Ook eens een keertje goed nieuws!

Vandaag uit de Daily Star, een Engelstalige krant in Libanon, zie http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=1&categ_id=1&article_id=74254


Sectarian barriers fall as Lebanon aids the displaced
Shiite refugee in christian neighborhood: 'It is a pity that only misfortune unites us'

Nayla Razzouk

Agence France Presse

BEIRUT: "We came here because it is a Christian area the Israelis will not bomb," said Faten Fneish, one of thousands of Shiites who have sought refuge from Israel's military offensive on Lebanon at refugee centers in Christian neighborhoods. Fneish fled her home in the Southern village of Maarabun when she heard Hizbullah's leader, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, warning that difficult days lay ahead, as Israel's wrath rained down after the group's capture of two Israeli soldiers.

The veiled mother of five was sitting in the courtyard of a public school turned into a center for destitute displaced people in Karm al-Zaytoun, a Christian quarter of Beirut where crucifixes and madonnas stand on every corner.

Outside the school was a banner showing an old portrait of late President-elect Bashir Gemayel, once the leader of the Christian Lebanese Forces militia, shaking hands with his lieutenant Samir Geagea - back when he was still wearing a black beard and military fatigues.

The two men may be venerated by some Christians, but for the Shiite displaced families they are the ugly face of a militia responsible for a number of massacres during the 1975-1990 Civil War which still scar the social fabric in Lebanon.

"It is the first time we dare to come to this Christian neighborhood," said another veiled woman, Labibeh Khorshid, running her eyes across balconies overhead where neighbors gazed at the displaced families hanging their clothes to dry on the decorated windows of the classrooms.

"At first, we felt very unwelcome. People frowned at us or made comments about our veils. But now, we feel overwhelmed. They are giving us clothes, food, medicine and all," she said.

Her 10-year-old son Tamer is very happy. His eyes sparkle when he recalls the heartfelt stories told to the displaced children by two volunteer women - both Christian.

"I wish we could return this favor," she said, telling how residents of the neighborhood have been taking in displaced children to give them warm showers at home on a daily basis.

"It is a pity that only misfortune unites us. This shows that when we the people are left to each other, we can live together in peace and harmony. It is only politics and leaders that create these rifts," she said.

And the persons bringing together Christians and Muslims at the school, are hardly believers themselves. They are members of a leftist, secular movement. One of the volunteers is a young man called Guevara whose twin brother is named Fidel.

"A shop near the school which at first refused to receive the displaced people is now offering sugar-coated ice-cream cones for free to their children," Guevara said.

In the school playground, a man is writing elegant Arabic calligraphy on the wall. He is an artist who wants to leave a lasting mark to thank the residents of the neighborhood for their warm welcome to the displaced Southern villagers.

Israel unleashed vicious attacks mainly on Shiite regions, strongholds of Hizbullah in the rural South and the capital's southern suburbs. Beirut, which is predominantly Sunni and Christian, has opened its schools and public gardens for the displaced, who are virtually all Shiites.

Even in Southern Christian towns and villages which are perceived as less likely to be hit, homes, convents and schools have offered room for displaced people, who are for the most part Shiites.

An elderly man explains the situation with an old Arab proverb: "Me and my brother against our cousin, and me and my cousin against the enemy."

The sight is a stark difference from events of last year.

"Last year, we were chanting nasty slogans against each other. Today, we are helping each other because we have a common enemy," said 17-year-old Hussein Ismail, as he rolls his short sleeves up to impress a group of giggling veiled girls sitting on a nearby bench.

One of the youngsters who wanted to hang Nasrallah's portrait at the gate of the school was quickly reprimanded by the displaced themselves.

"We are not here to make problems, we have to respect where we are," explained a young man.