Foreign nationals have been warned to leave Lebanon as tensions with Israel rise. But Lebanese expats visiting family in Lebanon are also cutting their holidays short.
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00:00A long-awaited reunion is about to end.
00:04The usual morning coffee ritual is not cheerful today.
00:09The Khayat family had big plans for their stay in Lebanon.
00:13They came from Dubai to spend their vacation with their in-laws in Beirut.
00:19But due to the growing tension in Lebanon,
00:22the family had to cut their vacation in half and book the earliest flight out.
00:28This is my first vacation in two years.
00:32I chose to spend it in Lebanon with my family and my friends,
00:35but it's getting more and more tense and I'm worried that I may get stuck here.
00:39I had a similar experience in the 2006 war,
00:42and I don't want to go through this again,
00:44so I've put my vacation on hold and I'm going back to Dubai.
00:49Everyone remembers the 2006 war between Israel and Lebanon.
00:54Israeli warplanes bombed Beirut's only airport on the very first day.
00:59Tens of thousands were stranded in Beirut.
01:03Ziad cannot afford to lose his job.
01:08We booked at the last minute, but we couldn't find a direct flight to Dubai.
01:13We have three stops before our final destination,
01:16and it costs triple the regular price.
01:19One last selfie.
01:21One extra tight hug.
01:23And a grudging goodbye.
01:29The ongoing hostilities between Israel and the Iranian-backed Lebanese militia Hezbollah
01:34pushed diplomatic missions to urge their citizens to get out of Lebanon.
01:39Airlines were already cancelling flights to and from Beirut,
01:43leading to a scramble for tickets.
01:47Because of the security concerns,
01:50the Italian embassy announced we had to leave early.
01:53This is the third flight that I'm taking,
01:56because two other flights were cancelled earlier.
02:00I live in Lebanon.
02:02The situation is so tense and stressful.
02:05We don't know what will happen.
02:07We're trying to escape, but we didn't know where to go.
02:12We were looking for tickets, but everything was fully booked.
02:15We just found a ticket by chance,
02:18and we are staying away until the situation settles and we can come back.
02:27The Hayats want to come back too,
02:29but until tensions between Israel and Lebanon die down,
02:32it's simply too risky.
02:34They only hope it will not be another two years
02:37before they can see their family and friends again.