Lebanese hold their breath as mediators scramble to avert all-out war

The last time Israel and Hezbollah went to war, in 2006, it lasted six weeks and caused major damage and loss of life in Lebanon. More than 1,000 Lebanese civilians were killed, along with up to 200 Hezbollah fighters. Of the 160 Israelis killed, most were soldiers.

All sides agree that a new war would be far more deadly and destructive.

And many here in Lebanon agree that the country cannot afford it. The economy is crippled, and the political system is dysfunctional. The government can’t even keep the lights on.

“I hope there won’t be a war,” says Hiba Maslkhi. “Lebanon won’t be able to cope.”

We meet the tracksuit-clad 35-year-old on a slip way at the waterfront in Beirut. She’s focused on the Mediterranean, fishing rod in hand.

“I hope wiser heads will prevail,” she says, “and that we can control the escalation so that things don’t get out of control.”

She takes every sonic boom personally. “If I hear one, I start to panic, and I wonder if they [Israeli forces] have hit near my house or bombed the airport.”

Hiba, who sells perfume for a living, says Lebanon has already suffered enough.

“Ten months is a long time for us to be psychologically destroyed, hiding in our houses,” she says. “We are scared to start businesses to earn some money because we think war might be around the corner.”