Heil al-Selom, located in southern Beirut, is now difficult to recognize. Once a bustling, densely populated area, it is now filled with the remains of destroyed buildings, exposed wires, and twisted metal.
Ladders left amid the damaged building layers no longer lead anywhere. The daily sounds of life that once filled this neighborhood have been replaced by silence and emptiness.
While Israeli attacks continued in other areas of southern Beirut under strong Hezbollah control after the Iran-Israel conflict began, local residents reported that this particular neighborhood remained quiet until the afternoon of April 8.
Since the outbreak of the conflict, Israel repeatedly issued orders for residents of southern Beirut to evacuate their homes.
There were also multiple air raids in the area.
The Attack That Destroyed Both Buildings and Lives
Residents of Heil al-Selom say only a few have left the neighborhood because others had nowhere else to go. According to them, the area had been relatively calm.
On a Wednesday, Mohammad’s son Abbas was sleeping when an Israeli air strike hit their residential building.
“The three floors above mine collapsed and fell right into my room,” Mohammad recounts. “Everything… was buried under the rubble.”
Israel reported that the deadly operation began at 14:15 local time, targeting nearly 100 sites within 10 minutes.
Such a brief period caused massive destruction.
Israel claims it targeted Hezbollah command centers and military locations. However, many of the casualties are known to be Lebanese civilians.
According to Lebanese authorities, 361 people died and over 1,000 were injured on that day.
‘This Is My Second Lost Home’
Weeks after the attack, a team visited various sites to analyze the events of that day.
We found Mohammad amidst the ruins of his home.
“This is my second lost home,” he says. “I lost my second home before in 2024. Now this one too.”
Emotionally, he adds, “It would have been better only to lose the house and not a life. These bricks can be rebuilt, but my son will never return.”
Although Israel claims it targeted Hezbollah, Mohammad points out that all those killed are civilians affected by the Israeli strikes on residential buildings.
“If I thought even one percent that Hezbollah members lived here, I wouldn’t have stayed here,” he says. “I would never have risked my son’s life.”
“Having reached 45 years, I avoid risks. I cannot let my young son live in such conditions.”
Following the death of his son, Mohammad expressed sympathy for Hezbollah while emphasizing the security of Lebanon in local media.
Many people we spoke to in the areas attacked by Israel expressed similar sentiments.
Additional reporting by Jasmine Dyer and Jake Tacy
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