‘No Safe Place Anymore’ For Lebanon Baptists As Israeli-Hezbollah War Escalates
Baptists in Lebanon are suffering the escalation of Israel’s war with Hezbollah, as the war zone has expanded to include areas surrounding Arab Baptist Theological Seminary (ABTS) and the Beirut Baptist School, both founded by Southern Baptists.
“It feels like there is no safe place anymore,” ABTS President Wissam Nasrallah told Baptist Press April 10. “[The April 8] bombings marked a clear turning point in the war between Israel and Hezbollah. For the first time, the strikes systematically reached areas of Beirut and its outskirts that had until now been widely perceived as relatively safe, including Sunni neighborhoods, as well as a Christian area near ABTS.”
At least 303 were killed and more than 1,150 injured in a single day of Israeli strikes on heavily populated areas of Lebanon April 8, the Lebanon Health Ministry reported April 9. On Easter, at least three Christians were killed in Israeli strikes on Ain Saadeh, a majority Christian town near Beirut previously considered safe amid the war, Nasrallah said.
“While we are still trying to process these numbers, we ask ‘how long oh Lord?’ This seems to signal a deliberate effort not only to intensify pressure on Hezbollah, but also to detach the Lebanese front from the Iranian one, and to widen the sense among other Lebanese communities that they are paying the price for Hezbollah’s alignment with Iran.”
Air strikes continue between Israel and Hezbollah, aligned with Iran. Lebanon is not included in a fragile ceasefire in the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran, the U.S. said ahead of April 11 peace talks in Pakistan.
But Iran has argued for Lebanon’s inclusion in the ceasefire announced April 8, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is seeking peace talks directly with Hezbollah, CNN reported.
ABTS continues to shelter Christians and others who have fled the war zone previously concentrated in southern Lebanon, Nasrallah said, with 163 internally displaced persons currently housed there.
Six miles away at BBS, families remain in a “state of shock,” ABTS and BBS supporter Thimar announced April 9 in daily updates. At least 95 unidentified bodies are being held at Rafic Hariri University Hospital, said Thimar, formerly the Lebanese Society for Educational and Social Development.
“Beyond the numbers, a profound human crisis is emerging. Families are still trying to locate those unaccounted for, while many are now grieving unimaginable loss,” Thimar said. “Among the most heartbreaking realities is the number of children left without parents in a single afternoon, as the scale and intensity of the strikes shattered entire households.”
Beirut in particular suffered eight Israeli airstrikes April 8, Thimar reported, with all strikes hitting within a 2.5-mile radius of the school.
“The impact on our community today has been immediate and severe. At the time of the strikes, BBS head office staff had just left the school campus, with several individuals only meters away from active strike zones,” Thimar wrote. “Earlier in the day, preschool students with special needs and their therapists had been on campus but had left shortly before the strikes began.”
Thimar did not report the deaths of injuries of any BBS students or staff, but described the community as unsafe and unrecognizable amid the chaos.
“Many of our teachers and staff live in the surrounding areas,” Thimar said in its Thursday update. “When we checked in on one of our staff members, Sally, she was in deep distress, describing the scene as ‘hell on earth,’ with bodies in the streets and widespread destruction.”
Beirut traffic was reportedly at a standstill, and three BBS staff members remained stranded on the campus.
Residents of Ani Saadeh expressed confusion after Israeli strikes on the Christian community, The New York Times reported, as no known Hezbollah targets are located there. Previously, strikes around Beirut targeted Shiite Muslim areas, the Times reported.
Christians in Lebanon continue to request prayer from the global Christian community.
“Our only strength is prayer,” Thimar quoted BBS Principal Alice Wazir. “As we do our best to respond and care for those around us, we are deeply aware that this is far beyond what we can carry on our own. We ask for your prayers. Please pray for protection over our staff, students, and their families. Pray that we would endure this safely, and that in the midst of fear and devastation, we would see God’s intervention and sustaining grace.”
Late Southern Baptist missionaries Finlay and Julia Graham began work that led to both the BBS and the ABTS in the mid-1900s.
This article has been republished with permission from Baptist Press.
Diana Chandler is Baptist Press’ senior writer.