Thirty-nine Lebanese, among them seven former “Israeli”-allied militiamen, who fled to “Israel” during its troop withdrawal in May returned home on Monday.
The 39 arrived by bus at the village of Rosh Hanikra in northwestern “Israel”. They were then picked up by two UN buses and driven across the border to Naqoura, where they were handed over to Lebanese intelligence officers.
Shahine is a 35-year-old woman with three children who refused to give her first name. “It was a miserable life over there ... Thank God I’m back,” she said as she collected the belongings Lebanese officers had just finished searching. She’d spent four months sharing two rooms with her family in northern “Israel”.
“There’s nothing like home,” she said. Her husband, a former member of the militia, opted to stay in “Israel” rather than face trial in Lebanon, she added.
About 6,000 Lebanese ­ mostly members of or linked to the now-defunct militia ­ and their families sought refuge in “Israel” during the withdrawal.
Jiryes Fardisi, a returning former militiaman, said coming back to his country was better ­ “regardless of what will happen to me.”
Among the seven ex-militiamen was the gardener of the top “Israeli” agent Antoine Lahd.
The women and children among Monday’s returnees ­ which brought to 889 the number of Lebanese refugees who have returned since the “Israeli” withdrawal ­ were free to go to their home villages.
The seven collaborators, including Fardisi, were taken away by army officers for interrogation.
The returnees included a batch of 16 children, aged between seven and 12, who met their grandparents in Naqoura.
“The parents of the children sent them home because they don’t want them to study in
an “Israeli” environment,” Therese Daoud said as she picked up her four grandchildren. “They want them to study in Lebanese schools.
“Their parents don’t want to return,” she explained. “They’re trying to leave “Israel” and travel to some other countries.”
On Aug. 3, some 1,300 Lebanese children of “Israeli” agents started school in “Israel”, where they were offered a “Lebanese program” of studies in Arabic, It also included seven hours of Hebrew each week to ease their move to the Jewish state.

The Daily Star, 26-9-2000.