Lebanese try to maintain semblance of daily life

Added: 2026-06-01

[00:00:02]The people of Lebanon are used to hoping for peace.

[00:00:05]Some wait months, others years, and in some cases generations.

[00:00:11]For Lebanon's youth, war is not distant.

[00:00:14]It is something they have grown up with.

[00:00:17]And those who have lived through war know how to endure it.

[00:00:21]>> Displacement will not break us. We were displaced, yes, but God willing, we will stay standing. We must continue loving one another feeling and supporting one another, and supporting one another, no matter where we come from.

[00:00:36]>> Inside Beirut's so-called tent of dignity, volunteers bake around 5,000 pieces of flatbread a day.

[00:00:42]Subhiya has lost both her homes in Israeli strikes.

[00:00:47]>> Well-intentioned people bring flour, thyme, oil, gas, and water to the tent of dignity. These donations come from kind and generous people, and I'm giving everything I have, my children, my effort, everything I love for this cause.

[00:01:03]>> The escalation between Israel and Hezbollah has displaced a fifth of Lebanon's population, over a million people.

[00:01:10]Authorities have relocated many displaced families who previously lived along Beirut's coast into the city's first official encampment for internally displaced people.

[00:01:20]Here, 210 sit beside luxury hotels, beachfront cafes, and upscale entertainment venues.

[00:01:28]>> This setup is better for displaced people because it offers them protection, and it is also better for the residents and for the city of Beirut.

[00:01:37]>> Just meters away, Muhammad cast a fishing line into the Mediterranean.

[00:01:42]Displaced from Bint Jbeil, he says fishing now offers food as well as a distraction before a job interview later that day.

[00:01:49]I asked him what he thinks about claims that Lebanon is deeply divided.

[00:01:54]>> There is one Lebanese people. Many ordinary Lebanese people from all sects live together without problems. The divisions come from politics, agendas, and outside interests. In my opinion, Israel does not respect peace, treaties, or agreements. It does not distinguish between Christians, Sunnis, Shiites, or Druze. The attacks affect everyone.

[00:02:17]>> But in Beirut's southern suburbs, among communities that have borne the brunt of Israeli strikes, politics and war are difficult to escape.

[00:02:25]>> People not not just scared, but terrified, because the the drones that keeps taking pictures about something buildings that you're in. You don't know what any second where are you are you going to die? And a lot of people are sleeping on the streets without having foods, and they have families and a lot, and they don't have even have toilets. Where do you And that is the worst thing I ever think of.

[00:02:52]>> Lebanon has lived through decades of war, punctuated by ceasefires and uneasy peace. But for many people here, peace is no longer something they expect. It's something they hope for.

[00:03:03]Yunus Emre Olur, TRT World, Beirut.