A Nightclub Turned Shelter in Beirut : State of the World from NPR

Beirut’s Sky Bar, once a bustling nightclub, now serves as a refuge for the displaced. On October 15, 2024, it sheltered 400 people, mostly women and children, in Beirut, Lebanon.

Fadel Itani/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images

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Fadel Itani/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images

Beirut’s Sky Bar, once a bustling nightclub, now serves as a refuge for the displaced. On October 15, 2024, it sheltered 400 people, mostly women and children, in Beirut, Lebanon.

Fadel Itani/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images

More than a fifth of Lebanon’s population is now displaced, mostly fleeing from the country’s south as Israel carries out airstrikes against the Iran-backed group Hezbollah there. With so many people out of their homes, they’re taking refuge anywhere they can, including in one of Beirut’s most popular nightclubs. Our reporter in Lebanon introduces us to some of the displaced.

For more coverage of all sides of this conflict, go to npr.org/mideastupdates.