{"id":228048,"date":"2026-07-29T17:03:06","date_gmt":"2026-07-29T17:03:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/228048\/"},"modified":"2026-07-29T17:03:06","modified_gmt":"2026-07-29T17:03:06","slug":"lebanese-couple-is-among-those-returning-to-shattered-homes-under-deal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/228048\/","title":{"rendered":"Lebanese couple is among those returning to shattered homes under deal"},"content":{"rendered":"

By BASSEM MROUE<\/p>\n

ZAWTAR AL-GHARBIEH, Lebanon (AP) \u2014 Mahasen Faqih and her husband returned this week to their village in southern Lebanon<\/a>, digging through the debris of their home in search of their belongings, as part of the U.S.-brokered \u201cpilot zones\u201d<\/a> agreement in which Israel agreed to withdraw in exchange for the disarmament of the Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The couple fled north shortly after the start of the latest Israel-Hezbollah war<\/a>, in early March. Now, their home in Zawtar al-Gharbieh \u2014 one of three zones where Israel agreed to turn over control to the Lebanese army \u2014 is among homes so damaged that they\u2019re unlivable. But Faqih said they\u2019ve vowed to stay, settling inside the large grocery shop that they own in the village as they wait to have their home demolished and rebuilt.<\/p>\n

\u201cZawtar is our small homeland, and we are very happy,\u201d Faqih, 58, said. \u201cWe will sleep here to tell the Israelis that we will stay in our land and will not leave it, no matter what happens.\u201d<\/p>\n

A week after the Lebanese army took control, only about 15 families have returned, according to Mayor Abed Ezzeldine, who says nearly half the village\u2019s 500 homes have been destroyed and many others damaged.<\/p>\n

Hezbollah is strongly opposed to the initial deal reached between Israel and Lebanon \u2014 which remain technically in a state of war since Israel\u2019s establishment in 1948 \u2014 and to the direct talks between the nations, ongoing for nearly three months.<\/p>\n

The latest Israel-Hezbollah war began March 2, when the Lebanese militant group fired rockets into Israel two days after Israel and the U.S. launched their war on Iran<\/a>. Israel has since invaded Lebanon and occupied dozens of villages<\/a> in the south along its border.<\/p>\n

Under the deal, Israeli forces are supposed to withdraw from some occupied areas of southern Lebanon. But the location of the initial pilot zones generated some controversy in Lebanon. Israeli troops weren\u2019t present in most of the areas, raising questions about how a withdrawal could happen. In Zawtar al-Gharbieh, it\u2019s unclear whether troops were on the ground. But they were in adjacent areas, and the village was under heavy fire, preventing civilian residents and the Lebanese army from entering until last week.<\/p>\n

The Israeli military has destroyed 24 centuries-old villages and 15,000 to 20,000 houses in Lebanon, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz told a TV station Tuesday. He said Israeli troops control 700 square kilometers (270 square miles) of southern Lebanon and \u201care preventing raids on the communities.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Mahasen<\/p>\n

Mahasen Faqih gestures toward the rubble of her neighborhood from inside her destroyed home after returning to it following the Israeli military operation in Zawtar al-Gharbieh, Lebanon, Tuesday, July 28, 2026. (AP Photo\/Hassan Ammar)\n<\/p>\n

\"Mahasen<\/p>\n

Mahasen Faqih is seen through a shattered glass door as she checks her home, destroyed during the Israeli military operation, after returning to it in Zawtar al-Gharbieh, Lebanon, Tuesday, July 28, 2026. (AP Photo\/Hassan Ammar)\n<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

A resident stands behind a mirror riddled with bullet holes inside his home following an Israeli military operation in Zawtar al-Gharbieh, Lebanon, Tuesday, July 28, 2026. (AP Photo\/Hassan Ammar)\n<\/p>\n

\"Mohammed<\/p>\n

Mohammed Sobeih clears debris inside his home after returning to it following the Israeli military operation in Zawtar al-Gharbieh, Lebanon, Tuesday, July 28, 2026. (AP Photo\/Hassan Ammar)\n<\/p>\n

