Displaced Syrian Shia in Lebanon: Interview

With the fall of the Assad regime, a considerable number of Syrian Shia ended up becoming displaced in Lebanon, primarily originating from areas of Homs governorate. Some of those displaced were working with Hezbollah as the regime collapsed and appear to have continued their relationship with the group after the regime fell. For example, one individual from the Homs locality of al-Diyabiya- Ridha Muhammad Assaf- was reported on 16 March to have been killed in fighting for Hezbollah in south Lebanon (see below, his nom de guerre being Fida’). His brother Abbas, who remained behind in Syria, was assassinated not long after the news of Ridha’s death was publicised.

The displaced Syrian Shia in Homs now find themselves caught between a rock and a hard place: afraid or unable to return home, and now facing Israeli airstrikes in Lebanon.

To discuss the Syrian Shia in Lebanon and their experiences of displacement, I conducted an interview with Husayn Masto, a Syrian Shiite originally from Homs governorate and now displaced in Lebanon. This interview was conducted on 21 March and is edited and condensed for clarity.