{"id":25482,"date":"2026-03-18T18:23:08","date_gmt":"2026-03-18T18:23:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/25482\/"},"modified":"2026-03-18T18:23:08","modified_gmt":"2026-03-18T18:23:08","slug":"springfield-resident-stranded-in-lebanon-aids-humanitarian-efforts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/25482\/","title":{"rendered":"Springfield resident stranded in Lebanon aids humanitarian efforts"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Hassan Mourad hands food to a child whose family is sheltering at a school.
Photo credit: Hassan Mourad<\/p>\n

BEIRUT, LEBANON \u2014 It is hard to be away from home for extended periods. Harder still when one is in a war zone.<\/p>\n

Hassan Mourad, a Springfield resident who traveled to Lebanon on business in late February, became stranded in the country amid the Iran War. However, he has turned his circumstances into action, working to help displaced people however her can.<\/p>\n

On March 17, Reminder Publishing reached out to Mourad via Zoom. He stood in front of a wall of windows. In the background, the setting sun cast a warm, hazy glow over the skyline of Beirut. The haze, he explained, was from the plumes of smoke that rise from the hourly air strikes in Douha, Lebanon, a couple miles south of Beirut. Throughout the course of the interview, Mourad repeatedly looked behind him into the distance as the sound of air raids carried across the city.<\/p>\n

Mourad, a first-generation Lebanese American, is a 33-year-old business owner and father of two who was born and raised in Springfield. He went to Lebanon to strike distributing deals for his uncle\u2019s line of hair care products. Less than 48 hours later, the United States and Israel launched surprise attacks against Iran. After Iran\u2019s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in the first wave of attacks, Hezbollah, a Lebanese political party and banned paramilitary group, launched missiles at its neighbor and long-time adversary, Israel. Israel responded by stepping up its attacks against Lebanon and launching a ground invasion.<\/p>\n

\"\"Hassan Mourad talks about the humanitarian need in Lebanon.
Photo credit: Hassan Mourad<\/p>\n

Many Americans left Lebanon immediately after the war began, Mourad said, but a few days later when the American embassy closed, commercial flights largely stopped. The only flights available now are through Beirut-based Middle East Airlines. He had booked a flight to Turkey, but it was canceled. He said if he were able to successfully catch a flight, it would likely take him to Cyprus or Egypt, and he would need to make his way to the Unted States from there.<\/p>\n

Mourad is less concerned with fleeing the country, though, and more focused on helping people in Lebanon, much to the dismay of his family. He said his parents are worried, particularly when they hear reports of aid workers killed in air strikes. His mother calls him every day asking him to come home. \u201cI tell her, \u2018I have to help our people,\u2019\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Mourad\u2019s children also fear for their father. While he tries to assure them that he is safe but said they are old enough to understand news reports. \u201cThey tell me, \u2018No one is safe. Look at what happened in Gaza.\u2019 Once I feel like my mission here is complete, I\u2019ll be more focused on getting home.\u201d<\/p>\n

When asked how he is faring, Mourad said, \u201cI\u2019m still alive, so that\u2019s good. It\u2019s a surreal experience for me.\u201d He admitted, \u201cIt takes a lot of courage to be out here.\u201d<\/p>\n

This is not Mourad\u2019s first time in Lebanon while the country is at war. Israel crossed into Lebanon in October 2024, and despite a ceasefire signed roughly two months later, there have been consistent air strikes since. Mourad\u2019s parents left Lebanon to escape war with Israel, which has been recurring since 1978. <\/p>\n

\u201cIn 2024, I was very unhappy with the situation in the Middle East. It bothered me to pay taxes and have that money go to weapons used to kill people here in the Middle East,\u201d Mourad said of Israel\u2019s use of American-made arms to strike Lebanon. He began a GoFundMe campaign to raise money and then distributed food, diapers and baby formula to the people who were displaced by the fighting.<\/p>\n

\u201cMaybe it\u2019s God\u2019s plan putting me back here,\u201d Mourad wondered aloud, and not for the first time.<\/p>\n

Mourad said the current air strikes have once again displaced the same people who fled their homes in 2024. Given just 30 minutes of warning, many did not have time to gather possessions, Mourad said. Pushed north to the Litani River, up to 35 miles from their homes near Lebanon\u2019s border with Israel, an estimated 1 million people \u2014 19% of the country\u2019s population \u2014 are displaced, sheltering in schools, sleeping in cars and camping in tents.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn winter in Lebanon, it rains,\u201d Mourad explained. The few belongings of people living in tents along the side of the road are often washed away in rainstorms. That is why Mourad has focused on providing people with blankets and pillows. \u201cMy parents raised us to give to the poor,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

He is also focusing on making and delivering meals to people, as it is the Islamic holy month of Ramadhan. During Ramadhan, observant Muslims fast from sunrise to sunset. Each evening, Mourad distributes the meal to break the fast, called Iftar. He also hands out food for Suhoor, the meal that is eaten before the fast begins again at sun-up.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s the month when you recalibrate. You might get off the path of God, but in Ramadhan, you are with family, you celebrate and you get back to God,\u201d Mourad said, tearing up. After a moment, he said collected himself and said, \u201cThey turned what was supposed to be one of the best times of the year for Muslims into hell, honestly.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mourad has been working with local social media influencers to help share the situation on the ground in Lebanon. He has also worked alongside organizations, including Amity Foundation, Banin Charity Association and Wish Foundation, to help provide displaced people with necessities.<\/p>\n

\"\"Smoke rises from a nearby airstrike in Lebanon.
Photo credit: Hassan Mourad<\/p>\n

While the current fighting has led to the displacement, Mourad said the people he sees have grown used to the danger they have faced over the past few years. \u201cI just feel like everybody\u2019s numb here. They\u2019re just waiting to die,\u201d Mourad said. As the father of an 11-year-old and 7-year-old, he said it is \u201cheartbreaking\u201d to watch fathers try to comfort their young children.<\/p>\n

Mourad said the narratives he hears from United States politicians and pundits about people in Lebanon hating Americans is not true. \u201cThat doesn\u2019t exist, and it upsets me,\u201d he said. Referring to people who spread such narratives, he said, \u201cI don\u2019t think they know who we are, how the Lebanese people are. They love us, to be honest.\u201d He said that he walks around wearing a shirt emblazoned with \u201cUSA\u201d and has never faced any negativity around it. \u201cPeople don\u2019t hate Americans. They hate American foreign policy. I think Americans hate American foreign policy, too. I have friends in the Army. I don\u2019t want to see them die in Iran.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mourad insisted that the issue is not a partisan one. \u201cI voted for Trump. All I cared about \u2014 that he sold me on \u2014 was stopping wars. Now, we\u2019re seeing the opposite of what we voted for. Why do we not, as Americans, extend compassion to other people? We\u2019re very more similar than different.\u201d He added, \u201cI just want people to live in peace here.\u201d<\/p>\n

People can follow Mourad\u2019s humanitarian efforts and see updates from Lebanon on Instagram at @hassan.mourad<\/a>. Donations to Mourad\u2019s crowdfunding campaign can be made at tinyurl.com\/lebanese-aid-alliance-2026<\/a>. As of press time, he has raised $8,794.<\/p>\n

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