A sense of belonging and attachment to the very land you grew up in could cost you your life when dealing with a merciless enemy. 

The following true story is one of many untold stories buried under the rubble of Israeli hatred, brutality, and inhumanity.

Life in South Lebanon under the Israeli occupation and its collaborators from 1982 onward was always molded with suffering, deprivation, agony, torture, arrests, imprisonment, and a lot, a lot of tears. But throughout the years, the people of South Lebanon developed a mechanism to deal with all the Israeli atrocities; they were nurtured on resistance, defiance, courage, and most importantly, dignity. Armed with this sense of dignity, they stood tall and strong and stood in the face of one of the most brutal occupations in history. 

And the family of Mariam Sbeity Fadlallah (Im Karim) from the village of Ainatha was one of many of these southern families. It was a big family comprising the father and the mother (Im Karim) and their 6 boys and two girls. They led a very simple life. They were farmers. They relied for their livelihood on the land, which was deeply rooted in the innards of their souls; which was a turning point throughout their lives. How? It was the same land they refused to abandon come hell or high water. 

Reflecting on the situation at the time, Mohammad, one of Im Karim's sons, describes to Al Mayadeen English how it was up close. "You know, during the occupation, they used to practice all types of harassment, as well as arbitrary arrests, threats, and maximum pressure," he says, adding that "the more frustrated the Israelis, the South Lebanon Army (SLA), and their agents grew, the more pressure they practiced on the people."

The reason for that, according to him, is not the Resistance, but to keep the people alert, anxious, and scared to avoid any chance of them rising up or cooperating with the Resistance.

Living in a southern village at the time meant being arrested or imprisoned out of nowhere and for no reason other than pressuring the people to yield. "Going after the youth for their own protection, they [the Israelis] would use them as human shields to protect themselves," Mohammad explains.

So, fearing for her male children as they grew up and reached their teenage years, Im Karim pleaded with them to leave the village and head to the capital, Beirut. Her hand was forced. The parents were on the horns of a dilemma; either the children leave or they will be forced into dealing with the occupation; or else they are arrested and imprisoned, as was the case with all the families in the occupied territory. Reluctantly, they moved to Beirut to live with members of their extended family.

And the chapters of a tragedy start to unfold...

As years went by, Im Karim's children grew up, filled with agony and deprivation being forced to be away from their family and hometown, but they were also armed with a determination to end the very occupation that was behind all that. Her older son, Karim, traveled to pursue a life abroad. Her two other younger sons joined the Resistance forces with their eyes focused on liberating the land and reuniting with their family. 

Sadly, that was not the case for Ahmad. 

He made his way up pretty fast and shortly after became a prominent leader, being part of the engineering unit. He was the man behind many IEDs used in the Resistance operations against the Israeli enemy, dealing the occupation with one blow after the other.

Because of Ahmad's role, the family came under immense pressure, with the Israeli agents going after them in an attempt to get intel about him and his comrades.

"My mother used to visit Beirut once in a year or every six months to visit us and then she would go back," Mohammad tells us, describing how "the agents took advantage of this and prevented her from leaving, telling her, ‘If you want a permit, you have to work for us. You have to provide us with intel about your son and his comrades,' but she refused categorically, so they increased the pressure on her."

This went on until Ahmad was martyred on July 27, 1999, in a heroic battle against the enemy.

Ahmad ascended to heaven without being able to see his mother and father and feeling their touch one last time.

After all, the family never reunited during that period, and any meeting was limited to the mother visiting her children in Beirut only a few times, with every visit involving a long painstaking process for an elderly woman like her.

To retaliate against its losses, the Israeli occupation forces arrested Ahmad's parents, including his little sister, and imprisoned them in the infamous Khiam detention center, where they were tortured, brutally beaten, threatened, and deprived of life's most basic needs, as Mohammad recollected. Eventually, they were released, only to find themselves under house arrest. They were confined to their own house, not allowed to go anywhere.

"From the day Ahmad was martyred until liberation, my parents did not leave the house, as if under house arrest, not allowed to have contact with anyone nor visitation," Im Karim's son tells Al Mayadeen English. 

With the liberation came ultimate freedom

As months passed by, and after years of operations led by the Resistance against the Israeli occupation, the glad tidings of the liberation of Lebanon started to settle in. 

On May 21, 2000, human waves of Lebanese people, backed by Resistance fighters, swept through the occupied villages, setting one village after the other free, under Israeli bombing and shelling.

Many lost their lives, but the determination to return to the once-occupied lands was immense, and nothing could stand in the way of a people thirsty for freedom.

May 21 through 24 saw the liberation of Ainatha and every other Lebanese village, except for Shebaa Farms and Kfar Chouba, and May 25 was declared Resistance and Liberation Day, shattering the 22-year-long Israeli occupation after the last soldier fled, closing behind another chapter of utmost brutality, savagery, and insolence. 

