When the air strike occurred, Mohammed, a 29-year-old civil engineer, was distributing hot meals to elderly neighbors. This initiative started after Israel’s invasion of Lebanon on October 1. Standing just 5 meters (16 feet) from the explosion that devastated a nearby house, Mohammed suffered severe injuries—his face was scorched, his hands charred, and he sustained third-degree burns on his abdomen.
“It was all black, smoke everywhere,” Mohammed recalls. “It took about a minute. Then I started to recognize what is around me. I noticed my two friends were still alive but bleeding a lot.”
Mohammed is currently recovering in the Nabih Berri government hospital located in Nabatieh, merely 11 kilometers (7 miles) from the Israeli border. Before the conflict, this city had a population of around 80,000. He emphasizes that there was no warning before the strike:
“Not at all, not to us, not to our neighbors, not to the person inside the house that was hit.”
The strike killed a policeman and left many questioning why civilians are targeted:
“We are not military,” he states. “We are not terrorists. Why are we being hit?”
Despite ongoing attacks, Mohammed plans to return to his village of Arab Salim, expressing a sense of obligation: “I don’t have anywhere else to go.”
During our visit, another air strike prompted hospital staff to rush outside for updates. Casualties continued pouring in as sirens wailed.
Dr. Hassan Wazni, the hospital director, reported receiving 20-30 casualties daily due to air strikes—mostly civilians:
“We take all patients, and all injured… We don’t discriminate between them.”
Since the conflict began, Dr. Wazni has been tirelessly managing the hospital despite severe shortages of resources:
“I think it’s OK to break some rules in a war,” he remarked with an apologetic smile.
The hospital is now operating with only a skeleton crew and faces constant threats from nearby strikes. One recent attack destroyed multiple buildings and claimed lives, including that of the mayor of Nabatieh.
As Hussein Jaber, a member of emergency services stated:
“We will stay, and we will carry on. We will be next to the civilians. Nothing will stop us.”
In these dire circumstances, only a few hundred residents remain in Nabatieh—many being elderly or impoverished—while first responders like Hussein continue their mission amid danger and despair.
Trump’s Tariff Plans: A Day-One Agenda Against Drug and Human Trafficking In a bold move to combat drug and human smuggling, President-elect Donald Trump has announced plans to impose significant tariffs on Mexico, Canada, and China immediately after his inauguration on January 20.
Government Unveils “Get Britain Working” Initiative to Combat Unemployment In a bid to rejuvenate the UK job market, the government has introduced its ambitious “Get Britain Working” initiative, promising extensive reforms aimed at reducing the benefits bill and increasing employment.