In south Lebanon, conflict casts long shadow over Christmas

TYRE, Lebanon, - In the Lebanese city of Tyre, an ancient Christian community is preparing for Christmas in the shadow of conflict, with the intermittent thud of shelling at the border serving as a constant reminder of the threat of war with Israel.

There is little to indicate the festive season is approaching in the picturesque old city, where families from the villages at the frontier have sought refuge during the worst hostilities with Israel in 17 years.

"No one invested in decorations because the south is in mourning and pain," said Zouheir Halaoui, the owner of Al Fanar restaurant and hotel in the old city, a warren of narrow streets and stone homes perched on the shoreline.

Some 20 km from the border, Lebanon's southern most city has provided refuge for many since hostilities erupted between Israel and Lebanon's Hezbollah - a knock-on effect of the war between the Palestinian group Hamas and Israel some 200 km away.

"If it stays like this, I don't think we will have a New Year party or a Christmas party," he said, adding that many reservations had been cancelled.

"You have a lot of victims. It's unethical to have a party, celebrations when people are living this situation."

A site of ancient civilisation on the Mediterranean, Tyre is home to a predominantly Shi'ite Muslim population living alongside a Christian community with historic roots in the old city.

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Thouraya Alameh, a 31-year-old mother of two, said she had fled her husband's village of Debl at the border to stay with her parents in Tyre.

Alameh said her cousin, who lives in Qatar and usually flies home with his family for Christmas, would not be coming this year because of the conflict, the worst hostilities between Israel and Shi'ite Hezbollah since a 2006 war.

The conflict marks another blow for a country where many are still suffering the effects of a catastrophic financial collapse four years ago. Alameh said the economic crisis had weighed on Christmas celebrations, and now conflict had made things worse.

"Instead of celebrating at home, in our village, with our relatives, we were displaced," she said. "We will all be here, but the happiness is bitter."

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