A 10-day ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah brokered by the United States took effect Friday, prompting thousands of displaced Lebanese to begin the journey home in long convoys of vehicles piled high with salvaged belongings. The truce follows a devastating conflict that displaced more than one million people, leaving southern Lebanon heavily damaged and residents uncertain whether the fragile calm will hold.
The immediate return of civilians marks a critical moment for the region, as the fate of the ceasefire remains unclear. While the truce appeared to hold overnight, residents expressed deep skepticism about its durability, with some questioning whether Israeli forces would honor the agreement.
Thousands Begin Long Journey Home
A fragile calm settled over Lebanon as a US-brokered 10-day ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah took hold Friday, breaking a cycle of escalating conflict that has devastated the country. By early morning, thousands of displaced Lebanese headed south in a steady stream of vehicles, many piled high with mattresses, suitcases, and salvaged belongings, seeking to return to homes left behind months earlier.
Cars backed up for kilometers on the coastal highway leading south to the Qasmiyeh bridge over the Litani River, the key crossing linking the southern city of Tyre to the north. The bridge itself bore fresh scars from recent fighting — Israeli airstrikes had damaged it just a day earlier, and hastily repaired sections allowed only a single lane to pass through. Despite the congestion and the dust storms that filled the air, drivers cheered each other and exchanged blessings as they inched forward.
The exodus follows displacement of more than one million people by the latest Israel-Hezbollah war, a conflict that escalated dramatically after Israel invaded Lebanon in response to renewed Hezbollah missile fire. An earlier Israel-Lebanon ceasefire, brokered in November 2024, had failed as Israel continued near-daily strikes against the Iran-backed militant group, which responded with renewed attacks.
A Return to Ruins
The villages that residents encountered upon arrival told the story of the conflict’s intensity. In Jibsheet, a small coastal town in the south, residents stepped out of their vehicles onto landscapes of destruction — flattened apartment blocks, streets littered with chunks of concrete and twisted aluminum shutters, electrical wires dangling from broken poles.
Zainab Fahas, 23, stood amid the ruins of her neighborhood, registering the overwhelming scope of damage. “I feel free being back,” she said. “But look, they destroyed everything — the square, the houses, the shops, everything.”
The neighborhood of Haret Hreik in Beirut’s southern suburb presented a similar sight. Entire buildings had been reduced to rubble after weeks of intense Israeli airstrikes. According to Sadek Slim, the neighborhood’s deputy mayor, Israel had struck Haret Hreik 62 times over the last six weeks. Clearing partially damaged buildings would be possible, Slim said, but buildings reduced to rubble would require specialized heavy equipment that remained unavailable.
Skepticism About Durability
Yet even as thousands moved toward home, deep skepticism about the ceasefire’s durability ran through conversations along the highway and in the displaced-persons camps. Residents had lived through earlier failed ceasefires and expressed doubt that this one would hold.
Ali Wahdan, 27, a medic in Jibsheet, spoke from experience — he had been severely wounded in an Israeli airstrike on his building’s emergency services headquarters during the first week of the war and remained on crutches. Walking over the rubble that had nearly killed him, he voiced his doubts plainly. “I wish it were different. But this war will continue,” he said.
Ali Balhas, from Siddiqeen town in Tyre province, expressed similar skepticism. “Our homes in the south are gone, destroyed,” he said. “Israel is deceptive. You never really know its policies or how it will act toward people.” He remained reluctant to bring his six children south immediately, choosing to wait until safety appeared more assured.
Amira Ayyash, from Qaaqaiat al-Jisr in Nabatiyeh province, took a cautious approach, deciding to wait and observe before committing to a full return. “We do not know at what hour they might strike us, for they are treacherous,” she said. “So we decided to take it slowly.”
Casualties Up to the Final Hour
The final hours before the ceasefire took effect at midnight were among the heaviest of the conflict. According to Mona Abou Zeid, director of Al-Najda al Shaabiya Hospital in the southern city of Nabatiyeh, Thursday was one of the most intensive days of Israeli strikes since the latest phase of the war began. Wounded continued arriving at the hospital until around one hour after the ceasefire went into effect.
Among those arriving with severe injuries was Mahmoud Sahmarani, 33, who had stepped outside his home to buy charcoal for his shisha water pipe when an Israeli strike hit his five-story apartment building. The strike killed his father and cousin, who were inside preparing lunch. All that remained of his apartment was rubble.
From his hospital bed, swollen-eyed and head wrapped in bandages, Sahmarani voiced the frustration many residents share. “Israel should have withdrawn from Lebanon,” he said. “If we don’t get them out, they will continue to kill us.”
Political Dimensions
Ahmad Lahham, 48, stood on the rubble of his apartment building in Haret Hreik — which had housed a branch of Hezbollah’s financial arm, Al-Qard Al-Hassan — and waved a Hezbollah flag. The gesture carried political meaning: Lahham’s expression of loyalty to the group and his praise of Iran’s role in brokering the ceasefire. “Only the Iranians stood with us, no one else,” he said, directing sharp criticism at Lebanon’s government for its direct negotiations with Israel. “We are at the service of the fighters,” he added, pledging his continued commitment to Hezbollah.
The ceasefire appeared to be largely holding overnight as of Friday, offering the first genuine break in hostilities after months of escalating violence.