Mural on the wall separating Lebanon from northern Israel: “Gate of Return” depicting Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa seen through a hole blown in the wall, with the joined faces of Hezbollah and Palestinian fighters to its right. (All photos Jeff Klein).
The border between Lebanon and Israel is perennially tense. Israel has invaded Lebanon at least three times and it occupied much of Lebanon’s south for eighteen years, until forced out by resistance fighters in 2000. Retaliatory missiles have flown from across the border into northern Israel on several occasions, especially during the 2006 war.
But there is generally little in-depth reporting on the ground from the Lebanese side. On a recent visit, I had the chance to travel widely in Lebanon and get a first-hand picture of the Shi’a community which constitutes the core of resistance to Israel and is committed to the Palestinian cause.
This was thanks mostly to a Lebanese friend – call him “Rami” – who works when he can as a tourist guide. Business has not been booming lately in the face of Lebanon’s seemingly permanent political crisis and a shattered economy exacerbated by the giant Beirut port explosion in 2020 and the collapse of the country’s Ponzi-scheme banking system. Few foreign tourists are coming to Lebanon these days. The US State Department even sternly warns Americans not to visit the country.
Rami is handsome and fit, a well-dressed and clean-shaven 40-ish year old man. He speaks polite and…
