Lebanon Situation Report | December 2024

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A ceasefire agreement, ostensibly ending the war with Israel, took effect on November 27. The two month war brought the deadliest violence Lebanon has faced in decades. The war and the prolonged period of heightened conflict bookending it have also wrought tremendous damage on Lebanon’s economy.

Violence, Shelter, Displacement

In the mid-September through late November period of the war, more than three children were killed every day. The ceasefire agreement, while welcome, was violated over 100 times in the days after going into effect. Nonetheless, the ceasefire has triggered a mass return of people to their homes. These areas are now blighted with decimated infrastructure, which poses a long-term safety hazard given the likely contamination with unexploded ordinance. As of December 4, over 201,000 people remain displaced.

Cross-border displacement is immense. Thousands of individuals continue to enter Lebanon from Syria, Iraq, and Jordan, and over half a million people have made the reverse trip from Lebanon into Syria. Although the vast majority of displaced have returned to their homes, 151 shelters continue to house 9,000 displaced persons. 

Economic Activity, Livelihoods, and Food Security

The economic impact of the heightened conflict with Israel since October 2023 has been tremendous, particularly to tourism and agriculture. It is estimated that the billions of dollars of losses will delay the return of displaced people, hinder the recovery and reconstruction of businesses, and prolong the sharp decline in economic activity facing the country today.

Airstrikes on croplands, irrigated soil, forests, and grasslands, amount to a total 1,900 hectares (4,695 acres or 2,470 American football fields) of agricultural land damaged. The combined impacts of declining crop production, decreased imports, increased demand, lower supply, higher prices, disrupted access to food, labor shortages, damage-induced land abandonment, and supply chain disruptions haunt the folks whose livelihoods centered around agriculture, in addition to the families struggling to access food. The economic losses of crops like olive, citrus, banana, potatoes, and vegetables, in addition to livestock and species-rich ecosystems, are estimated to reach over one billion dollars. 

Health & Education

Reduced healthcare system capacity from and attacks on healthcare workers have had a significant impact on life-saving services. Damage to health facilities amounts to $74 million. Strikingly, 68% of Israeli attacks in Lebanon that were analyzed by the World Health Organization affected health personnel. These attacks on healthcare prevent immediate care for the wounded and degrade the health system capacities to provide treatment in the future.

Education has also been greatly affected. The war displaced 450,000 students and closed 982 schools. The government has now started the school year, and vocational schools have resumed as well, either in-person or through distance learning.

Water & Sanitation Challenges

The destruction of 40 water facilities has disrupted access for close to half a million people. Ongoing security challenges do not allow for frequent, scaled repair. The destruction of waste management infrastructure means garbage is piling up all over the country, exacerbating existing health residents for displaced citizens in Lebanon.

Anera’s Humanitarian Response

In the period from the start of the war in mid September until the ceasefire on November 27, Anera assisted over 1.1 million people in Lebanon through a range of services, including serving meals, delivering water, distributing doses of medication, improving shelter conditions, and delivering bedding items, feminine hygiene products and winterization kits. These efforts help to address the needs of displaced people and help them cope with the cold and other environmental challenges.