Key points
- More than 1,000 people killed and 2,584 injured in Lebanon since March 2
- Nuclear facility hit in Iran
- UN agencies warn that 45 million people could suffer extreme hunger if war against Iran continues
“The recent escalation has killed or injured the equivalent of a classroom of children every day,” said Ted Chaiban, deputy director of the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF).
Deaths from Israeli strikes in Lebanon include 31 health workers, according to the latest flash update published by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).
Meanwhile, ongoing displacement orders are driving repeated population movements, with omore than 1.2 million displaced peopleincluding 134,439 internally displaced people in 636 collective shelters, mainly in Beirut and Mount Lebanon, amid growing shelter shortages and protection risks.
Attacks on healthcare
According to the latest report, attacks against health and humanitarian personnel continue to increase. Dozens of people have been injured amid repeated attacks on hospitals, ambulances and medical transport.
Five hospitals and 49 health centers are out of operationseverely limiting access to life-saving medical care as mass casualty incidents occur in several governorates.
Aid workers have also been affected, with a recent attack in Baalbek killing a local aid worker and two children. These attacks raise serious concerns about respect for international humanitarian law, which explicitly protects medical personnel, facilities and humanitarian personnel, OCHA said.
Escalation of hostilities on the ground
Hostilities are also increasing on the ground, OCHA said, pointing to increased military activity south of the Litani River, with exchanges of fire along the Blue Line indicating growing threats to the protection of communities in high-risk areas.
The attacks in Zkak el Blat and Basta resulted in more casualties, including the murder of a journalist and his wife, marking the first murder of a journalist in Lebanon since the March 2 escalation.
OCHA said the deaths raise serious concerns regarding the protection of civilians and media personnel.
Some Beirut residents who have been displaced by the conflict now live on the streets of the Lebanese capital.
Displacement grows
The dynamics of displacement continue to be very fluid and complex, OCHA reported.
Repeated and expanded displacement orders now cover significant portions of southern Lebanon, parts of Beirut, border villages and the Bekaa and are causing multiple, secondary and tertiary displacements.
Displacement orders in areas such as Beirut’s southern suburbs, localized orders for buildings or neighborhoods, along with broader displacement orders affecting villages, continue to force people to flee.
Overloaded shelters
Collective shelters are stretched to breaking point, with many reporting overcrowding, limited electricity, lack of heat and inadequate privacy, according to the latest update.
Schools continue to be severely affected: a total of 472 educational buildings are used as collective shelters, restricting access to education for thousands of students.
Some children have returned to the same schools where they previously took shelter during the 2024 escalation, compounding the long-term disruption caused by Lebanon’s economic collapse, the Beirut port explosion, and the COVID19 pandemic.
Airstrikes destroy infrastructure
Damage to critical infrastructure continues to impede humanitarian access.
Israeli airstrikes have destroyed or damaged roads, crossings and bridges, water pipelines and at least five fuel stations in southern Lebanon. These disruptions further limit the delivery of essential humanitarian assistance, the UN aid agency warned.
Humanitarian actors reiterated respect for international humanitarian law. Civilians, including journalists, must be protected at all times. Medical personnel, health facilities, ambulances, patients and civilians are explicitly protected by international law and should not be targeted.
The protection of civilians and unimpeded humanitarian access remain essential to prevent further loss of life and alleviate human suffering, OCHA said.
Iran: nuclear facility attacked
The head of the U.N.-backed nuclear agency reported early Saturday that Iran’s Natanz nuclear enrichment facility has been bombed amid continued attacks across the country by Israel and the United States and counterattacks by Tehran across the Gulf.
Rafael Grossi, head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), reiterated his call “for military restraint to avoid any risk of a nuclear accident.”
The UN-backed agency is tasked with ensuring cooperation in the nuclear field and promoting the safe and peaceful use of nuclear technology.
“Iran has informed the IAEA that the Natanz nuclear site was attacked today,” the agency posted, adding that “no increase in radiation levels has been reported outside the site.”
The bombing was the fourth attack targeting nuclear facilities in Iran since the start of the US-Israeli offensive.
UN agencies warn of increasing hunger and displacement
UN agencies warn that the ongoing war has displaced millions of people.
The World Food Program (WFP) said 45 million people could face extreme levels of hunger if the war continues and fuel prices continue to rise.
Meanwhile, the UN refugee agency UNHCR said the widespread consequences of the war have already led to mass displacement, as people flee violence spreading across the region.
“Amid escalating hostilities in Iran, thousands of Afghans are returning to Afghanistan,” UNHCR said on Saturday.
“For many families, this is another cycle of displacement, but the country they return to is already facing multiple crises.“, the agency stated, emphasizing that “they urgently need support.”
In fact, the effects of the war are already being felt inside and outside the region, UN agencies said.
Read our story on how the war is affecting Asian nations. here.