Lebanon: it’s a humanitarian emergency. Again.

The war is back—like before, but worse. The pain from the 2024 conflict, which never truly ended, has been deepened by new waves of heavy bombardment that are pushing families into despair and forcing them to flee their homes.

In southern Lebanon, the humanitarian emergency has returned. Thousands of people are moving north, seeking refuge with relatives or in schools that have been converted into temporary shelters for displaced families. They urgently need food, clean water, and essential supplies.

The impact of the latest attacks is devastating: more than 500,000 people are now displaced, fleeing from 225 villages placed under evacuation orders. Many fear they may never return home, as a ground operation in these areas has been announced.

Less than 72 hours after the large-scale bombardments began, we launched an emergency response. A fundraising campaign is now active to provide immediate assistance to displaced families.

Since the ceasefire in November 2024, Lebanon has continued to experience attacks almost daily. But the scale of the recent military operations is very different. The intensity of the violence now mirrors the escalation that preceded the truce—those devastating two and a half months of constant attacks. Today, strikes are widespread across the country: particularly in southern Lebanon, but also in the Bekaa Valley and Beirut, which continues to be hit.

From the first hours of the attacks, much of southern Lebanon began to empty. Yet some people remain. Some refuse to leave out of fear that they may never find their homes again; others simply do not have the means to escape. Four of our colleagues have chosen to remain in Marjayoun, where our office is located.

Most displaced families are seeking refuge in Beirut and the Mount Lebanon region. Some stop first in Saida before continuing north. Those with relatives in safer areas stay with them, but many have nowhere to go and must rely on public shelters. More than 300 public schools have been converted into temporary shelters, as happened during the war in 2024.

For the past week, we have been operating in full emergency response mode. Priorities have shifted rapidly as humanitarian organizations—including the United Nations, NGOs, the Lebanese Ministry of Social Affairs, and AVSI—coordinate efforts to meet urgent needs.

Right now, displaced families urgently need water, food, essential household supplies, blankets, and mattresses to ensure basic dignity for those forced to leave their homes with little or no warning.

Francesca Lazzari, AVSI Country Representative in Lebanon