Show Caption<\/p>\n

1 of 4<\/p>\n

Mahasen Faqih gestures toward the rubble of her neighborhood from inside her destroyed home after returning to it following the Israeli military operation in Zawtar al-Gharbieh, Lebanon, Tuesday, July 28, 2026. (AP Photo\/Hassan Ammar)\n<\/p>\n

Expand<\/a>
\nResidents return to damaged or destroyed homes in Zawtar al-Gharbieh<\/p>\n

On Tuesday, as Faqih sifted through debris, she was able to recover only nine plates from the kitchen. That room and the main sitting room were knocked out, with the ceiling partially collapsed. On the home\u2019s other side, an Israeli strike left a hole in the main bedroom\u2019s ceiling.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are gathering what remains of what we have collected over 45 years,\u201d Faqih said, noting that she\u2019d already sold $20,000 in jewelry to repair the home from damage in the 2024 Israel-Hezbollah war \u2014 something she can no longer afford. She hopes the government will help them rebuild.<\/p>\n

Mayor Ezzeldine said Zawtar al-Gharbieh is \u201cdisaster-stricken.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou can see some homes standing, but they are not suitable for living and cannot be renovated,\u201d he said. The municipality is doing its best to bring water by tanker trucks to residents who return, he said, and he hopes about 100 families will be in the village by week\u2019s end.<\/p>\n

Lebanese army bulldozers were clearing debris from the village\u2019s streets. In the main square, trucks with mounted machine guns were parked near a partially destroyed blue-domed mosque. About 100 meters (109 yards) away, an armored personnel carrier blocked a road leading to the adjacent village of Zawtar al-Sharqiyah, which is fully occupied by Israeli troops.<\/p>\n

During The Associated Press team\u2019s visit Tuesday to Zawtar al-Gharbieh, three strong explosions occurred in occupied areas, and brown smoke billowed.<\/p>\n

More Lebanon-Israel talks are scheduled next month<\/p>\n

In his comments Tuesday to Channel 14, an ultranationalist station in Israel, Defense Minister Katz said that in the 24 villages destroyed in Lebanon, \u201cthere were Shiites who acted as enemies on behalf of Hezbollah and threatened our borders, our residents, and constantly carried out provocations.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot house by house, not incrimination \u2014 all these villages, their destruction has been completed,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

His comments and the return of some residents to the pilot zone come as technical teams from Lebanon and Israel are scheduled to hold another round of talks in Rome over three days starting Aug. 4.<\/p>\n

In Beirut, a Lebanese foreign ministry official said the talks will focus on finding other pilot zones to be handed over by Israel\u2019s military to the Lebanese side. The official spoke on condition of anonymity in line with regulations.<\/p>\n

But in Zawtar al-Gharbieh, mayor Ezzeldine said he wouldn\u2019t call the pilot zone successful so far. Israeli troops are still stationed nearby, with drones continuously flying over the village, he said, adding that only the Lebanese army\u2019s presence is reassuring residents.<\/p>\n

Faqih said that her family does not feel secure and that if Israel expands the pilot zones by a village every couple of months, it will take years \u201cfor it to withdraw and for the south to be liberated.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe don\u2019t have safety, not even 1%,\u201d she said. \u201cI am not happy with the situation at all.\u201d<\/p>\n

Associated Press writer Natalie Melzer in Nahariya, Israel, contributed to this report.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"By BASSEM MROUE ZAWTAR AL-GHARBIEH, Lebanon (AP) \u2014 Mahasen Faqih and her husband returned this week to their…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":228049,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[32],"tags":[9641,93,62433],"class_list":["post-228048","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-lebanon","tag-israel-hezbollah-war","tag-lebanon","tag-lebanon-pilot-zones"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@iran\/117004350687003066","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/228048","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=228048"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/228048\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/228049"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=228048"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=228048"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=228048"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}