Despite Far-Flung Distances, Lebanese Expatriates Witness and Live the Anxieties and Fears of Lebanon’s War

 

As an expatriate myself, I know and understand that Lebanese expatriates did not expect the Gaza War to extend to their homeland as well. Hezbollah's clashes with Israel intensified in late September, pushing the Gaza War into Lebanon. Thus there is no longer any illusion that Lebanon will be shielded from the Israel-Hamas War or the "Al Aqsa Flood" operation.

 

The Lebanese at home and abroad have been glued to their television and social media screens since September 23, awaiting news of the military operations that went beyond the bordering southern villages and reached areas as far as the deep south, the Bekaa Valley, and the southern suburbs of Beirut. Mount Lebanon, Central Beirut, and even the north of the country were not spared from Israeli raids.

 

At the time of this writing, war is a bitter reality of daily bombings and destruction. Casualties have grown from a small number to scores and dozens by the day. Many homes were destroyed, fields burned, and thousands displaced from their villages and cities as a result. Approximately one and a half million Lebanese have been displaced in a country that already shelters equal numbers of Syrian refugees fleeing their civil war. This is horrific.

 

Close to 20 billion dollars have been lost due to displacement, human losses, and material damage — a devastating amount for a country that has suffered an ongoing financial meltdown since 2019, whose national currency has also devalued to 89,554.50000 pounds per the American dollar.

 

Lebanon's economy relies heavily on remittances for income. The economic health of their host countries is of immediate relevance to Lebanese expats. In the past and present, expatriates have eased the burdens of their relatives during hard times and political crises. The World Bank estimates Lebanon received $6.7 billion in remittances in 2023, or 30.7% of its GDP. Since 2011, this has averaged around $6.5 billion per year. The ratio is the third highest in the world, after Tonga and Tajikistan.

 

Similarly to during the Civil War, the division between those in support and against Lebanese involvement in the war sparked partisan quarrels within the expat community. Expats can be divided between those seeking to show solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza and others who oppose Hamas’ intervention, claiming Lebanon has no reason to join the war.