One in five Lebanese children has been forced from their homes in just one month as conflict across Lebanon and the wider Middle East triggers mass displacement, Save the Children Chief Executive Inger Ashing said during a visit to Beirut. More than 1.2 million people — a fifth of the population — have been uprooted since early March due to Israeli airstrikes and displacement orders, including 350,000 children. Over 1,000 people have been killed, with more than 120 children dead and at least 380 injured.
Ashing met families who had fled with little more than the clothes on their backs, many relying entirely on aid after years of economic crisis. Children are bearing the brunt, losing homes, schools, friends, and access to healthcare, leaving them frightened and emotionally drained. “No child should have to run for their life in the middle of the night,” Ashing said. “Lebanon’s children are exhausted, traumatised, and losing the foundations of childhood. The world cannot look away — we need action now.”
Many displaced families are staying with relatives or crowding into about 660 collective shelters, including 470 schools, often the same ones they used during the 2024 escalation. Ashing met 20‑year‑old Wafaa*, who fled eastern Lebanon with her family amid explosions: “I want to achieve my dreams… without war.” A mother in a shelter with her four children said contact with other kids was vital for coping; Save the Children staff are running play activities, football, and drawing sessions where children sketch homes and villages they long to return to.
This is the sixth year in a row that conflict has disrupted schooling for many children, with few accessing online learning. “This is not just a displacement crisis — it’s a childhood crisis,” Ashing said. “Classrooms should be for learning, not hiding from airstrikes.” Save the Children is providing food, water, hygiene kits, and psychosocial support but warns needs are outstripping resources.
The organization is calling for an immediate ceasefire to protect civilians, especially children; safe, unhindered humanitarian access; and more international funding. Save the Children has worked in Lebanon since 1953 and has scaled up support for displaced Lebanese, Syrian, and Palestinian families since October 2023.
