Mohammed Zaatari
Daily Star correspondent

With the arrival of the remains of 59 Lebanese and Palestinian resistance fighters from the “enemies’ cemetery,” as Israel dubbed it, the last phase of an agreement to release more than 400 Lebanese and Arab prisoners from Israeli jails was realized.
Scores of mothers, fathers, wives and children converged on the border with Israel on Friday to receive caskets containing the remains of their loved ones, some of whom went missing in 1982 and others who lost their lives in military operations against occupation forces.
Others shed their tears on 19 caskets containing the remains of unidentified corpses, unsure if they were those of their relatives.
“Where are you, in what casket have you been placed and what is your number … Let met touch the coffin, smell it, and carry one of the bones,” sobbed Nayfeh Hussein, the mother of resistance fighter Nasser Sheikh Hussein who died in a joint operation in Konine, Bint Jbeil. Carrying her son’s picture, she cried: “May God grant victory to Sayyed (Hassan) Nasrallah, (Hizbullah’s secretary-general).”
Since the early hours of the day, the martyrs’ relatives headed for Ras Naqoura where Hizbullah organized the welcoming ceremony which went out live on various television stations.
With the arrival of Hizbullah’s commander in the South, Sheikh Nabil Qaouk, and an official of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) at around 9am, the countdown for receiving the caskets began.
Soon afterwards, seven trucks hoisting the Red Cross flag and carrying the coffins arrived. The caskets were unloaded and covered with the Lebanese national flag before some 300 volunteers moved them to three trucks.
Amid tears and cheers, the cars set out on their journey to a prepared spot nearby, watched closely by French troops attached to the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL).
The ceremony was attended by government and religious leaders led by Information Minister Michel Samaha who represented President Emile Lahoud. Tyre MP Ali Khreis represented Speaker Nabih Berri, while Tourism Minister Ali Abdullah replaced Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.
Others present included the deputy secretary-general of Hizbullah, Sheikh Naim Qassem, and deputy Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Mohtashemi, Iranian Embassy officials and a number of MPs.
People along the coastal road greeted the cortege as it wound its way from Naqoura to Sidon after having had to stop several times en route because of the substantial crowds from nearby villages.
The caskets belonged to seven fighters from Hizbullah and 23 from the Communist Party and the Communist Action Organization. There were also six martyrs affiliated with Amal, five with Fatah, two with the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine, one with the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, one with Saiqa and another with the Believers Resistance.
Names identifying the deceased were inscribed on
the front of the coffins; 19 names had the date and place of death but with a question mark alongside.
In the North, thousands of people from Akkar waited till up to 2am for the arrival of three liberated prisoners from the village of Bibnin ­ Hussein and Deeb Oweiza and Fadi Awwad. The three were captured while trying to smuggle weapons to the Occupied Territories about three years ago. Loudspeakers blared Koranic verses and patriotic songs as people danced in the village’s main square.
On their way home, the men stopped over at Nahr al-Bared Palestinian refugee camp where a celebration was held. They were raised shoulder high on arrival in the village and were greeted by the mayor, Adnan Rifai, and other social figures.