ActionAid has launched an emergency appeal and is calling for urgent donations to help partners scale up their response
Military escalation across the region is putting millions of civilian lives at risk after the United States and Israel launched coordinated strikes on targets in Iran on Saturday, triggering retaliatory attacks and raising fears of a wider regional war. The violence has already caused casualties and forced displacement across multiple countries, including those where ActionAid works. Across the region, airspace closures, missile interceptions and heightened military alerts are disrupting daily life and deepening instability for communities already living with conflict, displacement and economic hardship.
In Lebanon, Israeli airstrikes and exchanges with Hezbollah have killed more than 77 people and injured over 500, while at least 85,000 people have been forcibly displaced from southern Lebanon alone. Israeli authorities have also issued evacuation orders for civilians south of the Litani River, one of the largest displacement orders in the area in recent years, forcing families who have already been displaced multiple times to flee once again. Despite rapidly worsening conditions, ActionAid’s local partners continue to deliver life-saving assistance across the region. We work through local responders and women’s rights organisations who are deeply rooted in their communities and best placed to lead the response.
Marianne Samaha, head of programme development and partnerships with Basmeh & Zeitooneh said: “The escalation since Monday, early morning, has resulted in significant civilian casualties, and significant damage to infrastructure. We also know that this violence has resulted in a large-scale displacement across multiple regions in Lebanon – especially people have been forced to flee their homes from southern Lebanon, the southern suburbs of Beirut and parts of the Bekaa Valley. We have seen that entire families – including girls, boys, parents and the elderly – have been stuck on the road until this minute. They have been trying to look for temporary shelter. Some of them have found temporary shelters in schools that have been opened by the government, some have found temporary shelters with extended family members or in informal settings, but many, many people remain to this day sleeping on the streets, or in their cars.”
Ziad Yaacoub, Programme Manager at YARD, part of Global Platform in Tripoli, Lebanon, said: “Families have been internally displaced to collective shelters and households. They are in deep need of basic items that vary from sleeping kits, food and non-food kits, hygiene, dignity and even cooking kits. The internally displaced people left their houses in a hurry upon the strikes on southern Lebanon. They were not able to bring with them anything.” These organisations are often the first to act in moments of crisis, drawing on their knowledge, trust and networks to deliver support where it is needed most. ActionAid has launched an emergency appeal and is calling for urgent donations to help partners scale up their response and reach communities bearing the heaviest impact of the crisis.
Marianne Samaha continued; “The official figure from the disaster risk management unit is that more than 80,000 people have been registered as displaced, as of yesterday, as of March 4th. However, we know that the figure is much bigger than that because it doesn’t take into account those who are not in collective shelters. So, we have been talking about a figure that’s more around 180,000 people. And the figure is expected to increase more and more every day. "Even in the collective shelters, even the situation is not ideal at all. There are very high needs for rehabilitation of some of the shelters, creating safe spaces for people, a lot of people still don’t have mattresses, mats, pillows, blankets. At the moment it’s winter season, so particularly in Akkar, the Bekaa, in Mount Lebanon people are facing very low temperatures and are in need of blankets, fuel and heating systems.” She added: “The families that have fled their homes have left without their basic necessities, without their belongings, so the needs are extremely high. For women and girls, they have particular needs. Obviously, many women are pregnant, many women are currently lactating, they have fled with their newborns, with babies, with children. They need safe spaces where they can stay. And specifically with women and girls there is a high need for hygiene kits, for dignity kits and for menstrual pads.”
Sana Al Hyri, Head of Programmes in the ActionAid Arab Region said: “Lebanon was already facing years of economic crisis and instability, and this latest escalation is pushing many families even closer to the edge. For women and girls in particular, displacement brings serious risks, with overcrowded shelters increasing the risk of harassment, exploitation and gender-based violence. Many families are struggling simply to afford food, healthcare and safe shelter as prices continue to rise.” The military escalation is unfolding alongside the ongoing crisis in the occupied Palestinian territory. In Gaza, Israeli authorities have closed border crossings, severely restricting the entry of humanitarian assistance and essential supplies, further deepening an already catastrophic situation for civilians who have endured months of bombardment, displacement and siege.
Marianne Samah warned that migrant workers, refugees and other marginalised groups risk being overlooked in the response; “Marginalised communities such as migrant workers, refugees and non-Lebanese nationals are being severely affected by the current escalation and are facing heightened risks. While there are no official figures for their displacement, our field teams have already seen that thousands have been forced to flee. Many face increased discrimination and have very limited access to shelters, with some forced to stay in informal spaces without infrastructure or basic necessities. These communities must not be forgotten.”
Taahra Ghazi and Hannah Bond, co-CEOs of ActionAid UK, said: “We are horrified by the escalating military violence across Iran and the wider region, and deeply alarmed by the continued breakdown of international law unfolding before the world’s eyes. For months, red line after red line has been crossed while civilians pay the price. When violations of international law are met with impunity, the protections meant to shield people from the horrors of war begin to unravel. We urgently call for immediate military de-escalation and for diplomacy to replace further violence.”
Spokespeople based in Beirut, Amman and London are available. To request an interview or for more information contact the press office at uk.media@actionaid.org or on +44 7753 973 486
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