Hassan Alik, fleeing escalating violence in the Israel-Hezbollah war, left Lebanon on Saturday aboard a ship to avoid Beirut's airport, which he feared "could be bombed" at any moment.
The 31-year-old traveled to the northern port of Tripoli, on Lebanon's Mediterranean coast, which has so far been spared Israeli bombardment in a month of intense fighting across much of the tiny country.
And though Lebanon's only international airport has not been hit either, Israel's military last month warned it could strike there to stop weapons transfers to Iran-backed Hezbollah.
Since then, many Lebanese seeking safety abroad have favored the 13-hour sea trip to Turkey aboard cargo ships adapted for passengers, instead of flying from Beirut's airport, which was targeted during Israel's last major war with Hezbollah in 2006.
"I'm traveling from here because I'm afraid to go through the airport," said Alik at the Tripoli port.
"If I buy a plane ticket the airport could be bombed," said the man from the densely-packed south Beirut suburbs -- a Hezbollah stronghold that has seen heavy bombardment over the past weeks.
https://www.naharnet.com/stories/en/308741-fearing-israeli-attacks-on-airport-lebanese-leave-by-sea