Turbulent Borders, Displaced Lives: The Christian Narrative in South Lebanon’s Geopolitical Landscape

This working paper contextualizes the internal displacement of more than 94,000 individuals from South Lebanon amid the ongoing conflict between Hezbollah and Israel following Hamas's "Al-Aqsa Deluge" operation in October 2023. It investigates the causes of displacement, particularly within the Christian community, by analyzing various push factors deriving from the activities of the Israeli military, Hezbollah and the Lebanese government.

Published on October 8, 2024

Guita G. Hourani | mernid, IDPs, Internal migration, Ethnicity, Conflict

Lebanon Ain Ebel village.2024 © M. Barakat.

Drawing on these factors, the article ascertains a seven-fold survival narrative among South Lebanon’s Christians: unwavering faith, coping resilience, distancing from Christian partisan rhetoric, avoiding confrontation, rejecting the war, advocating for coexistence as a fundamental social covenant and reaffirming allegiance to Lebanon and its Armed Forces. The article concludes by emphasizing the need to cease the conflict; hold the perpetrators accountable and ensure reparation for the civilians affected by the war; ensure the right to assisted return; guarantee the rights of individuals not to be displaced; and replace Hezbollah’s power formula – the Army, the People, and the Resistance equation.

Editor’s Note: The research in this article predates the 2024 September entry of Israeli forces into Lebanon, but remains relevant as the violence between Hezbollah, the Israeli military and Lebanese forces escalates. The border communities discussed in this paper face even greater challenges, and the article’s themes of survival and resolution are even more critical today.

KEYWORDS: Lebanon, Hezbollah, Israel, internal displacement, IDPs, Christian communities, border communities

Dr. Guita Hourani holds a PhD in Global Studies from Tokyo University of Foreign Studies in Japan and is a distinguished scholar in migration, refugees, and citizenship. She founded the Lebanese Center for Migration and Diaspora Studies at Notre Dame University. Dr. Hourani currently serves as an expert on citizenship at the European Union Democracy Observatory on Citizenship (EUDO) and holds senior research fellow positions at Ukraine Catholic University, Tokyo University of Foreign Studies, Japan, and the Holy Spirit University, Lebanon.

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