As search teams combed the ruins of residential buildings across from Rafik Hariri University Hospital just south of Lebanon’s capital, locals listened for signs of their loved ones in the wreckage.
The air was thick with dust. The wreckage beneath, mangled and smoldering. The overnight Israeli strike had come without warning, leaving no time to evacuate.
By morning, search teams were still pulling bodies from the ruins of the residential buildings across from Rafik Hariri University Hospital, the largest public health facility in Lebanon. Locals gathered on Tuesday at the site, just south of Beirut, listening for the ringtones of their loved ones’ phones emanating from under the debris.
“We’re hearing his phone ringing. It keeps ringing under the rubble,” said Mpsati Mi, 30, an Ethiopian national who was searching for her friend, Aamal.
“He’s not only a neighbor, but a brother to me,” she said.
“I tried to call,” said another local resident, Ahmad Kalash, a Syrian national who had already visited nearby hospitals to see if he could find his friend, Hussein.
“I’m waiting to hear anything from the rescuers,” he said.
