Beirut, Lebanon – For the past two months, St Francis Church in Hamra has taken in displaced families from southern Lebanon and Dahiyeh, a constellation of Beirut suburbs.It’s been a difficult time for many of the families who fled Israeli bombing and a ground offensive in the south, but since early Wednesday when a ceasefire came into effect, there has been a different energy in the air.
Standing by the door to the church’s car park, where the displaced have pitched tents, Ibrahim Termos, 25, radiated joy when asked about the ceasefire on Wednesday.
Around him, people were packing up their tents and belongings as they prepared for the journey back home.
“It’s not about just a ceasefire but that we won a ceasefire,” Termos said, smiling. He lost his home in this war, but the fact the nightmare of the past two months is over has him focusing on the positive.
“Our apartment was destroyed, but the building is still standing,” Termos said.
A celebratory mood
After nearly 14 months of fighting, the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah and Israel agreed to a ceasefire.
It stipulates that Israel must withdraw from Lebanon, and Hezbollah is to retreat north of the Litani River. The Lebanese military is to deploy to fill that space along the border with …