(today)

Maryam Younnes was only five years old when she fled her home in Dibil in southern Lebanon, leaving behind her grandmother and cousins, unable to legally see or speak to them again.

Maryam’s father, Elias, was a commander in the South Lebanon Army (SLA). He defended the country’s sovereignty against the Palestinian Liberation Organization, which used the territory to launch attacks against Israel and brutalize local populations.

“We were in no man’s land. No one helped us. No one looked after us, just like what’s going on right now.