Days after launching a series of intense airstrikes that resulted in the killing of senior Hezbollah leaders including its leader Hassan Nasrallah, the Israel military began its ground invasion of Lebanon early on October 1, repeating its ill-fated military campaign of 2006. The continuing intense bombardment in parts of Lebanon and the escalating crisis have displaced nearly one million people in this Middle Eastern country, which is already facing a severe financial, economic, and political crisis, with a significant number of the population experiencing high levels of poverty and food insecurity.
As per Lebanon’s health ministry, more than 1,000 Lebanese have been killed and 6,000 wounded in the past two weeks due to Israeli bombings. The Israeli military claims it has been targeting Hezbollah positions across southern Lebanon and the Beqaa Valley, but the strikes have also hit civilian areas, causing widespread casualties and displacement. Many homes and public buildings have been reduced to rubble.
Escalating crisis
Lebanon’s Prime Minister Najib Makati said that his country is facing “one of the most dangerous phases” in its history and that an estimated one million people have been displaced across Lebanon since Israeli air strikes began last month.
According to the UN, over 90 percent of the one million people displaced in Lebanon fled their homes in just the last week. Thousands of Lebanese civilians have fled their homes, with over 118,000 internally displaced in the country and over 100,000 people escaping to Syria in a bid to escape Israeli air raids, according to the UNHCR. The number of displaced people crossing the border has more than doubled over the past two days. After announcing its ground raids into Lebanon, the Israeli military also directed locals in over 25 villages in southern Lebanon to evacuate their homes.
The World Health Organization (WHO) reported that 11 health workers had been killed and 10 injured between 17 and 28 September. Some 37 health centers have been forced to close due to the fighting out of 317 in total, and three hospitals treating patients have been evacuated.
Lebanon has been grappling with multiple crises, from the devastating Beirut port explosion and the COVID-19 pandemic to a cholera outbreak in late 2022. Compounding these challenges is the rapid devaluation of the Lebanese pound, which has fueled soaring inflation and slashed the population’s purchasing power. As a result, poverty levels have surged, leaving nearly 2 million people—both Lebanese citizens and Syrian refugees—facing food insecurity, a figure expected to climb further.
The dire humanitarian situation is worsened by a protracted political deadlock and rising anti-refugee sentiment across the country. Lebanon, which hosts one of the highest per capita refugee populations globally, struggles to accommodate around 20 percent of Syrian refugee families living in informal settlements and collective shelters. These makeshift accommodations are often overcrowded and lack basic services, highlighting the severe conditions endured by many amid the nation’s deepening crisis.
Expanding war to Lebanon
On 27 September 2024, Israel conducted a series of unprecedented airstrikes on southern Beirut, resulting in numerous casualties and significant damage to buildings. This escalation marks one of the most aggressive assaults on the city in recent times.
A day later, Israel’s military announced that it had killed Hezbollah’s leader Hassan Nasrallah. Nasrallah, who had been the head of Hezbollah for decades and was a key figure in the conflict between Israel and Lebanon, was reportedly targeted during the major escalation of hostilities. His death marks a pivotal moment in the conflict, likely escalating tensions further, as Hezbollah has been at the forefront of the resistance against Israeli forces. The Israeli military views this strike as a critical blow to Hezbollah’s command structure. The strike leveled six apartment buildings while injuring 91 people, according to Lebanon’s health ministry.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, while addressing the UN General Assembly, criticized what he called “lies and slander” directed at Israel, asserting his commitment to continue operations against Hezbollah. Following the strikes, he cut his trip to the United States short to return to Israel. Military chief Herzi Halevi stated that the Israeli Defense Forces are fully prepared for further actions, emphasizing that the targeted areas are key strongholds of Hezbollah. Lebanon’s caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati condemned Israel’s actions as a disregard for ceasefire calls.
The most recent escalation began in October 2023, when the Lebanese Shiite militant group Hezbollah launched missile attacks on Israel in support of Hamas after it attacked southern Israel. Hezbollah, like Hamas, is backed by Iran and has been involved in several rounds of conflict with Israel over the past few decades. This latest surge in violence marks the worst confrontation since the 2006 Lebanon War.
Hezbollah was formed in the 1980s, during Lebanon’s civil war, with the primary goal of resisting the Israeli occupation of southern Lebanon. Over the years, the group has evolved into a formidable political and military force within Lebanon, with a strong anti-Israel stance. Hezbollah justifies its current involvement as part of its broader goal of supporting the Palestinian cause for liberation and confronting Israeli military actions.
Since Hezbollah began its campaign of cross-border strikes last year in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza, Israel had indicated it was looking to escalate its military offensive to Lebanon. Benjamin Netanyahu, arriving in New York for the UN General Assembly, reaffirmed Israel’s commitment to continue military operations against Hezbollah, stating, “We will keep hitting Hezbollah with full force and we will not stop until we achieve all our goals, first and foremost returning the residents of the north safely to their homes.”
This aggressive stance has all but eliminated hopes for a swift resolution. Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz made it clear that there would be “no ceasefire in the north,” effectively closing the door on immediate diplomatic efforts for a truce?.
This hardline approach was met with alarm from Lebanese officials. Lebanese Foreign Minister Abdallah Bou Habib urged the UN for an immediate ceasefire, warning that failure to do so could lead to a situation that spirals out of control, creating a domino effect in the region. He described Lebanon’s current predicament as a crisis threatening its very existence.
Decades of conflict
In 1948, Lebanon fought alongside other Arab countries against the nascent state of Israel. Around 100,000 Palestinians who fled or were expelled from their homes in what had been British-ruled Palestine during the war arrived in Lebanon as refugees. In 1973, disguised Israeli special forces shot dead three Palestinian guerrilla leaders in Beirut in retaliation for the killing of Israeli athletes at the 1972 Munich Olympics.
In 1978, Israel invaded south Lebanon and set up a narrow occupation zone in an operation against Palestinian guerrillas after a militant attack near Tel Aviv. Israel backs a local Christian militia called the South Lebanon Army (SLA).
Israel invaded Lebanon in June 1982, ostensibly in response to attacks launched on it by the Palestine Liberation Organization from southern Lebanon. Lebanon’s civil war had been raging for seven years by then.
In July 1993, Israel attacked Lebanon in what it called “Operation Accountability”, known as the Seven-Day War in Lebanon. In 1996, Israel launched another 17-day offensive intended to force Hezbollah beyond the Litani River and out of striking range of Israeli targets.
In 2000, Israel withdrew from southern Lebanon, after continued attacks on Israeli military positions in occupied Lebanese territory by Hezbollah, ending 22 years of occupation.
In July 2006, war broke out after an operation into Israeli territory by Hezbollah killed three Israeli soldiers and captured two. An estimated 1,200 Lebanese people were killed and 4,400 were wounded, mostly civilians. Israel reported 158 deaths, most of them soldiers
