Lebanese whose homes were destroyed in the war want to rebuild. Many face a long wait [View all]

Source: AP

Six weeks into a ceasefire that halted the war between Israel and Hezbollah, many displaced Lebanese whose homes were destroyed in the fighting want to rebuild — but reconstruction and compensation are slow in coming.

Large swaths of southern and eastern Lebanon, as well as Beirut’s southern suburbs, lie in ruins, tens of thousands of houses reduced to rubble in Israeli airstrikes. The World Bank estimated in a report in November — before the ceasefire later that month — that losses to Lebanon’s infrastructure amount to some $3.4 billion.

In the south, residents of dozens of villages along the Lebanon-Israel border can’t go back because Israeli soldiers are still there. Under the U.S.-negotiated ceasefire deal, Israeli forces are supposed to withdraw by Jan. 26 but there are doubts they will.

Read more: https://apnews.com/article/lebanon-israel-hezbollah-ceasefire-reconstruction-dea56cbb5e5615b4973fcdb2d7b53de2