Ten harsh months have passed on the border villages of the Orontes Basin, a period that was not just displacement but a forced “exile” from homes and livelihoods, as the residents call it.

After the forced displacement, the tragic scene was completed with acts of burning, looting, and destruction of their homes within the border strip, leaving them caught between the hammer of suffering and the anvil of complete neglect from all sides.

“An absent state and violated dignities” is the slogan of the displaced residents to “An-Nahar”. The suffering they endured throughout this period of “oppression, humiliation, and degradation” worsened due to what they described as “complete neglect” by the Lebanese state.

This neglect, according to the residents, came as an “official, partisan, and sectarian decision,” leading to no engagement with their issue at any level.

The crisis went beyond official responsibility to involve partisan entities and authorities who neglected their cause and even went as far as “blocking anyone who could help us” driven by “narrow interests and personal favoritism.”

The most painful aspect remains the disregard for their dignity and the indifference to their living and health conditions. No one asked about their situation, the ability of patients to receive treatment, or the fate of their children who have been cut off from education since last year.

The residents feel they have paid the price for “reckless policies in which they have no stake,” all amid “complete neglect” that deprived them of their rights and a decent life.

Faced with this deliberate neglect, the forcibly displaced villagers decided to take an unprecedented escalatory step. After 10 months of patience and waiting, they announced organizing an open sit-in and camping around the Iranian embassy, a move with clear political connotations holding regional and local forces controlling the course of events responsible.

The movement’s goal is to raise a clear and firm slogan: “We want all our rights and accountability for those who trample on our dignity.” The residents demand in a statement that everyone bears responsibility, specifically Iran and “Hezbollah,” with explicit mention of Bekaa region official Hussein Al-Nemer.

The decision for the open sit-in is not just a protest but a declaration that the displaced are no longer willing to endure further betrayal and humiliation. Their patience has run out, and they now demand an end to the “exile,” full restoration of their rights, and accountability for all who neglected and violated their dignity throughout these harsh ten months.