Israel Keeps 300,000 Lebanese Displaced as Strikes Continue
Israel’s military presence, demolitions and continuing strikes are preventing more than 300,000 displaced Lebanese from returning safely to their homes, the United Nations says. Eight months after families fled southern Lebanon, the ceasefire has left them without the security, services and income needed to return.
The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reported Friday that the displaced have been away from home since March 2. Nearly 970,000 people have returned to their communities, but return has not meant recovery. Many have found damaged houses, broken services and livelihoods cut off by military restrictions.
“Without safety, access to essential services and opportunities to earn a living, families cannot rebuild their lives,” UN spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric said. He called for civilian protection, unhindered humanitarian access and the safe, dignified return of displaced people.
OCHA recorded Israeli demolitions, fires and strikes across southern Lebanon this week, including communities outside Israel’s declared combat zone. Families who reach their villages still face damaged homes, restricted movement and the threat of further attacks.
In Nabatieh governorate, insecurity and access restrictions have disrupted the olive harvest, cutting off seasonal income. Farmers in some villages worked for only two days before Israeli forces ordered them to stop.
The International Organization for Migration counted 329,686 internally displaced people at the end of September; 53 percent were women. More recent OCHA reporting still puts displacement above 300,000.
Lebanon entered this escalation already weakened by years of economic collapse, failing public services and the unresolved destruction from earlier fighting. The renewed war multiplied those pressures. More than one million people fled at its height, while homes, roads, schools, clinics and water systems suffered extensive damage.
Continuing military control leaves Israel with power over whether families can reach their villages, repair their homes and work their land. A ceasefire that leaves those restrictions in place cannot deliver a safe return.
The Lebanon Humanitarian Fund has allocated $91 million for displaced people, returnees, refugees and other affected communities. A separate UN response plan seeks $385.88 million for September through December to assist 732,125 people with shelter repairs, essential services and protection.
Relief agencies can provide food, cash and temporary shelter. They cannot lift military restrictions on farmland, stop demolitions or guarantee safe passage home.
In Saida, UNICEF and the World Food Programme have helped convert school and vocational kitchens into emergency food hubs. Displaced students and local residents prepare meals for families who lost their homes or incomes. The work is vital, but no community kitchen can substitute for the right to return.
For the families still displaced, reconstruction begins with access: to their homes, their fields and the services their communities need. Continuing Israeli operations and restrictions are blocking that return.
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