Humanitarian organizations are deeply concerned about the rising number of civilian casualties, including women and children, the large-scale displacement, and the increasing humanitarian needs resulting from the ongoing Israeli attacks on Lebanon. UN officials and aid agencies continue to call on all parties to protect civilians, civilian infrastructure, humanitarian personnel, and health workers.
While the United States and Israel continue to wage war against Iran, rapidly escalating hostilities have triggered a worsening humanitarian crisis across the Middle East. Since the US-Israeli bombardment began on February 28, the resulting violence has affected multiple countries in the region, with Lebanon at the epicenter of the emergency.
Following the Israeli attacks on Iran, the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah launched rockets and drones at targets in northern Israel and the occupied Syrian Golan Heights. In response, Israel launched devastating airstrikes and a ground invasion, killing hundreds of civilians and rendering large portions of Lebanon uninhabitable.
On Sunday, Lebanese authorities reported that at least 850 people have been killed and more than 2,100 wounded since Israel launched strikes on March 2. Among those killed are more than 100 children, with hundreds of others injured. The true numbers are likely much higher as rescue teams continue to search damaged buildings and hospitals struggle to cope with the surge in casualties.
UN chief launches urgent humanitarian appeal from war-torn Lebanon
On Friday, United Nations Secretary-General AntĂłnio Guterres began a solidarity mission to Lebanon, where he highlighted the severity of the crisis and called for the protection of civilians and increased international support.
Guterres launched an urgent humanitarian appeal to support the government-led response and rapidly scale up assistance for a three-month period from March to May 2026. Prioritizing those with the most severe needs, the appeal calls for US$308 million to address critical, life-saving needs resulting from the escalating hostilities.
The flash appeal targets up to one million people, including vulnerable Lebanese citizens, displaced Syrians, Palestinian refugees in Lebanon, Palestinian refugees from Syria, and migrants. According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), response activities will be concentrated in areas most affected by displacement orders and displacement resulting from airstrikes, military operations, and hard-to-reach areas.
During his visit, Guterres emphasized the vital role of humanitarian organizations in Lebanon. He urged for safe and sustained humanitarian access and increased international support to empower humanitarian organizations to address the mounting needs of affected communities.
Speaking to reporters on Saturday, Guterres stressed that “the Lebanese people did not choose this war. They were dragged into it.”
"My message to the warring parties is clear: Stop the fighting. Stop the bombing,” he added.
He called on governments worldwide to generously respond to Friday's humanitarian appeal and increase their engagement to empower the Lebanese state and support the Lebanese Armed Forces in securing necessary capabilities and resources.
“The people of Lebanon – as well as Israel and all other peoples throughout the region – deserve to live without fear, to raise their children without the sound of sirens and strikes. To return home without wondering when they have to flee again,” he said.
More than 830,000 people forcibly displaced as airstrikes and bombardment continue
Meanwhile, airstrikes and bombardment are ongoing across southern Lebanon, Beirut’s southern suburbs, and parts of the Bekaa Valley, causing additional internal displacement and contributing to the rising death toll. There have been reports of targeted strikes on apartments and vehicles in residential areas, causing damage to civilian property and heightening fear and despair in affected communities.
Humanitarian organizations alongside authorities are scaling up urgent assistance to displaced people. As of Thursday, they have distributed 632,000 hot meals and 18,000 ready-to-eat kits. They have also provided more than 382,000 liters of bottled water and over 1,700 cubic meters of clean water via water trucking. They have supplied more than 211,000 liters of fuel to sustain water services for nearly 700,000 people.
Government figures indicate that hundreds of thousands of people have been displaced. Over 830,000 people, including approximately 300,000 children, have registered as displaced. Around 135,000 of them are sheltering in nearly 600 collective sites across the country. The actual number of displaced people is likely higher and estimated at over one million.
On Friday, Carl Skau, the deputy executive director of the World Food Programme (WFP), emphasized the unprecedented scale of displacement caused by the recent escalation. During his visit to Beirut, he described the situation as exceptional within the context of the broader regional crisis.
Speaking from Lebanon's capital, which he described as the epicenter of the humanitarian consequences of the regional escalation, Skau pointed to the sharp deterioration of the situation following a heavy intensification of Israeli attacks.
On Saturday, OCHA released a report warning that the rapid pace of displacement continues to outstrip available shelter capacity. Many displaced families remain without adequate housing and are spending nights on the streets, in vehicles, and in public spaces due to the shortage of collective shelters.
Israeli forced displacement orders have been issued for large parts of Beirut’s southern suburbs, northern Bekaa, and the entire area south of the Litani River. This area covers around 850 square kilometers and is home to at least 500,000 people.
Pregnant women and migrant workers among the most vulnerable
On Friday, as the UN Secretary-General arrived in Beirut to show solidarity with the Lebanese people, UN agencies in Geneva highlighted the dangers facing civilians, especially pregnant women and migrant workers, amid ongoing Israeli airstrikes and Hezbollah rocket fire.
The UN Population Fund (UNFPA) reported that many pregnant women have been displaced, cutting them off from vital healthcare services and forcing them to deliver in hazardous conditions.
“There’s 11,600 pregnant women who are affected, 4,000 are anticipated to give birth over the next three months,” said Anandita Philipose, UNFPA Lebanon Representative.
“Many of these women have been forced from their homes, cut off from essential health services and forced to give birth in dangerous conditions, some even by the side of the road.”
As the situation in Lebanon has dramatically escalated — notably in the country's south, Beirut, Mount Lebanon, and the Bekaa Valley — 55 hospitals and clinics have been forced to close, either because they are in zones impacted by Israeli mass evacuation orders, “or because there's been direct damage to them”, Philipose added.
The UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) has recorded daily rocket, missile, and drone attacks on Israel and the occupied Golan from Lebanon, as well as artillery fire and air and drone strikes by Israeli forces. Israeli soldiers have made ground incursions up to seven kilometers (4.3 miles) into Lebanon, said UNIFIL spokesperson Kandice Ardiel.
Speaking via video from the force’s headquarters in Naqoura, close to the Blue Line separating Lebanon from Israel, Ardiel highlighted an escalation that occurred on Wednesday evening. This involved over 100 projectiles “fired from Lebanese territory and over 100 projectiles fired right back from Israel, as well as seven airstrikes within our area of operations.”
With more than 800,000 people displaced inside Lebanon so far, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) warned that migrants are particularly vulnerable and have nowhere to go.
“Lebanon hosts 200,000 migrants. They come here for work and they're particularly vulnerable,” said Mathieu Luciano, IOM Chief of Mission in Lebanon, speaking from Beirut.
“They come from Ethiopia, from Sri Lanka, from Kenya, Sudan, Bangladesh and other countries and most of them were working in agriculture, construction, also domestic workers, and the crisis has hit them hard. It left many with nowhere to go and relying on community organizations, churches, their embassies and NGOs [non-governmental organizations] for safety.”
The United Nations reiterates the urgent need for de-escalation. UN officials say all parties must respect international humanitarian law, including the protection of civilians, humanitarian personnel, and healthcare facilities. Humanitarian access must be safe and sustained, so assistance can reach those in need.