In the dusty, broken village of Aita al-Shaab, where almost every house bears the scars of the battle between Israel and Hezbollah, the war still lingers a month after it officially ended.
Israeli tanks and bulldozers roam back and forth across the border at night, locals say, while Hezbollah fighters patrol the thick green hills above the village. The sound of Israeli drones is familiar to the people of southern Lebanon, who report daily over-flights.
According to Alexander Ivanko, spokesperson for the United Nations interim force in Lebanon (Unifil), there have been more than 100 recorded ceasefire violations by Israeli forces in the past month. These have been mostly over-flights and incursions by tanks, troops and bulldozers. Ivanko said 24 Lebanese civilians — including four men from Aita al-Shaab — had been detained at gunpoint by Israeli troops. All were later released.
In addition to the incursions, there have also been a number of shooting incidents — described by the residents of Aita al-Shaab as ”intimidation fire”.
Some locals have moved to escape the gunfire on the edge of the village, a few hundred metres from the site where two Israeli soldiers were abducted on July 12, sparking a 34-day conflict that left more than 1 000 Lebanese civilians dead. Wafa Srour (21) said: ”The bullets were coming very close to the house, so we moved to a friend’s house close to the centre of town.”
This week the Israel Defence Force said it had kept to the requirements of UN resolution 1701, which ended the conflict, and 80% of territory had been ”transferred” to Unifil. Israel reserved the right to continue ”intelligence surveillance” while the two captured Israeli soldiers were still held, it said.
Like the Israeli forces Hezbollah has not withdrawn from the battlefield. Within minutes of the four Aita al-Shaab residents being held by Israeli troops last Friday men from the village took up position in anticipation of a possible battle. They wore Hezbollah’s trademark black T-shirts and combat trousers.
But the villagers say local fighters will not violate the ceasefire.
”Sayyed Hassan [Nasrallah, the Hezbollah leader] has said that is what is best for Lebanon, so that is what they’ll do,” said Fatmeh Srour (19), Wafa’s sister. She said many in the village believed Israel was trying to provoke them. ”They were trying to take us back into war by shooting at everything, but we remained steadfast.”
Many villagers lost relatives in the conflict, either Hezbollah fighters or civilians killed by missiles. Many houses have been shredded beyond recognition and conditions are difficult, with villagers suffering infections from contaminated well water. Aid workers have set up a clinic and are working with Hezbollah officials to distribute supplies. A small medical camp has been set up by the Iranian Red Crescent.
As well as bringing tinned food in the days after the ceasefire the UN delivered tents, but most families prefer to live in the remains of their homes. According to the UN, the Italian contingent has carried out some limited de-mining operations and the French have been involved in engineering, but now they remain in their bases, citing ”logistical problems”.
Most residents are too loyal to criticise Hezbollah, but one family said it felt abandoned by the party, which runs the local council. The family got the standard $12 000 compensation from Hezbollah for its destroyed house, but was then told it was on its own. ”What are we supposed to do when winter comes and we do not yet have a new house?” asked the grandmother.
Few in the village are reassured by the Lebanese army’s deployment. Kalamia (59) recalled a previous visit. ”I remember back in the Seventies, the last time the Lebanese army was here,” she said. ”There were about seven soldiers stationed here and when the Israelis came over the hill and down into the village not a single soldier even raised his gun. They don’t have the weapons to defend us, it’s all for the cameras.”
Talk of the UN met with a similar lack of enthusiasm. ”We don’t know them and they don’t know us — so how can there be any real trust between us? They will not stand against the Israelis; they are Europeans that are coming now,” said Kalamia. Villagers had seen UN troops roll through the village without stopping a few days earlier. ”They have come and gone before, it’s the same old story. Whether they’re here or not, it doesn’t make any difference to us,” said Fatmeh Srour.
In neighbouring Rmeish, the mood is different, with young people strolling through relatively unscathed streets. A largely Christian village, it escaped much of the fighting and its people are happy to see the Lebanese army and UN forces providing extra protection.
Nearby Bint Jbeil, where the bloodiest battles were fought, is the first of four southern towns to benefit from a planned $300 000 reconstruction project funded by Qatar. The Lebanese army deployed to the town nearly two weeks ago, but the residents still complain of Israeli harassment. ”It’s not a ceasefire yet because the Israelis have not stopped their firing,” said Ibrahim Bassi. ”The big test for the Unifil is whether they can stop the violations.”
Back in Aita al-Shaab, a man recited the opening verse of the Qur’an over a freshly laid gravestone. As the sun slipped over the hill into Israel, an explosion rang out across the lush green hills of the border.
On Thursday, an Amnesty International report concluded that Hezbollah militants broke international humanitarian law during the recent conflict with Israel.
Hezbollah launched nearly 4 000 rockets into northern Israel during July and August, killing at least 39 civilians. The firing of rockets into urban areas violated international law calling for distinction between civilian and military targets, Amnesty said.
The militants fired imprecise rockets packed with thousands of metal ball bearings to maximise harm to civilians, the report found. — Â