The archive · Displacement
Displaced villages
A map of the Christian villages whose populations were displaced during the wars of Lebanon. Return, where it happened, was often partial or conditional. Each mark opens the record of one village.
Last reviewed · Curated and published by the Christian Massacres of Lebanon Memorial Archive
A dashed ring marks a village whose population never returned.
The written record
Every village recorded above, in full text, so that each entry can be read, quoted, and cited without the map.
1976
Damour· Mount Lebanon
Return status: partially returned
The coastal town was emptied in January 1976. Families began to return after 1991; the population never fully recovered.
Permalink to this record1976
Jiyeh· Mount Lebanon
Return status: partially returned
Emptied alongside Damour in the same coastal offensive.
Permalink to this record1976
Saadiyat· Mount Lebanon
Return status: partially returned
Christian residents fled north during the 1976 coastal fighting.
Permalink to this record1975
Aishiyeh· South
Return status: abandoned
The isolated Christian village of the South remained largely empty after October 1975. A small number of families returned after 2000.
Permalink to this record1983
Kfar Matta· Mount Lebanon
Return status: returned under condition
During the Mountain War of 1983 the Christian population of Kfar Matta was expelled. Return was negotiated in stages after 2001.
Permalink to this record1983
Bmariam· Mount Lebanon
Return status: returned under condition
Emptied during the Mountain War of 1983.
Permalink to this record1983
Abey· Mount Lebanon
Return status: returned under condition
Christian families displaced during the Mountain War; return began after 2001.
Permalink to this record1983
Bhamdoun· Mount Lebanon
Return status: returned under condition
The Christian summer town was emptied during the Mountain War. Reconstruction began in the 1990s under a negotiated return.
Permalink to this record1983
Souk el-Gharb· Mount Lebanon
Return status: partially returned
A pivotal battle site of the Mountain War. Many families displaced in 1983 did not return.
Permalink to this record1983
Deir el-Qamar· Mount Lebanon
Return status: partially returned
The historic Christian town was besieged for months during the Mountain War before an evacuation was negotiated.
Permalink to this record1983
Maasser el-Shouf· Mount Lebanon
Return status: returned under condition
Christian families were displaced from the Shouf highlands.
Permalink to this record1985
Jezzine (surrounding villages)· South
Return status: partially returned
Christian villages around Jezzine were emptied in waves through the 1980s. Some families returned after 2000.
Permalink to this record1974
Saraain El Tahta· Beqaa
Return status: partially returned
Started by kidnapping Christians girls, then, exploding Saint George church.
Permalink to this record1975
Al Qaa· Beqaa
Return status: partially returned
Assassinations happened, kidnapping, stealing lands, houses, businesses, and properties.
Permalink to this record1975
Ras Baalbek· Beqaa
Return status: partially returned
Assassinations happened, kidnapping, stealing lands, houses, businesses, and properties.
Permalink to this record1975
Baalbek· Beqaa
Return status: partially returned
Assassinations happened, kidnapping, stealing lands, houses, businesses, and properties.
Permalink to this record1975
Deir El Ahmar· Beqaa
Return status: partially returned
Assassinations happened, kidnapping, stealing lands, houses, businesses, and properties.
Permalink to this record1975
Ain Bourday· Beqaa
Return status: partially returned
Assassinations happened, kidnapping, stealing lands, houses, businesses, and properties.
Permalink to this record1975
Douris· Beqaa
Return status: partially returned
Assassinations happened, kidnapping, stealing lands, houses, businesses, and properties.
Permalink to this record1975
Ferzol· Beqaa
Return status: partially returned
Assassinations happened, kidnapping, stealing lands, houses, businesses, and properties.
Permalink to this record1975
Taanayel· Beqaa
Return status: partially returned
Assassinations happened, kidnapping, stealing lands, houses, businesses, and properties.
Permalink to this record1975
Majdaloun· Beqaa
Return status: partially returned
Assassinations happened, kidnapping, stealing lands, houses, businesses, and properties.
Permalink to this record1975
Talya· Beqaa
Return status: partially returned
Assassinations happened, kidnapping, stealing lands, houses, businesses, and properties.
Permalink to this record1975
Riyak· Beqaa
Return status: partially returned
Assassinations happened, kidnapping, stealing lands, houses, businesses, and properties.
Permalink to this record1975
Deir Zanoun· Beqaa
Return status: partially returned
Assassinations happened, kidnapping, stealing lands, houses, businesses, and properties.
Permalink to this record1975
Hawsh Barada· Beqaa
Return status: partially returned
Assassinations happened, kidnapping, stealing lands, houses, businesses, and properties.
Permalink to this record1975
Jdeidet El Fekha· Beqaa
Return status: partially returned
Assassinations happened, kidnapping, stealing lands, houses, businesses, and properties.
Permalink to this record
Questions about displacement
- Which Christian villages of Lebanon were displaced?
The archive records 27 Christian villages and towns whose populations were displaced during the wars of Lebanon, across Mount Lebanon, the Chouf, the North, the Beqaa, and the South. Each record gives the year of displacement, the region, and whether the population returned.
- Did the displaced families return?
Return was uneven. The archive marks each village as abandoned, partially returned, or returned under condition. The 2001 Mountain Reconciliation enabled many Chouf families to return, but in numerous villages the population never recovered its pre-war size.
- Can a village record be cited on its own?
Yes. Every village has a permalink of the form https://christiansmassacres.org/displaced#slug — for example /displaced#damour.