22 October 2024

Tripoli, Lebanon — Merfat Hassoun’s relatives and friends strolled in and out of the cramped living room in Baddawi camp for Palestinian refugees, near Lebanon’s northern city of Tripoli. Some carried in suitcases, while others offered greetings and their blessings that Merfat and her family had arrived safely. 

Amid the commotion, 59-year-old Merfat, her sister, her daughter, and her granddaughter gathered closely together, sharing lahm bi ajeen (Arabic flatbread with meat) after the long journey that followed their escape from the el-Buss refugee camp near the southern Lebanese city of Tyre.

On Sept. 23 — when Israel began intensive bombardments across Lebanon — el-Buss camp and its surrounding areas also came under fire. 

Merfat said they withstood the attacks for almost a week, initially unwilling to leave their homes, but an Israeli airstrike overnight on Sept. 27 struck next door The next morning, the family packed their bags and rushed out. 

After a four-hour drive, they arrived at their relative’s home in Baddawi camp, about 170 kilometers (around 106 miles) north of el-Buss. Lebanon is home to 12 refugee camps for Palestinians, who have spent the last 75 years stateless and suffering one period of mass displacement after another.