At least 30,000 displaced people have sought protection in shelters across Lebanon following an escalation in hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah, the United Nations refugee agency said on Tuesday, and added that many more were expected to join them.
The Israeli military has conducted intense air strikes across the country since Monday, prompting mass evacuations of people from areas. This military action followed Hezbollah rocket fire aimed at Israel late on Sunday, which occurred in reaction to U.S. and Israeli strikes against Iran.
"Conservative estimates suggest that nearly 30,000 people were hosted and registered at collective shelters," said UNHCR spokesperson Babar Baloch.
"Many more slept in their cars on the side of roads or were still stuck in traffic jams," he added.
Shelter capacity and refugee movement
The U.N. World Food Program expects the number of displaced individuals to rise significantly in the coming days. The Lebanese government said it has opened 21 official shelters to accommodate the growing numbers, though it said that resources remain stretched.
The UNHCR also reported a sudden increase in Syrian refugees moving from Lebanon back into Syria to escape the violence. The agency is implementing a contingency plan to manage a potential further influx of people crossing the border.
Lebanon hosts approximately 1.5 million Syrians alongside a domestic population of 4 million, representing the highest concentration of refugees per capita globally. Most of the 6 million Syrians who fled the 2011 conflict sought refuge in neighbouring countries such as Türkiye, Lebanon, and Jordan.
The current conflict exacerbates a severe, years-long economic collapse that has already pushed much of the Lebanese population into poverty. The country has struggled to maintain basic public services following compounding disasters, including the 2020 Beirut port explosion and widespread political instability.
Humanitarian organisations warn that the national infrastructure is ill-equipped to handle a new wave of mass displacement. Essential resources such as clean water, fuel, and medical supplies were already in short supply before the recent military escalation.
UNICEF warned that children in Lebanon's densely populated residential areas are at immediate risk from the ongoing air strikes. The agency reported that seven children have been killed and 38 injured since Monday, with casualty numbers expected to climb.
"Each new escalation expands the circle of harm. Residential areas, schools and critical infrastructure are being affected," UNICEF spokesperson Ricardo Pires said.
He emphasised that each new escalation expands the circle of harm, leaving vulnerable families with nowhere safe to turn.
The U.S. will impose "never seen before" measures on Iran in order to economically isolate the country, Washington's Treasury Secreta...
The Democratic Republic of the Congo’s (DRC) Ebola outbreak has spread to a sixth province. A man died of the v...
President Donald Trump has ordered the U.S. Navy to abandon its next planned electromagnetic aircraft launch sy...
Disruption in the Strait of Hormuz has increased the strategic importance of Bab al-Mandab, raising fears that instability in both waterways could trigger a wider global energy and trade crisis.
Flights at Catania airport in Sicily will remain suspended until early Friday as ash from Mount Etna continues to disrupt air travel, following hundreds of cancellations and diversions over the past week.
Iran says the Strait of Hormuz remains under its control, rejecting U.S. President Donald Trump’s claim of “total control” over the strategic waterway and insisting it will not reopen until Washington fulfils its commitments under an interim deal.
Iran and the United States remain at loggerheads over efforts to agree a permanent end to the war in the Gulf, according to a senior Iranian source who said there had been no progress in talks to revive the interim deal agreed in June and define a timeframe to implement it.
Russia has accused Ukraine of threatening global grain supplies after recent strikes on Black Sea agricultural infrastructure, while Moscow carried out a new overnight attack on Ukraine’s major Danube port of Izmail.
The suspension of two major grain terminals in Russia’s Black Sea port of Novorossiysk could increase pressure on Kazakhstan’s agricultural market if Russian exporters divert supplies to Central Asia at discounted prices.
Georgia’s Prime Minister says the EU’s inclusion of a major Black Sea cable project on a key infrastructure list is fresh evidence of the country’s importance to regional energy and digital connectivity.
Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has dismissed Security Council Secretary Armen Grigoryan and appointed former parliament speaker Alen Simonyan as his replacement.
Central Asia’s economy has surpassed $543 billion, driven by Kazakhstan’s economic weight, strong exports and foreign investment, while growing trade across Asia points to an increasingly connected region.
The United Nations refugee agency is planning a settlement and carpet-weaving workshop for Afghan returnees in Kabul as the country grapples with large-scale returns and growing pressure on housing, jobs and basic services.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment