Lebanese Christians, including those from the historic Christian quarter of Tyre, are fleeing their homes amid Israel’s military campaign in the region. The campaign, which Israel says targets Hezbollah militants, has raised concerns among Christians about their safety and the preservation of their ancestral lands.

Displacement and Destruction

Darine Al Jouny Safadi, a Christian resident of Tyre, recently fled her home for the second time in almost as many months due to Israeli bombardment. She expressed her fears about the possibility of permanent displacement, saying, “This time it felt harder… Maybe because we had come back and said, ‘That’s it, we’re back.'”

The Greek Orthodox Archbishop of Tyre, Sidon and Dependencies, Elias Kfoury, described the scale of destruction as unprecedented, stating, “This is the hardest round… It has spared neither people nor stone nor places of worship nor antiquities.” He estimated that the Israeli military has caused over $100 million in damage to places of worship in south Lebanon.

Concerns About Heritage and Faith

Archbishop Kfoury accused Israel of attempting to erase the memory of the country, including its Christian heritage. He said, “Erasing heritage means erasing the record of the region: the history, the archaeology, and a person’s connection to them.” The region is home to numerous ancient churches and religious sites, including the St. George Melkite Catholic Church, which was hit by an Israeli strike in a previous war and remains in ruins.

Israel’s military responded to the allegations, stating that it was acting “solely against Hezbollah military targets, in accordance with international law” and rejecting any claims of intentional harm to civilians, places of worship, or heritage sites.

Original reporting: Appleton, WI News Feed (HLL/CB) — read the source article.