Keys belonging to destroyed homes hang from a ceiling at an exhibition in Beirut, Lebanon, on Friday. The installation aims to preserve the memory of villages destroyed by Israeli forces in the country's south. JOSEPH EID/AFP
BEIRUT — Tears streamed down south Lebanon resident Fatima Hajj Ali's face as she stared at a host of keys hanging like wind chimes from the ceiling of a museum in Beirut — each one symbolizing a home, like her own, destroyed by Israel.
Hajj Ali is among the thousands of southerners who lost their houses in the recent conflicts between Israel and Hezbollah militants, the first of which broke out in 2023 and the second in March.
"We were supposed to go home and open the door with the key, but there is no door anymore," the 23-year-old said.
Despite a lull in fighting following the signing of a memorandum of understanding between the United States and Iran on June 17, intermittent Israeli strikes continue, as do widespread demolitions in and around occupied villages, making it impossible for many people to return.
