About 140,000 children displaced by Israeli airstrikes in Lebanon, many arriving in shelters severely distressed

Toronto, September 26, 2024 – About 140,000 children have been forced from their homes in southern Lebanon in the past four days, with many arriving at shelters showing signs of severe distress, according to Save the Children staff. 

Over 400,000 people have been displaced since the start of Israeli airstrikes on Sunday in the latest escalation in cross-border violence, with numbers expected to increase in the coming days. 

This brings the total number forced from their homes in Lebanon in nearly a year of cross-border violence to 500,000, or nearly 10% of the population, including 175,000 children. According to media reports, about 60,000 Israelis have been displaced from their homes in northern Israel. 

Latest figures from Lebanon’s Ministry of Health report nearly 600 people have been killed in Lebanon this week, including 50 children, while nearly 1,800 have been injured. 

Save the Children has this week distributed mattresses, blankets, pillows, water and other essential items to nearly 5,000 people in 30 shelters across the country, including in the north, the south, the Bekaa area and Mount Lebanon. 

Save the Children staff have reported growing concern over the psychological impact on children, many of whom are showing signs of severe distress due to the displacement and constant shelling.  

Mahmoud, a Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) Promotion Technician described the chaotic scenes he witnessed at one of the shelters supported by Save the Children in Beirut. He said: 

“I’ve seen many in tears, completely devastated.  One woman was carrying her child along with several bags. Another woman’s child fell from her arms. The situation was tragic, and simply heartbreaking. People are still arriving, there are families sitting on the floor, waiting to be organized between different rooms. 

There was also an incredible mobilization by the community, with volunteers showing up to support, bringing pillows, bags, anything they could to help others.” 

All schools in Lebanon have been closed, impacting all of the country’s 1.5 million children, with Lebanon’s already critical mental health crisis worsening as the hostilities continue to escalate.  

Jennifer Moorehead, Save the Children’s Country Director in Lebanon said: 

“Children are telling us that it feels like danger is everywhere, and they can never be safe. Every loud sound makes them jump now. Many children’s lives, rights and futures have already been turned upside down and now their capacity to cope with this escalating crisis has been eroded.   

“It is still possible to avert a humanitarian catastrophe, but we must act now. We urge all parties to immediately de-escalate tensions and for international actors to pressure all parties to comply with international humanitarian law. This must happen now to prevent further suffering for children and their families.” 

Save the Children has been working in Lebanon since 1953. Since October 2023, in response to the escalating cross-border situation, we’ve been scaling up our response in southern Lebanon, supporting children and families displaced by the violence. This includes displaced Lebanese, Syrian and Palestinian children and families. Since October 2023, we’ve supported 60,000 people, including 25,000 children with cash, blankets, mattresses and pillows, food parcels, water bottles and kits containing essential hygiene items. 

-ENDS 

Note to Editors:

• At least 500,000 people have fled their homes as a result of the increasing insecurities in recent months, according to Lebanon’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. For the week of September 23, around 400,000 people were displaced in a matter of days, including an estimated 140,000 children.  

Multimedia content: 

Mahmoud’s audio testimony [We have not used his full name for security concerns]: 

https://www.contenthubsavethechildren.org/Package/2O4C2S05LTKI