Lebanon-Israel conflict stokes sectarian tensions

DW (English)

The aftermath of Israel's bombardment across Lebanon has exposed tensions among Lebanon's sectarian groups, after hundreds of thousands of people were forced to flee their homes into other parts of Lebanon. DW’s Mohamad Chreyteh reports from Beirut.

Transcript

00:00This neighborhood has many apartments for rent, but whether you get one depends on what you're called,

00:05because your name reveals your sectarian background, and that has become more important than ever.

00:12If the name isn't enough to identify you, wearing a hijab will do the job.

00:19Im Hassan lost her house in the southern suburbs of Beirut in an Israeli attack.

00:23She's having a hard time finding somewhere to rent.

00:30My family and I are in a temporary refugee center, but I'm looking for an apartment to rent.

00:35It's been very difficult because some of my family wear the hijab.

00:38Everyone refused to rent to us. I found a suitable place in Mansourie,

00:43but when they saw members of my family wearing the hijab, they terminated the contract.

00:47We still don't have anywhere to go.

00:52Neighborhoods have long been divided along complicated sectarian lines.

00:57The mixing up caused by people leaving Hezbollah-linked areas

01:00and needing other places to stay have made those divisions wider.

01:07I never imagined that this would happen in Lebanon.

01:10People would refuse us because of the hijab.

01:14It was quite shocking, or rather disappointing.

01:19Many people, including friends, did not offer me their houses for rent.

01:23That was very surprising to me.

01:27The destruction in many Shia towns is complete,

01:30and the Israeli military remains active in the southern border area

01:34even after the November 27 ceasefire.

01:37This leaves many people from those areas stuck in other parts of the country.

01:44This is one of Beirut's most liberal and diverse neighborhoods.

01:48It became a magnet destination for refugees at the height of the dislocation.

01:52Initially, they were welcomed, but soon, a cultural clash between newcomers and locals

01:58made things difficult for people who'd lived there for a long time, like Abood.

02:06The people who came here brought with them their habits and traditions and mentality.

02:13They have issues accepting people like me.

02:17To them, I look wrong.

02:18They think a man shouldn't look like this.

02:24It feels like a death wave came to the neighborhood and killed everything.

02:28Even our spirit feels like it's died.

02:32I have no appetite to go out, not even to the supermarket.

02:36I'd rather order deliveries just to avoid meeting these people.

02:41All I feel now is that I want to leave.

02:43All I feel now is that I want to leave.

02:47Most people can't leave.

02:49They have to stay where they are and somehow pay the rent.

02:53The chaos and destruction means greater demand, and that has pushed up prices.

02:58That's hurting everyone doing little to pull Lebanon's fractured society together.

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