Projects: Four Fingers in Iraq: Iraqi Refugees in Lebanon

Iraqi Refugees in Lebanon, December 2008
In 1985 Ali Lazen Saad Kinani was accused by Saddam Hussein's regime of hiding supporters of Ayatollah Sayed Mohammed Baqir al-Hakim, the exiled Shiite leader. He was sentenced to 60 years in prision. During the 17 years of his incarceration he was severely tortured. He was released in the general amnesty of 2002 and married Azhar Soudani Hussein. In 2005 he was kidnapped for ransom and the couple, along with their young son, continued to receive threats. Ali converted to Christianity and Azhar is also interested. Eventually the family fled to Lebanon. Ali collects scrap metal from garbage dumps to support the family and receives some small assistance from aid groups for food and for the rent of their one room apartment in the poor southern part of Beirut. Although the couple are loving and affectionate, Ali's past and the stress of living as a refugee cause him to suffer violent outbreaks, striking his wife Azhar at times. Lebanon is host to an estimated 50,000 Iraqi refugees.
Beirut, Lebanon.
Photo © J.B. Russell