Lebanese displaced by war turn to satellites to check their homes

Loading... BEIRUT, Lebanon — The images unfold slowly on Mazen Farah's phone —satellite views of the Christian section of the southern Lebanese village of Yaroun. They are a bit fuzzy but still clear enough to see what is happening. "This is what it shows from the satellite — it shows that it has been destroyed," says Farah, referring to the two-story stone house his father built after 25 years of working in the Gulf. Mazen Farah points to the location of a convent in his hometown of Yaroun, southern Lebanon, that residents say was destroyed. Despite satellite images and video showing the damage. Israel has denied striking the convent, citing a different building as proof. Unable to return, Yaroun residents are relying on satellite and other imagery to document the destruction from afar. Jane Arraf/NPR hide caption toggle caption Jane Arraf/NPR In March, amid renewed fighting with the Iranian-backed militant group Hezbollah, Israel launched airstrikes and displaced hundreds of thousands of residents in more than 100 villages. After an April 17 ceasefire, Israel sent in bulldozers to demolish more buildings in southern Lebanon. It says it is targeting Hezbollah infrastructure but ra...