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‘It never scares us’: UAE’s Lebanese expats still flying home despite Israel-Hezbollah tension

'This is nothing new', one resident said adding that this makes their hearts fonder of their country

Published: Wed 31 Jul 2024, 3:37 PM

Updated: Fri 2 Aug 2024, 4:08 PM

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Smoke billows over the village of Khiam, amid cross-border hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, as pictured from Marjayoun, near the border with Israel, Lebanon on July 30 (Photo: Reuters)

Smoke billows over the village of Khiam, amid cross-border hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, as pictured from Marjayoun, near the border with Israel, Lebanon on July 30 (Photo: Reuters)

Despite escalating tensions and widespread flight cancellations, Lebanese expats in the UAE are still continuing with plans to visit home.

“This is nothing new to us,” said Ahmad Mohamad, who lives in Dubai. “We have always lived our lives not knowing whether we will survive the next minute. It never scares us. If anything, it makes our hearts fonder of our country.”

Amidst a tense stand off between Israel and Hezbollah and an attack in Beirut, several flights have been cancelled or rerouted. On Wednesday, Emirates airlines announced that customers transiting through Dubai to Beirut will not be accepted for travel on August 1 and 2. Earlier, Flydubai announced that it would only operate two flights per day to Beirut until August 2 as opposed to the three it was scheduled to have.

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The 37-year-old, who has booked flights to fly home to Beirut on Wednesday night, said he is moving forward with plans. “I will be flying home with my three children because I want them to stay in touch with my country and my family,” he said.

“So far, I don’t have any information on whether my flights will be delayed or postponed but I am very much looking forward to travelling back. I have a very deep love for Beirut and if anything happens while I am there, I am okay with it. We Lebanese people are very resilient.”

On Tuesday, Israel carried out a “targeted attack” on Beirut that killed at least three people and injured 74. Israeli military claimed responsibility for the strike, which it said was in retaliation for a Golan Heights attack on Saturday – an incident which Hezbollah has denied responsibility for.

Another Dubai resident Elie Khoury said he would also go ahead with his plans to travel back to Lebanon next week. “I am scheduled to travel back on August 9 and as long as there is no flight cancellations, I will go ahead with the trip,” he said. “These attacks are not really new to us and I really miss my family. I am hoping to go back and spend time with them.”

Some fly back to Dubai amid tension

Jad Saade, a Lebanese expat who has been residing in Dubai for the past nine years, was on vacation in Lebanon when he heard about potential attack. “For the past few days, we have been hearing about a possible attack,” he said. “I was hesitant but I decided to take a flight back to be safe because I needed to rejoin work.”

In the early hours of Tuesday, Jad made his way to the airport in an attempt to catch a flight. “There was a lot of tension and I heard about flight cancellations,” he said. “There were only two flights available and I was lucky to be able to come back."

He reached Dubai at 3am on Tuesday, and was "very shocked" to hear about the attack that had occurred in Lebanon on the same day of his arrival. The bombing had taken place just 10 minutes away from Jad's house in Lebanon.

Despite having his immediate family with him in Dubai, Jad was "worried sick” about the rest of his extended family in Lebanon. His family has relocated to another house for their safety and Jad has remained in close contact with them. "Nothing is happening now, but they're still at the distant house because it's better to be safe than sorry,” he said. “I am assisting them in whatever way I can and am praying for no further attacks."

Another Dubai expat who is on vacation in Lebanon who did not want to give her name said that she was worried about her flights back home. “I am supposed to travel back on August 4 to rejoin my work,” she said. “I am worried if I will be able to make it back. Hopefully by then everything would have blown over and the flights will be back to schedule.”

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