Decades after fighting against Hezbollah in the South Lebanon Army (SLA) and fleeing to Israel, Lebanese national Shamoun Najm, 54, was killed last week in a Hezbollah strike in Nahariya, leaving behind a wife and two children. His funeral took place at the church in the Arab town in Mi’ilya and he was buried in the Kibbutz Yehiam Cemetery.
Following the Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon in 2000, the Najm family came to Israel along with approximately 7,000 other soldiers and their families. In an attempt to avoid retaliation from Hezbollah, these families left behind not only relatives but also significant property, homes, and their language.
After coming to Israel, the Najm family settled in Nahariya, where they overcame the challenges of acclimatization and built their lives, while remaining cut off from relatives who stayed just a few miles away across the border.
Najm’s brother-in-law Hana Nora described him as “a good man.” “He opened a carpentry shop three years ago and wanted to succeed. Everyone who worked with him said he was a true professional,” he said.
Najm was killed at his carpentry shop in Nahariya, where he crafted luxurious cabinets for kitchens and bedrooms. The shop was almost completely destroyed by a barrage of 10 rockets fired from Lebanon. Some of the rockets were intercepted, but the shop suffered a direct hit, and emergency forces pronounced Najem and his coworker dead at the scene.
“We still have family in Lebanon, but we can’t talk to them,” Nora said. “Lebanon has become a state controlled by Iran. It’s no longer the Lebanon we want or remember. Israel is fighting Iran in Lebanon—it’s not ours anymore, and we feel no connection to Lebanon.”
Over the years, criticism has grown regarding the state’s treatment of SLA families, and many in this community carry pain and anger toward various Israeli institutions. Thousands of former SLA members have left Israel over the years, and as of 2023, around 650 SLA families—about 3,000 individuals—still live in Israel.
Nora invited Israelis to visit the family’s home in Nahariya to console them. “It’s not advisable to come to the cemetery. It’s a closed military zone and dangerous,” he said. “We’ve reached a situation where we’ve lost a loved one, and our children are scared—they’re not used to rockets and gunfire.”
This article was translated from Hebrew by Matt Levy.
