Litani River in Lebanon
Lebanon has been hit by particularly stormy weather in the past two weeks, as on Wednesday, footage from the Litani River showed its banks overflowed.
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According to reports in Lebanon, heavy rains caused soil runoff from the adjacent agricultural areas to the Litani, leading to the collapse of the walls surrounding the river and flooding nearby roads.
Local authorities worked to reopen the blocked routes and announced ongoing efforts to prevent further flooding. The Litani River has been mentioned in recent weeks in the context of the war between Israel and Hezbollah, with Israel demanding the terror group's forces be removed from the border area and stay north of the river.
Many other areas in Lebanon have also been suffering from stormy weather in the past two weeks. Those particularly affected are the Syrian refugees in local camps, mainly in the northern part of the country. Due to the heavy rainfall, the camps were flooded, and refugees tried to find shelter and escape from the cold. Videos of flooded refugee tents were shared online, with users calling on Lebanon to save the refugees from another humanitarian crisis.
Refuge camp in Lebanon flooded after heavy rain
A spokesperson responsible for monitoring the situation of Syrian refugees in the city of Akkar in northern Lebanon said, "The storm caused severe damage to both Lebanese and refugees alike, affecting livelihoods, personal property, and agricultural areas." He noted that the most significant damage took place in the border town of Al Awdah, located close to the country's border with Syria.
The refugees told Lebanese news outlet Al-Araby Al-Jadeed that the storm was unlike any they had experienced before. In December of last year, four Syrian children were killed after floods in the town of Hams in northern Lebanon caused the building they were in to collapse.