Lebanon
i don't know if you guys are following what's going on in lebanon right now (i am awful about following the news so, much to my shame, i have to confess that i did not know) but a friend from my sketch comedy group is there and she has been sending e-mails and i wanted to share this latest one because i think it's important for people to be aware.
Here's the update. By the way I'm telling you because I
question the quality and detail of news you're getting there, and
Israel seems to be cutting off as much communication as possible so
I doubt they want you to know what's happening.
In one town in Lebanon further south, Saida, there's been a
massacre. The reporter that was there at the time said a 12-story
building has been bombed, and within it was the Lebanese civil
defense. The reporter could barely breathe anymore because he was
completely overtaken by the sight, but he said there were bodies and
body parts everywhere, under the rubble...
Two days ago they bombed their water reservoirs. WATER. And the
hostpital, and their wheat storage tanks in Saida. Now they're
bombing petrol everywhere and no one can find a gas station with
gas. That means cars are running out, and so are generators. My
grandma's not baking anything to save fuel, but she says they have
wood. Phone antennas are also a target, as are trucks that
transport anything. Down by the port, trucks are currently on
fire. One truck carrying petrol on its way to Baalbeck got bombed
on the road. In Beirut, a bus carrying 31 people got bombed, then
an ambulance came-- they bombed the ambulance. Israel threatened
that if Lebanon fires any anti-aircraft artillery, they'll strike
harder. So we're not allowed to defend ourselves. Even a private
company bombed last night. At this point practically every bridge
has been bombed, and now they're working on the small ones. There's
one between my mom's town and my dad's; we went yesterday then said
goodbye to my dad's side of the family because it's too dangerous to
travel anymore. Usually there's someone from the Lebanese military
there; for the first time, no one was on that bridge.
All around our area, refugees are flooding in from the south and
from Beirut. The schools are full, and so are the hospitals.
Israel dropped flyers on Beirut a few days ago saying to stay away
from places where Hisbollah is (even though they've gotten rid of
fuel that cars can use to leave). At this point, Israel's
justifying all their actions by (however indirectly) connecting them
to Hisbollah, and actually have the nerve to say they're trying to
keep us safe. Have no doubt that Lebanon's being destroyed, and the
targets have nothing to do with Hisbollah. They are civilians and
civilian infrastructure. If they have any doubt, they don't ask,
they destroy just to be sure.
I don't know what the casualty count is, but I hope it slows its
escalation. Most of the bombing is at night and people can't sleep
because of the mini-earthquakes they cause, not to mention the
constant fear and uncertainty. I heard 8 bombs coming from 2
different places in Beirut within 5 minutes. There is now a
constant cloud of smog over the area and we can barely see, thanks
to the fighter jets.
As for us getting back, it's not so easy. The US Embassy said we
have to figure out tickets, but Middle East Airlines said the US
Embassy does it. Somehow we have to get to Cyprus; from there, it
could be a month before we get back to the US. I'm reluctant to
leave my family here and worry that when the Americans leave, the US
will stop caring... if they are caring right now.
I'm out of time, but we're trying to leave as soon as we can, as
safely as we can. We're going to Beirut today to the Embassy;
hopefully the trip will be uneventful.
BBC.co.uk also has some good coverage to catch you up to speed.
Here's the update. By the way I'm telling you because I
question the quality and detail of news you're getting there, and
Israel seems to be cutting off as much communication as possible so
I doubt they want you to know what's happening.
In one town in Lebanon further south, Saida, there's been a
massacre. The reporter that was there at the time said a 12-story
building has been bombed, and within it was the Lebanese civil
defense. The reporter could barely breathe anymore because he was
completely overtaken by the sight, but he said there were bodies and
body parts everywhere, under the rubble...
Two days ago they bombed their water reservoirs. WATER. And the
hostpital, and their wheat storage tanks in Saida. Now they're
bombing petrol everywhere and no one can find a gas station with
gas. That means cars are running out, and so are generators. My
grandma's not baking anything to save fuel, but she says they have
wood. Phone antennas are also a target, as are trucks that
transport anything. Down by the port, trucks are currently on
fire. One truck carrying petrol on its way to Baalbeck got bombed
on the road. In Beirut, a bus carrying 31 people got bombed, then
an ambulance came-- they bombed the ambulance. Israel threatened
that if Lebanon fires any anti-aircraft artillery, they'll strike
harder. So we're not allowed to defend ourselves. Even a private
company bombed last night. At this point practically every bridge
has been bombed, and now they're working on the small ones. There's
one between my mom's town and my dad's; we went yesterday then said
goodbye to my dad's side of the family because it's too dangerous to
travel anymore. Usually there's someone from the Lebanese military
there; for the first time, no one was on that bridge.
All around our area, refugees are flooding in from the south and
from Beirut. The schools are full, and so are the hospitals.
Israel dropped flyers on Beirut a few days ago saying to stay away
from places where Hisbollah is (even though they've gotten rid of
fuel that cars can use to leave). At this point, Israel's
justifying all their actions by (however indirectly) connecting them
to Hisbollah, and actually have the nerve to say they're trying to
keep us safe. Have no doubt that Lebanon's being destroyed, and the
targets have nothing to do with Hisbollah. They are civilians and
civilian infrastructure. If they have any doubt, they don't ask,
they destroy just to be sure.
I don't know what the casualty count is, but I hope it slows its
escalation. Most of the bombing is at night and people can't sleep
because of the mini-earthquakes they cause, not to mention the
constant fear and uncertainty. I heard 8 bombs coming from 2
different places in Beirut within 5 minutes. There is now a
constant cloud of smog over the area and we can barely see, thanks
to the fighter jets.
As for us getting back, it's not so easy. The US Embassy said we
have to figure out tickets, but Middle East Airlines said the US
Embassy does it. Somehow we have to get to Cyprus; from there, it
could be a month before we get back to the US. I'm reluctant to
leave my family here and worry that when the Americans leave, the US
will stop caring... if they are caring right now.
I'm out of time, but we're trying to leave as soon as we can, as
safely as we can. We're going to Beirut today to the Embassy;
hopefully the trip will be uneventful.
BBC.co.uk also has some good coverage to catch you up to speed.