UAE: Anger, Frustration at Lebanon Bombings

By IPS Correspondents Reprint | | Print |

Meena Janardhan

DUBAI, Jul 17 2006 (IPS) - Israel’s air raids on Lebanon have evoked strong reactions in the United Arab Emirates and other Persian Gulf countries, thousands of whose nationals have had to flee the ‘war zone’ on short notice.

Tourists and others leaving Lebanon over the Syrian border, after Israeli air raids damaged Beirut airport’s runways on Jul 13, found Israeli jets strafing and bombing the Beirut-Damascus international highway.

More than 25,000 nationals of the Gulf countries were reported to be in Lebanon on business or holiday when the conflict started up Wednesday with the Shiite Hezbollah, that is based in Lebanon, launching raids across the border, kidnapping two Israeli soldiers and killing eight others.

Since then, both sides have escalated attacks, with Israel bombing key targets throughout Lebanon and Hezbollah firing dozens of missiles into northern Israel and the port of Haifa. More than 200 people are reported to have died on both sides, so far.

Lebanese expatriates living in the UAE have reacted strongly to the Israeli bombings. ”All we want is peace and these attacks have shattered our hopes – this is really unfair and cruel, I can’t understand why the international community is not doing anything about it,” said Riad Aloul, a Lebanese public relations manager in Dubai.

”My mother is visiting relatives in Lebanon,” said Rufa Halabi, a Lebanese nurse who works in Dubai. ”The village she is in has been totally cut off by the shelling. Now there is no way she can get out – we are so worried. These attacks are totally uncalled for and taking the life of civilians in such a callous manner is really brutal,” she added.

UAE residents, including more than 1,200 nationals, stranded in Lebanon, have been advised to contact their respective embassies in Beirut. Emirates Airlines and Etihad Airways, the country’s leading airlines, have increased flights to Damascus to help evacuate those who can make it by road Syria.

UAE ambassador in Lebanon, Mohammad Sultan Al-Suwaidi, said in a press statement: ”Expatriates are facing two key problems. The first is a shortage of buses; all the embassies and consulates in Lebanon are trying to get buses for their citizens, which is creating a major transportation problem. The second problem is that some expatriates going via Syria might face problems on the Lebanese -Syrian borders as they need visas to enter Syria and most of them don’t have visas.”

With the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah escalating, several countries were reported making arrangements to get their citizens out of Lebanon. The U.S. has begun evacuating some of 25,000 of its citizens using helicopters. France, which has 20,000 citizens in Lebanon, is expected to begin evacuation by sea on Monday.

Israel’s attacks were the heaviest in more than two decades on Lebanon, a country it has officially been at war with since 1948. Lebanon had begun to regain some of its past reputation of being a playground for Arab tourists when the air strikes occurred, catching many unawares.

”I go to Lebanon every year to spend the summer vacation. All hell broke loose within two days of my reaching Beirut and my holiday turned into a nightmare,” said Mona Al-Tayaran, a Saudi teacher in a Dubai school, after returning from Beirut using an alternate route, on Saturday.

”I decided to take a longer route as I heard that the BeirutûDamascus highway was being shelled. Just as we got on to the highway, the shells poured down. It was horrible and we were deafened by the sound and blinded by the smoke but were lucky to escape and reach home safely,” she said.

Satish Tampi, an Indian expatriate, who was in Beirut on an official trip, said: ”When we heard about the attacks, our first priority was to get out, but with the airport getting bombed, we didn’t know what to do. But the Indian embassy officials were very helpful and got us in touch with other Indians who were stranded too. We decided to try and reach Damascus as a group, but the buses were full and taxi drivers either refused to come or demanded about 700 US dollars for a trip that usually costs 20 dollars. We managed one for 350 dollars.”

”The two-hour journey took us eight hours, but we were lucky -it took some others 15-16 hours. The conditions at the border were totally chaotic with hundreds of people clogging the roads seeking entry into Syria. We had three things in our favour – one, we were in a group so we could guard each other’s belongings; two, we had money and that saw us through; and three, we had transport and picked a relatively safe route,” Tampi said.

The violence has also stoked fears of oil supply disruptions in the region, pushing prices above 78 US dollars a barrel. Though Israel and Lebanon are not major oil suppliers, there is fear that the conflict could spill over to other countries in the region, which produces nearly a third of the world’s oil.

Economic repercussions for the UAE include losses for businessmen who have invested heavily in residential projects in Lebanon. Travel and tourism are already affected with agencies in the country besieged by calls for changes in itineraries.

Officials at Dubai airport said travellers with urgent business in Lebanon were flying to Damascus and going by road to Beirut.

In Sharjah, budget carrier Air Arabia is offering vacationers the opportunity to exchange Beirut-bound tickets for flights to destinations like Egypt and Turkey at no extra cost.

Alka Nagpal, a travel consultant in Dubai, said, ”We have had frantic cancellations, rebookings and enquiries about safety. Lebanon has been a favourite destination for (Persian) Gulf residents and all of a sudden it has turned into a ‘no-go’ zone. This will seriously affect our business.”

While Arab leaders are generally condemning the Israeli military action in Lebanon, they have also indirectly criticised the Lebanese Shiite movement, Hezbollah, for harming Arab interests.

”It is necessary to make a distinction between legitimate resistance to occupation and irresponsible adventurism adopted by certain elements within the state,” the Saudi Press Agency quoted an official as saying on Thursday.

”I hold Hezbollah entirely responsible. Kidnapping Israeli soldiers is not the final solution,” said Lebanese nurse Rufa.

Suleiman Awad, a Dubai-based Palestinian intellectual born and raised in Lebanon, said: ”While I am concerned about the safety of my family, it pains me to see the lack of reaction from the Arab nations – if a group like Hezbollah can challenge Israel, why can’t nations with much more military power do anything? People are getting slaughtered everyday, first in Palestine, now in Lebanon, but there is no reprisal nor are there any negotiations. When will this change?”

An editorial in the Dubai-based ‘Gulf News’ on Friday summed up the frustration by saying: ”The present inaction by Arab nations demonstrates fully well the divisions between respective countries, regardless of which organisation they are members of.”