Erasing Bint Jbail: What War Looks Like Now

Shownotes Mohamad Bazzi was born in southern Lebanon in 1975, and spent his first years in the border town of Bint Jbail. In the half century since, his family’s village has been invaded and destroyed multiple times. Today, Bazzi’s extended family shelters in the far-flung spots where they have sought shelter during the war that began at the end of February, while Bazzi takes stock of what is drearily familiar about the latest round of violence —and what is shockingly new. This latest Israeli war against Lebanon has transgressed the norms of war to an unprecedented degree, with a staggering level of destruction in southern Lebanon. Israeli leaders have proclaimed their intention to depopulate the border area, where more than half a million Lebanese people live. The world has gotten used to a steady stream of war, displacement, and avoidable death in the Middle East, but Bazzi argues that Israel’s war on Lebanon, modeled after Gaza, has crossed a line. The United States and its allies could stop Israel’s wars—and they should. Related reading Mohamad Bazzi, “Is This What War Looks Like Now?” Guardian, April 24, 2026 Participants Mohamad Bazzi is director of the Hagop Kevorkian Center for Near Eastern Studies and a journalism professor at New York University. He is the former Middle East bureau chief at Newsday. Thanassis Cambanis is director of Century International.  Date: Tuesday, May 5, 2026 Episode: Order from Ashes 111