Farai Makamba, a 27-year-old student from Zimbabwe, kept his university books on his desk at home in Beirut.
Now they have been replaced by his passport, travel documents and cash.
“I have a plan for myself in case I need to leave urgently,” he says.
Mr Makamba, whose name we have changed to protect his identity, returned to Lebanon in September to complete the final year of his master’s degree in mechanical engineering.
He spent the summer holidays at home in Harare.
He returned with the hope that the conflict would de-escalate. But since Hamas attacked Israel on October 7 last year, there has been almost daily cross-border fire between Israel and Hamas’s ally Hezbollah, the Iran-backed military group based in Lebanon.
The past week has been the deadliest days of conflict in Lebanon in almost two decades.
As many as one million people have been driven from their homes across Lebanon, the country’s Prime Minister Najib Mikati said.
The Israeli army says it is carrying out a wave of “extensive” attacks in southern Lebanon and the Bekaa region, aiming to destroy Hezbollah infrastructure. The group’s leader, Hassan Nasrallah, was killed in an airstrike on Friday.
Last week, 39 people were killed and thousands injured across the country when pagers and walkie-talkies belonging to Hezbollah members exploded. Hezbollah blamed Israel, which has neither confirmed nor denied that it was behind the attack.
The US, UK, Australia, France, Canada and India have all officially advised their citizens to leave Lebanon as soon as possible.
African students have told BBC News that they now face a dilemma: whether to remain in Lebanon as Israel continues its attacks, or return to countries such as Uganda, Zimbabwe and Cameroon.
At the American University of Beirut (AUB), where Mr. Makamba studies, about 90 African students are enrolled in a scholarship program.
Mr Makamba says there has been a “huge jump in fear” among students, especially since the pager and walkie-talkie explosions.
“We don’t know who has a ticking time bomb in his pocket,” he says.
‘Is it your taxi driver? Is it your Uber driver? Is it the person you walk next to?
Mr. Makamba’s days were filled with classes and seeing friends. Now he says he only leaves the house to run errands and the tension is palpable.
He recently stocked up on basics like bread, pasta and bottled water in case of shortages.
The campus is closed and some of its classes have been moved online.
“Everyone is nervous. Even the way we communicate is different,” he says.
“When we finish class, our professor now says, ‘Have a nice day and stay safe.’ We say the same thing because we know what is happening in the country.”
“No one is safe.”
Public schools are also closed and the education ministry says they are being used to house people who have fled their homes due to Israeli airstrikes in the south of the country.
The scholarship program that funds African students at AUB has given international students the opportunity to go home and complete their courses online.
But some say that won’t be possible.
Sharon Atyang, a 27-year-old student from Northern Uganda, is currently completing her master’s degree in community development at AUB.
She says electricity and internet problems at home will make it almost impossible to complete her studies online.
“I also have a scholarship, and if I travel home, I don’t know if they would bring me back here if the situation stabilizes,” she says.
Adele Pascaline from Cameroon, whose name has been changed to protect her identity, also says it will be almost impossible to complete her bachelor’s degree in radiology at home.
“I can’t do my clinical rotations from home, but I have to complete them as part of my studies,” she says.
Nevertheless, the continued attacks have meant that she now has a return ticket.
The Mastercard Scholarship Program funds dozens of African students in Lebanon.
Mastercard Foundation said it is closely monitoring developments and is working with AUB to support students.
The spokesperson said: “AUB communicates regularly with students and has offered support for their health and wellbeing.
“The academic curriculum remains flexible and necessary adjustments have been made to take into account the current disruptions and to ensure the academic continuity of enrolled students. International students who wish to return home will be supported in this regard.”
Although it is still possible to leave Beirut via the international airport, tickets are difficult to obtain. Several airlines such as Emirates, Qatar Airways, Air France and Lufthansa have suspended their flights to and from the city.
Ms. Atyang says that from her bedroom in Beirut she can hear the sounds of sonic booms caused by Israeli fighter jets flying low over the city.
“I was sitting in a reading room and when I heard the sound barrier break, I started running. But I had nowhere to go. I found myself hiding in the toilet,” she says.
The stress of waiting for another attack has left her “emotionally and mentally unstable – (unable) to do anything.”
She said many students have asked their professors to extend assignment deadlines.
In between trying to study and write her thesis, Sharon also answers panicked calls from her family in Uganda.
“They demand that I go back home, they tell me that I should prioritize my life over academics.”
Some African governments have started evacuations.
Kenya’s Principal Secretary for Diaspora Affairs, Roseline Njogu, confirmed that nine Kenyans had arrived back in the country in August.
She urged other Kenyans who wanted to leave to register at the embassy for evacuation. There are currently an estimated 26,000 Kenyans in Lebanon.
Last month, former Ethiopian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Nebiyu Tedla told the BBC that they were closely monitoring the situation and were “preparing plans to evacuate if necessary.”
He added that there are an estimated 150,000 Ethiopians in Lebanon, the vast majority of whom are domestic workers.
Some of these workers face additional challenges because they work under Lebanon’s strict kafala system, which means they must seek permission from their employers to leave.
For students like Mr. Makamba and Ms. Atyang, it may be easier to leave Lebanon. But they are held back because of their desperation to complete their studies.
Both say they will make a decision in the coming days.
Ms Atyang says it is especially difficult for African students.
“You’re on your own and you have to take care of yourself,” she says.
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