Im Karim was in the vanguard of those who welcomed the scores of people, holding the picture of her martyred son, celebrating, and finally, she was able to take her driven-away children into her arms. The long years of deprivation had finally come to an end...

Emotional, Mohammad recollects this day, saying, "Liberation Day brought about a gust of relief for the family being freed from their own house. As victory loomed, circulated across the media, we headed toward our village. On our way, people would call us and tell us your mother is live on tv."

He goes on to say, "Imagine a person who has not seen his mother for years and eventually sees her on such an occasion. It was very emotional... Meeting our mother after all these years, taking us into her arms and embracing us… It was all tears of joy mixed with sadness."

On that blessed day, Im Karim took an oath, vowing that every freedom fighter is a son of hers, just like her precious Ahmad.

To pay respect to the family, Hezbollah Secretary-General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah paid them a visit to offer his condolences.

Once again, she vowed to him that although a son of hers was martyred, she still had five to offer in the path of the Resistance.

According to Mohammad, "This culture [that] is an inspiration to us in any possible upcoming war means that we shall never leave our house, our village, or our land. We shall forever stand strong."

A family brought together by liberation, shattered by July War

It is known that "Israel" does not accept defeat even if it meant taking thousands of innocent lives along. 

On July 12, 2006, amid "Israel's" insistence on keeping Lebanese captives imprisoned, with some being imprisoned for as long as 30 years, and the Lebanese Resistance Party Hezbollah taking upon itself the mission of liberating them, and after the indirect negotiations for their release failed, Hezbollah decided to capture Israeli soldiers in exchange for liberating the rest. Thus came Operation Truthful Promise, which led to the capture of two Israeli soldiers. 

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Immediately, the Israeli occupation launched an all-out war against Lebanon, mainly targeting civilians and the infrastructure. Connecting bridges and main transportation routes were bombed, buildings were demolished, civilians were massacred, and communications towers were leveled.

"Israel" once again wreaked havoc in Lebanon. Many saw this war as an opportunity for the occupation to make up for its crushing defeat back in 2000, but little did they know that the July War would deal yet another blow to the Israeli occupation and lead to a far worse defeat, whereby the myth of the so-called "invincible army" was completely shattered.

As "Israel" tried to invade the villages of South Lebanon on several fronts, eyeing Bint Jbeil in one, Ainatha stood there as an impenetrable fortress with vicious battles taking place on the outskirts of the village. On every side they tried to infiltrate from, the Israeli forces were met with ferocious resistance, and in many instances, fighting broke out from a zero range.

Amir, another son of Im Karim, was one of the Resistance fighters defending his village against the invaders.

The more frustrated "Israel" grew, the more violence it unleashed on civilians, targeting houses and entire buildings, leaving behind hundreds of people killed. And the bolder the confrontations became on the outskirts of Ainatha, the more brutal the bombardment of the village grew.

In one night only, "Israel" fired 1,500 shells at the center of the village, completely destroying it.

And just like everybody else, Im Karim and her husband, daughter, daughter-in-law (Amir's wife), and 2-year-old grandchild (Amir's son) sought refuge along with several others, all civilians and children, in a building that was supposed to be safe.

Recalling that day, Mohammad says, "They [my parents] refused to leave and stayed in the village at home in the first 5-6 days [of the 2006 July War] while the shelling was intensifying until the Resistance asked them to leave the house, being known for welcoming Resistance fighters."

He goes on to say, "So they left the house and sought shelter in our neighbor’s house, but the house was bombarded, so they had to leave again heading to a house used as a bunker from the time of the invasion."

"They came together and headed there: The bunker housed my mother, father, my sister Zahraa, and Amir’s wife and his son, along with 4 elderly women, a man and his wife and four kids and others, thinking it was safe," he adds.

Everyone recalls how she [Im Karim] refused to leave no matter what, although several cars were sent for them repeatedly. She would say she was ready to die in the same land she grew up in, unwilling to leave the freedom fighters behind. After all, they all became her sons, as per her vow back in 2000. She would prepare food and bread for the people who were with her and for the Resistance fighters. She would leave them in a location already agreed on, and whenever they could, they would dispatch someone to get them to make sure no civilians are harmed in the process.

People who left the village recall how Im Karim would bid them farewell, saying, "I know you are leaving now frustrated, but tomorrow you shall return carrying the yellow banners victorious," and, "If we all leave the village, who will have the Resistance fighters' back?"

