployment of the Lebanese army in the area -- for the first time in over 20 years -- has raised hopes for the future, though the army has refrained from setting up positions along the border with Israel because Beirut says it refuses to be "Israel's border guard in the absence of a peace agreement."

"Israel should not feel secure as long as Lebanon is not," Hizbullah deputy Abdullah Kassir said in reference to the government's position.

UN peace-keepers have also denied responsibility for border stability. "Security at the border can only be enforced with the cooperation of the Lebanese authorities, and it is not UNIFIL's responsibility," UNIFIL's spokesman Timor Goksel said. "We cannot be responsible for the border of a sovereign nation. What you have there is a law and order problem to handle. We must have the national authority with us."

There are almost daily incidents of Lebanese throwing stones and Molotov cocktails at Israeli troops on the other side of the border fence that prompts the soldiers to fire back using live ammunition. Tens of civilians have been injured.

The Lebanese state, observers believe, must work harder to make its presence felt in the liberated area and improve the economic situation. Unless that happens, many believe, the zone's residents will continue to feel cut off from the rest of the country and true reconciliation will not be achieved.

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