Intense Israeli airstrikes across Lebanon have caused widespread displacement and a rising death toll, following the escalation of hostilities sparked by the U.S.-Israeli initiation of war against Iran. The attacks, which began Monday, have displaced tens of thousands and raised urgent humanitarian concerns throughout the country.
Israeli forces have issued evacuation warnings for at least 100 towns and villages in southern Lebanon, Nabatieh, and West Bekaa. According to Lebanese authorities, more than 50 people have been killed and over 150 injured as a result of the strikes, and these numbers are continuing to rise.
The attacks followed Hezbollah’s retaliatory strike on northern Israel after the US-Israeli attack on Saturday that killed Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. On Tuesday, media reports indicated that Israeli troops had entered southern Lebanon following Hezbollah’s attacks on northern Israel.
Aid workers in Lebanon report mass panic and displacement, with families sheltering in schools to escape deadly airstrikes and forced evacuations. As the crisis across the Middle East escalates, fears are growing that upwards of one million people in Lebanon could be displaced, causing another major humanitarian crisis.
“The airstrikes started in the middle of the night and woke families as they slept after a day of fasting for the holy month of Ramadan. Today’s strikes are even stronger and more extensive than those we saw in 2024,” said Akram Sadeq, Islamic Relief’s country director in Lebanon, on Monday.
“It’s expected that as many as one million people will flee their homes, and the influx of people from the south of Lebanon to the north is massive. The situation is very tense. People are fleeing the south because of the Israeli airstrikes and orders to evacuate, but what they fear even more is the possibility of a ground invasion.”
Many civilians have nowhere safe to go, as the Israeli military has ordered people to leave large parts of southern Lebanon. This has forced thousands of families to flee north toward Beirut, which has been hit by heavy airstrikes that have killed and wounded dozens of people. The new attacks have triggered the displacement of an estimated 58,000 people, in addition to the 62,000 who are still internally displaced from the recent war against Lebanon.
Families trying to reach safer zones have been stranded on roads for extended periods, and supply trucks are experiencing delays due to heavy traffic. Civil Defense workers have reportedly been focusing their efforts on rescue operations and transporting injured people.
“We are seeing thousands of people fleeing their homes in South Lebanon, the Bekaa and other affected areas, many with nothing but the clothes on their backs,” said Michael Adams, CARE International's country director in Lebanon, on Monday.
“Children, women, girls, and older people are among those forced to leave everything behind, seeking safety in overcrowded communities and shelters while essential services struggle to cope with the growing needs.”
Lebanese authorities have announced the opening of over 142 shelters across the country, most of which are public schools, and have reported that 49 of the shelters are full. The Lebanese Ministry of Education announced the closure of all educational institutions until Wednesday, with the possibility of an extension.
“The Lebanese government doesn’t have the resources to handle such massive displacement on its own. Islamic Relief is working with the government and other aid agencies to make sure displaced families have the food and supplies they need,” said Sadeq.
Although the water infrastructure is still operational, humanitarian organizations are reporting an urgent need for essential supplies, including water, mattresses, blankets, and diesel to power generators in shelters due to insufficient solar energy.
The United Nations is urging utmost restraint and calling on the parties to uphold the cessation of hostilities agreement.
Both the UN Special Coordinator for Lebanon, Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, and the Head of Mission of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), Diodato Abagnara, are engaging with the parties to de-escalate the situation and preserve stability across the Blue Line. UNIFIL peacekeepers remain in position despite the challenging circumstances.
Widening hostilities across the Middle East put civilians in grave danger
Amid growing violence and instability in the Middle East, the UN urgently called for the protection of civilians on the fourth day of Israeli and United States airstrikes against Iran.
Since the conflict escalated on Saturday with the first attacks by Israel and the United States on Iran, Tehran has responded with counterstrikes against Israel and other US allies across the region. The risk of humanitarian fallout in the Middle East is growing rapidly.
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) is in contact with various UN teams in the region and stands ready to respond swiftly as needed.
