War in Lebanon : displaced civilians are living in fear, crammed in inhumane conditions

For more than two weeks now, intense Israeli bombardment in Lebanon has triggered mass displacements. More than 830 000 people have already been forced out of their homes, following evacuation orders by Israel, which has launched a military offensive against Hezbollah in the south and east of the country.

With entire villages, cities or districts under Israeli evacuation orders, hundreds of thousands of civilians across 15 to 20 percent of the Lebanese territory are caught in the crossfire, forced to pack their bags and flee their homes.

The journey out of these areas exposes them to multiple threats. Trapped on congested roads for hours, displaced people are at risk of being hit by nearby air strikes. Numerous families, still reeling from the trauma of a ravaging conflict in late 2024, are living in fear of being killed at any moment.

Those who cannot rent or be hosted by relatives are cramming into overcrowded collective shelters, where conditions are inhumane: strained basic services (water, electricity, access to healthcare), insufficient or dilapidated sanitation facilities… Many others have nowhere to go and are sleeping out in the open, on the streets, in their cars or on the beach.

Reaching areas under bombardment, our teams at Première Urgence Internationale have handed out thousands of mattresses, pillows, blankets, hygiene products as well as drinking water in more than 40 temporary shelters. Within hours of the war’s outbreak, our staff was already providing support to the most vulnerable. We have carried out more than 500 medical consultations and are running more than 20 primary healthcare mobile clinics.

“It is cycle after cycle of crisis” for at-risk groups, such as the elderly, children, pregnant women or those with chronic illnesses, said Kevin Charbel, Lebanon Country Director – with no end in sight.

The parallels with Israel’s modus operandi in the Occupied Palestinian Territory are alarming. We fear this may turn into another catastrophe of a similar scale. Première Urgence Internationale urges parties to the conflict to protect civilian populations and infrastructure as well as humanitarian access, in accordance with its international legal obligations.

Spokespersons :

• Kevin Charbel, Country Director in Lebanon, is on the ground in Beirut and available to speak with journalists.
• Elsa Softic, Deputy Director of Operations, can give interviews in Paris.

Press contact: Juliette Maigné ([email protected]) at +33 7 83 42 57 19.