Even the most experienced and professional reporters (TV, newspapers and others) stood stupefied asking silly questions such as "How do you feel about liberty at last?" I mean, these people whose bread and butter is writing or speaking have just stood speechless, many in tears (not exactly happy, but rather overtaken by the depth of the human experience and expression of the inhabitants of these villages).

On May 21 and 22, and during the Israeli withdrawal, Israeli military media experts spread rumors in the villages that Hizbullah, Amal and pro-government paramilitaries had been committing atrocities in the villages, killing SLA members and sympathizers. Nonetheless, the mobile phone proved to be a very effective weapon this time, and so did the media tools available all over the country. The priests and sheiks in the villages, together with the mayors maintained solid contact with Hizbullah and government public relations and security agencies. These local authorities were even instrumental in offering SLA members the choice: either to follow the Israeli forces or to hand in their weapons and to gather in certain public places until Hizbullah and Lebanese security forces entered the villages. About a 1,000 SLA members have already turned themselves in, all peacefully and without any disorders staining the celebrations of victory. No fighting erupted between the SLA forces left in the villages and the Hizbullah forces. It was a clean liberation process. As a matter of fact, the civilian authorities (priests, sheiks and mayors) had taken command in a number of villages and imposed a choice upon the SLA members, most of whom had decided to stay and turn themselves in. For several days now, on the other hand, Israeli forces had prevented the escaping SLA members from reaching the Israeli border, a step that resulted in some cases of nervous breakdown and hysteria among some of the SLA officials, specifically those who had committed atrocities and feared retaliation by the inhabitants of the villages or at the hands of Hizbullah guerrillas. None such retaliations had taken place, however, and inshallah none will happen.

Attempts by the Israeli Defense Forces media tools to poison the situation in South Lebanon before leaving, mainly by propagating a gloomy image of the future of the Christian inhabitants in South Lebanon failed drastically. After all, villagers, government officials and even Hizbullah intelligence and decision makers were aware that the majority of the SLA were mostly Muslims, not Christians (mainly due to the population proportions in the South), and that many of the SLA members were conscripted in the SLa by force (awareness of this fact eliminated the tension in the region). But most importantly, president Lahud had given the southerners his word that it would all be done in an orderly and peaceful manner and so it was, basically due to the full cooperation between Hizbullah and the Lebanese army and security forces.

Needless to mention, even SLA members who turned themselves in to Hizbullah were immediately handed over to the government apparatuses. Meanwhile, a few SLA members had been given refuge by the Israeli government, but talks of hundreds of refugees created by liberation are far from real (already 40% of the SLA members had turned themselves in and many villages are awaiting liberation and a similar fate for the SLA members located there).

Meanwhile, the Israeli forces continue their hasty withdrawal from South Lebanon, blowing up their bases and leaving bewildered SLA members behind (with quite some heavy arms and weapons, none of which has so far been used since SLA members are turning themselves in immediately after Israeli forces withdrawal).

The best part to come, however, was the liberation of the Khyam detainees (the most notorious Israeli prison in South Lebanon). This just happened a few hours ago and the detainees had been put in the custody of the International Red Cross for medical examination (and to make sure that all detainees had been freed). A long day for Lebanon, for the Lebanese, and mostly, for those who had finally seen the light after 22 years of occupation. Muslims and Christians alike, stood on the sides of the roads, cheering and throwing rice at the victorious civilians and fighters who took over every single village from which the Israeli defense forces withdrew. The Lebanese government, meanwhile, and under immediate instructions from the president had launched an emergency development plan to provide for the liberated villages (some of which do not have one single house standing due to full evacuation of the inhabitants by the Israeli occupying forces in the past). At the same time, the government has embarked on a wide diplomatic-legal offensive to demand Israeli compensation through the international legal forums, and to ask Arab and other friends and sympathizers to finance the development of the Lebanese South, a region that will forever stand as a symbol of dignity and honor in the context of the Arab-Israeli conflict.

Yet, despite the celebrations on both sides of the borders, by those liberated and by those whose sons had returned home, the bloodshed, the memories of horror, and the scars of war will remain for a long time to come. It is only hoped that no more bloodshed will happen, and that peace will finally give those who had only been paying the price a respite to build their lives, reunited with their families and start all over.