The United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) has expressed deep concern over the escalating conflict in the Middle East and its impact on civilians, warning of further displacement across the region.
“Many affected countries already host millions of refugees and internally displaced people. Further violence risks overwhelming humanitarian capacities and placing additional pressure on host communities,” UNHCR said on Monday.
The growing number of civilian casualties and destruction of civilian infrastructure is particularly alarming. International humanitarian law is clear: civilians and civilian infrastructure must be protected at all times.
The UN says that the expansion of attacks to countries not involved in the initial attacks is particularly concerning. Multiple countries have been hit by strikes and counterstrikes, with civilian casualties reported across the Middle East.
Humanitarian organizations are gravely concerned that further regional destabilization could impact and displace millions of civilians across the region.
On Monday, Mirjana Spoljaric, the president of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), warned in a statement that escalating hostilities in the Middle East are putting civilians in grave danger.
"The scale of major military operations flaring across the Middle East risks embroiling the region – and beyond – into another large-scale armed conflict that will overwhelm any humanitarian response," she said
“Without urgent steps to de-escalate the situation and respect the rules of war, further civilian lives will be lost.”
Spoljaric stressed that civilians are already suffering the consequences of war.
"All parties to armed conflict have an obligation to uphold the rules of war, which are unequivocal. Civilians and civilian infrastructure must be spared from hostilities," she said.
“Schools must remain sanctuaries for learning where children can feel safe and protected from attacks, and hospitals must remain sanctuaries for saving lives.”
The ICRC president added that medical personnel and first responders, such as Red Cross and Red Crescent national societies, must be protected "in all circumstances" and be able to safely carry out their work.
“All parties must allow and facilitate safe and unrestricted access for impartial humanitarian assistance to reach those in need,” she said.
Casualties rise in Iran as US-Israeli warfare continues, prompting Iranian counterstrikes
On Tuesday, the United States and Israel continued to launch large-scale strikes against Iran, causing loss of life and damage across the region. In response, Iran launched missile and drone counterstrikes, hitting targets in multiple countries.
While observers fear that thousands have already fallen victim to the attacks, the Iranian Red Crescent Society reported today that at least 787 people have been killed and nearly 750 more have been injured in US-Israeli strikes across more than 1,000 locations in Iran.
The deadliest known incident occurred on Saturday when the Shajareh Tayyebeh girls’ elementary school in Minab, southern Iran, was struck, killing more than 180 people, most of whom were children.
The United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) stated that bombing the Minab school during the US and Israeli military attacks on Iran constitutes a grave violation of humanitarian law.
On Tuesday, Ravina Shamdasani, spokesperson for the UN human rights office (OHCHR), spoke to reporters in Geneva about the horror of Saturday's strike on the primary school.
“Children, little girls […] at the beginning of the school day being killed in this manner, backpacks with bloodstains on them - this is absolutely horrific,” she said.
“If there is any image that captures the essence of the destruction, despair and senselessness and cruelty of this conflict, those are the images.”
Shamdasani said that Volker TĂĽrk, the UN human rights chief, was "deeply shocked" by the impact of the hostilities on civilians and civilian infrastructure. TĂĽrk is calling for a "prompt, impartial, and thorough investigation" into the circumstances of the Minab attack.
“The onus is on the forces that carried out the attack to investigate it. We call on them to make public the findings and to ensure accountability and redress for the victims,” she stressed.
She also emphasized that attacks directed against civilians or civilian objects, or indiscriminate attacks, are "serious violations of international humanitarian law and may amount to war crimes."
TĂĽrk is calling on all actors to exercise maximum restraint, prevent further escalation, and take all feasible measures to protect civilians, including foreign nationals, as well as critical infrastructure. Returning to the negotiating table is the only way to end the killing, destruction, and despair.
“So far, besides Iran and Israel, the hostilities have impacted twelve other states, destroying or damaging private homes, offices and businesses, airports, energy infrastructure, amongst other civilian infrastructure,” Shamdasani said.