By Nazih Osseiran and Emilie Madi
March 19 (Reuters) - Lebanese food courier Hamza Hareb now keeps his distance if he spots a car with tinted windows while on a delivery run in Beirut. Hezbollah is rumoured to use such cars, and Hareb wants to steer clear of any Israeli strikes targeting the armed group.
Israel has expanded its air campaign to new parts of Beirut in recent days, hitting apartments and downing entire buildings in strikes it says are targeting Hezbollah, which pulled Lebanon into the regional war on March 2 by firing into Israeli territory.
On Wednesday, Israel struck different neighbourhoods in the heart of Beirut, leaving mounds of rubble hundreds of meters away from government buildings, restaurants and roads usually clogged with traffic.
As residents of the capital stay home in fear, they are ordering delivery for dinner - and drivers like Hareb are navigating a maze of risks to make it happen.
"Of course, we are afraid. That is ever-present," said Hareb, one of 3,000 couriers in Beirut who work for Toters, among Lebanon's most popular delivery apps. Like most gig workers, Toters drivers are paid per delivery.
For many, the job is an economic lifeline in the heavily indebted country, which is suffering from years of economic crisis and political instability following a financial collapse in 2019.
"You don't know when the strikes will come, so we have adapted to everything," Hareb said.
'NAVIGATING INTO UNCERTAINTY'
Israel sometimes issues evacuation warnings before striking, telling residents to leave the area. But three of Wednesday's four strikes on Beirut came without notice.
"Right now they're increasingly striking without warning, and of course this is instilling a sense of fear among us (since) we spend most of our time out in the street," Hareb told Reuters.
If Beirut is rocked by an unexpected strike, drivers pull over to figure out which neighbourhood was targeted and how to amend their routes if needed. If an evacuation warning is issued, drivers pass it on through work channels so colleagues can avoid targeted areas.
Toters' director of operations Roland Ghanem said the company did not deliver to neighbourhoods that fall within Israel's evacuation orders and has barred drivers from using risky roads near possible targets.
"These drivers navigate into uncertainty… just to make sure that others can still have access to food and basic needs," Ghanem said. "They understand that behind every order, there is a family that has been displaced, or an elderly person that cannot go to the store and get some food, or just a regular person trying to get through the day."
WORKING IN A WAR
Israeli strikes have killed nearly 1,000 people and displaced another million across Lebanon, according to Lebanese authorities.
For some drivers, the war has hit close to home - literally.
Mahmoud al-Benne, 34, had to flee his home in Beirut's southern suburbs earlier this month when Israel issued a blanket evacuation order for the entire area and began bombing it heavily.
But he still needs to work.
"Whether you are displaced or not displaced, you need to earn money," Benne said. "You have responsibilities. We are in a state of war, but at the end of the day we want to work."
Marie Katanjian stands out among her colleagues as a rare female delivery driver. Her husband delivers for Toters and she was inspired to do the same.
"We have to work in this situation because we have families. We're helping each other out, hand in hand," she said.
Still, she's yearning to drive safely through her city's streets again.
“We want the war to end, so we can take a breath.”
(Reporting by Nazih Osseiran and Emilie Madi; Editing by Maya Gebeily and David Gaffen)
