Mogadishu (AX) — As Israel’s airstrikes rage across Lebanon, countless Somali students find themselves ensnared in Beirut, caught in the turmoil. The bombings, honing in on Hezbollah’s lairs, have laid waste to Lebanon’s capital, claimed thousands of lives, and shattered vital infrastructure.
The plight of Somali students, alongside other foreigners, grows grimmer as flights remain halted and escape routes choked. An enormous Israeli airstrike in eastern Lebanon, close to Syria’s border, blasted a 12-foot-wide crater, severing a vital road lifeline for evacuees fleeing the surging conflict. Lebanon’s Transport Minister Ali Hamieh verified the destruction, further complicating attempts to exit the beleaguered nation.
Hamda Rageh, stationed in Lebanon, painted a somber picture, “There’s just one airline operational, restricted to Middle Eastern destinations. All other international flights are on hold,” she disclosed to the BBC Somali Service. Stuck in Beirut, leaving isn’t an option due to flight unavailability.
Beirut’s airport, under heavy fire, is a scene of havoc, with colossal explosions illuminating the night sky as Israeli jets target Hezbollah zones. The assault escalated after Hezbollah’s leader, Hassan Nasrallah, fell victim last Friday. Israeli forces now pursue his apparent heir, Hashem Safieddine. Lebanese citizens are fleeing in droves, yet foreigners, including students, face additional hurdles securing transport out of the turmoil.
While some countries like Tunisia have dispatched helicopters for citizen evacuation, numerous foreign students, among them Somalis, find themselves stuck.
Already, over 1,500 have perished in Lebanon, with Thursday alone seeing Lebanese authorities reporting 37 deaths and more than 150 injuries. The conflict displaced over a million, plummeting the nation towards a humanitarian abyss. Hezbollah, still clutching ample missile reserves and countless fighters, retaliates, firing 230 projectiles into Israel.
Heightening regional tensions, Iran has pitched in, catapulting 200 ballistic missiles at Israel in response to past attacks on Tehran and recent Hezbollah assaults.
Global watchers express mounting alarm over the chance of a drawn-out war. The G7 nations implore “restraint” among combatants, warning of an inevitable wild escalation in the Middle East. Despite pleas, the calamity festers, shadowing fears of Israel entering a similar quagmire to its protracted 1982 Lebanon invasion.
Critical services, like electricity and internet, have ground to a halt, virtually dismantling online education and disrupting students’ academic pursuits.
Rageh worries conditions will only spiral as the Israel-Hezbollah standoff intensifies. “Folks dread this evolving into something nastier than the 2006 Hezbollah-Israel scuffle.”
Edited by: Ali Musa
Axadle international–Monitoring
