Today, the European Commission announced €10 million in additional humanitarian aid to help people in Lebanon affected by the ongoing escalation of hostilities between Hezbollah and Israel.
This emergency funding aims to tackle the most urgent needs such as protection, food assistance, shelter and health care. The EU stands ready to provide further support by mobilising all the available emergency response tools, including via use of the EU Civil Protection Mechanism.
In 2024, the EU provided €74 million in humanitarian aid to help vulnerable populations in Lebanon, including this allocation.
The conflict has triggered population displacement in Lebanon from areas bordering Israel, with latest data pointing to at least 90,530 newly displaced people in Lebanon in addition to the nearly 112,000 displaced since October 2023. There are already hundreds of casualties and injuries among civilians.
Commissioner for Crisis Management, Janez Lenarčič, said: “As hostilities rapidly escalate, people in Lebanon are being subjected to extreme violence, with innocent civilians paying the price of confrontations between Hezbollah and Israel. With this emergency allocation we aim at immediately establishing a lifeline for people in Lebanon, both nationals and refugees, affected by the surge of hostilities. At this moment in time, now more than ever, all parties must abide by International Humanitarian Law.”.
Background
People in Lebanon, including refugees, were already experiencing high levels of poverty and food insecurity while having limited access to services.
Nearly 2 million Lebanese and Syrian refugees are estimated to be food insecure. This number is expected to rise further.
Since 2011, the EU allocated over €941 million in humanitarian aid to respond to the urgent needs of the population, both Lebanese and refugees.
As the situation worsened for the broader Lebanese population, especially since 2019, EU humanitarian aid is being delivered both to Syrians and Lebanese who are most in need.
The EU also organised the series of Brussels Syria Conferences to address the needs of Syrian refugees and host communities in Lebanon. Through our humanitarian funding, we support vulnerable populations to meet their basic needs through health care, education, protection and legal services.
