Lebanon: Families flee Beirut as Israel threatens renewed strikes on Hezbollah

Thousands of people fled the southern suburbs of the capital, Beirut, on Monday after Israeli announced that it will carry out renewed strikes targeting Hezbollah militants sheltered there. 

“Families are leaving by car, motorcycle, and on foot, carrying essentials,” the UN refugee agency, UNHCR, tweeted. Many others are returning to shelters and “fear and uncertainty are mounting.” 

The UN reiterated that civilians and civilian infrastructures must not be targeted.  

“We urge all actors to respect the cessation of hostilities and avoid further escalation. We condemn all the loss of civilian lives,” UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric told journalists in New York.

He underscored the need for a diplomatic solution to end the cycle of violence.

High stakes, heavy cost 

The development unfolded as the UN Security Council in New York prepared to hold an emergency session on Monday afternoon to discuss the escalating conflict. 

Humanitarians reported that many escaped from Beirut and the southern cities of Tyre and Saida following the threat of strikes and renewed displacement orders.

UN Special Coordinator for Lebanon Jeanine-Hennis Plasschaert continues engagement to de-escalate tensions, reinforce agreed to commitments under the ceasefire, and advance confidence‑building measures

In a tweet, she noted that southern Lebanon was “in flames” while Beirut’s roads were “choked with people fleeing their homes.”

The senior official said that suffering was compounding “as both sides hold out for victory.”   

She added, however, that “escalation has its own logic” and “attempting to contain or manage it is a high-stakes gamble, with costs borne by people who have already lost too much.” 

Thousands killed and injured

The crisis in Lebanon is part of unrest across the wider region.  It erupted on 2 March, just days after the United States and Israel began bombing Iran, prompting Hezbollah militants in Lebanon to fire on Israel. 

Since then, 3,412 people have been killed and more than 10,000 injured, the UN aid coordination office OCHA said on Monday, citing the Lebanese health authorities.  At least 88 people reportedly were killed over the past weekend.

Healthcare has also been affected by attacks. The World Health Organization (WHO) said five attacks were recorded in the past three days, resulting in one health worker reportedly killed and 19 others injured.

A US-brokered ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel took effect on 17 April but was never fully observed by either side. It was nominally extended twice, most recently on 16 May for a 45-day period. 

UN agencies are on the ground such as UNHCR, which has been supporting the government-led emergency response.  Alongside partners, it has reached hundreds of thousands with protection services, emergency cash assistance, shelter support, and other relief. 

‘Deepening humanitarian emergency’ 

However, “nearly three months into the conflict, Lebanon faces a deepening humanitarian emergency with a critical combination of displacement and increased food insecurity,” the UN World Food Programme (WFP) warned on Monday. 

More than a million civilians have been uprooted, and food security experts report that 1.24 million people nationwide – nearly a quarter of the population – are not getting enough to eat. 

WFP stressed the critical need for sustained humanitarian access, stable supply flows and predictable funding.

“The ongoing conflict characterised by daily bombardments and displacement orders is challenging humanitarian access and resulting in continued displacement,” the agency said, noting that “these conditions are hampering the delivery of critical assistance, particularly in hard-to-reach areas.” 

Rising food costs 

While food remains available in many areas in Lebanon, costs have risen alongside the escalating fighting.  For example, vegetable prices are now 20 per cent higher, while bread costs roughly 15 per cent more. 

Furthermore, although markets in Beirut and other areas “remain operational but under growing strain”, most markets in southern Lebanon and Nabatieh – more than 80 per cent – are no longer functioning. 

Recently, a shipment of 250 metric tonnes of wheat flour entered Lebanon through Jordan, which is now supporting roughly 10,000 vulnerable households. 

Hot meals, food parcels and emergency cash 

WFP has ramped up its response efforts, reaching more than 700,000 people to date with hot meals, ready-to-eat rations, and food parcels for families sheltering in displacement sites. 

Teams have distributed nearly five million hot meals, in addition to supporting more than 215,000 displaced people across over 500 shelters nationwide, alongside approximately 85,500 people in host communities and hard-to-reach areas. 

The UN agency has also provided emergency cash support for close to half a million Lebanese through national systems, and cash support for more than 100,000 Syrian refugees. 

Since the conflict began, 24 humanitarian convoys have been deployed to communities in Lebanon facing access restraints, but more than half of those requested have been delayed or cancelled due to movement and access risks. 

Humanitarians will launch a renewed flash appeal this Friday to scale up assistance in Lebanon over the next three months.