On July 27, as confrontations intensified, with "Israel" still unable to advance anywhere into Ainatha from different locations, that day saw one of the most violent bombings. And the building that was supposed to be a sanctuary was leveled to the ground, as "Israel" deliberately targeted it, despite knowing that it only housed civilians. Everyone inside died. Im Karim and her entire family were gone, and so was everybody else inside that room. The only survivor was her husband who had left to check on his disabled brother.

With tears filling his eyes, Mohammad recalls that moment. 

"On that night, confrontations were ongoing and massive, leading to a frenzy of shelling, where they targeted the village with around 1000 shells, raids, and so on. The destruction was horrifying, including the house they sought shelter in, and they were all martyred," he tells Al Mayadeen English.

On that day too, "Israel" vented out its anger, defeat, helplessness, and impotence in the face of a steadfast unrivaled Resistance on innocent civilians. Im Karim was gone, but her story was far from being over, yet. 

Im Karim's son, Amir, who was engaging in heroic battles on the Resistance's lines, killing and injuring a number of Israeli soldiers, whose cries and screams could be heard from a distance, as per witnesses, was also gone, only a few hours apart. He was martyred not knowing that his family was gone too in the bombing a few hours back. As a matter of fact, neither of the two knew that the other was martyred. He was martyred on the frontline, and they were gone a few meters away from him. His wife and boy, his mother, and his sister were all gone. 

"We pressured them [my parents] and urged them to leave, no matter the cost, but they always refused, saying they would never leave the Resistance: whatever happens to them happens to us. Their motto was 'this is our homeland; either we die here or we survive and continue living here.' It is from this spirit that we derive our strength and steadfastness," Mohammad explains.

He goes on to say, "Amir used to contact our family daily, but when the enemy advanced. Amir was on the frontlines, while they were in the bunker. That was when all contact was lost in 24 hours, meaning that they were martyred a few hours apart."

"We commemorate their anniversary together; Ahmad and my parents were martyred on the same day, July 27, and Amir a few hours later into July 28. We can say they were all martyred on the same day."

In one strike, but loaded with so much hatred and savagery, 19 innocent civilians were killed. 

In Ainatha, throughout the 33-day war on the country, a total of 45 people were martyred, the majority of which were civilians. 

Reflecting on "Israel's" modus operandi of inflicting as much damage as possible, mainly on civilian infrastructure and lives, Mohammad speaks up, saying, "The Israelis deliberately targeted the house, knowing that it housed only civilians, children, women, and elderlies. They knew this without doubt, and we have proof that they did. The Israelis deliberately committed massacres thinking that they would force the Resistance fighters to yield, but this only made them stronger and more steadfast." 

Perhaps, what could be a console to the now-gone mother is the fact that she was gone on the same day her son Ahmad was martyred, July 27, and without knowing that her other son, Amir, was gone too. 

When the bodies were found, Amir was still clinging to the weapon he had on his person, leaving people whose eyes fell on this sight to wonder; was he holding on to the baby he had just lost not knowing, or is it because he is that much attached to the motherland that he fell holding on to the one thing he could use to defend it, or perhaps even both?

On her part, Zahraa, Im Karim's daughter, was found lifeless, with a piece of paper, on which she had written her will, on her side: 

"Death is imminent, and it does not differentiate between a child, a woman, and an elderly,"

and how true that was.

She went on to write,

"We shall never abandon martyrdom in the course of God as long as there is Israel, America, and Britain, the ill-fated trio, in our Islamic countries, especially in my homeland (Lebanon), the land of martyrdom (Iraq), and the land of the Prophet's ascension (Palestine)."

This is a family nurtured on utmost dedication to the homeland, the highest form of love for the Resistance, and altruism at its finest. A mother so willing to sacrifice for the sake of a cause can only bring up children so attached to their land, taking part in its liberaton, kicking the enemy out, and even dying for its sake. The spilled blood of Im Karim's family shall only serve as a beacon of freedom for generations to come. 

Speaking about his mother, Mohammad recollects the feeling of her embrace, which he was deprived of for so long, once due to the brutal occupation forces, and another time because of them brutally murdering her.

"I can never describe or express how much we longed for our mother and needed her when we were forced to be away from each other."

Calling his mother a sanctuary, Mohammad tells Al Mayadeen English, "My mother, whenever one fell ill, despite all the circumstances, tough situations, and financial difficulties, as well as fear and oppression, she was our sanctuary..."

"The moment she would hold me in her arms, I would forget all about the occupation, poverty, difficult circumstances, or the cold."

Mohammad and his remaining siblings shall forever long for the touch of a mother taken away by "Israel" just like many other families left bereft of loved ones and grieving over them. "Israel" has once again shattered an entire family, but the ones left behind shall pursue its missionary path, proving to the Israeli occupation, yet again, that no matter how much it tries, it shall never succeed in deracinating peoples who make up the roots of the very land they live on.