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Thousands uprooted by the war in Lebanon have been unable to reach southern towns occupied by Israel, but some have tried anyway. For one man, the journey was deadly.
Feb. 18, 2025Updated 1:28 p.m. ET
For months after the Israel-Hezbollah war that devastated southern Lebanon, the Alawieh family would visit a hillside near their ruined home to catch whatever glimpse they could of what remained.
Their olive trees were gone. So were their goats, and the lemon and fig orchards that had taken years to bear fruit. Their house was just a pile of rubble.
Israel had agreed to a Jan. 26 deadline — two months after a cease-fire took effect — to withdraw its remaining forces from southern Lebanon. That day, Mousa Alawieh set out with his three teenage children and a cousin, eager to see what was left of their home in the border town of Aitaroun.
Mr. Alawieh, 45, a metal worker, had been displaced for more than a year and struggling to make ends meet. He had hoped to salvage whatever possessions he could from the wreckage, family members said.
But he never made it home.
As he and his family were driving through their flattened town, they encountered at least two Israeli soldiers on the road who shot multiple times at the family’s car, killing Mr. Alawieh, according to video footage verified by The New York Times and accounts from his brother and brother-in-law.
Asked about the shooting of Mr. Alawieh, the Israeli military said the matter was “under review.”
Israel had delayed its withdrawal that day, but Mr. Alawieh was unaware and believed the military had begun to pull out of Aitaroun, according to Yaacoub Alawieh, his brother.
