New Displacement Across Lebanon Deepens Humanitarian Needs for Children and Families

5 June 2026 

Beirut, Lebanon – World Vision Lebanon reiterates its deep concern over the latest wave of displacement across Lebanon, which has forced at least 80,000 families to flee their homes since June 1. Shelters are reported at full capacity in the southern cities of Tyre and Saida, as well as in Beirut and Mount Lebanon, leaving very few options for safe shelter.

Children continue to bear the greatest burden of the crisis. Repeated displacement is disrupting their education, wellbeing, and sense of safety, while continued uncertainty, insecurity, and overcrowded conditions increase protection concerns, limit access to essential services, and put children at risk for repeated mental and emotional trauma.

Since the escalation began, World Vision Lebanon has reached more than 159,000 people, including nearly 56,000 children, through emergency assistance across 471 collective shelters and displacement locations. Support has included hot meals, blankets, mattresses, hygiene kits, family kits, and psychosocial support for children and families. World Vision Lebanon continues to scale up its response to each new wave of mass displacement, in close partnership with more than 20 Lebanese organisations, United Nations agencies, and the Ministry of Social Affairs (MoSA).

Since June 1, over 30,000 families were displaced from South Governorate and a further 4,000 families from Nabatieh Governorate. Preliminary estimates indicate that at least 50,000 families were displaced from Beirut's southern suburbs during this same timeframe. Today, an estimated 1.3 million people are displaced across Lebanon, representing nearly one quarter of the country's population.

Approximately 80% – roughly 1 million people – are outside of formal shelters, in tents, on the streets, in unfinished buildings, or out in the open. Nearly 134,000 people are reported as sheltering in 634 collective shelters across Lebanon.

Heidi Diedrich, National Director of World Vision Lebanon, said:

"Children are paying the highest price of this crisis. Every new displacement disrupts a child's sense of safety, wellbeing, and future. With more than a million people displaced outside collective shelters, urgent support is needed to ensure children and families can access safe shelter, protection, food, clean water, and psychosocial support."

World Vision Lebanon prays for the protection of civilians, particularly children, and for safe and sustained access to humanitarian aid for all those affected by the crisis. As displacement continues to rise, urgent international support is needed to help humanitarian organisations scale up life-saving assistance, including shelter, food, protection, healthcare, clean water, and psychosocial support for children and families.

Notes to Editors

World Vision has been present in Lebanon for more than 50 years, delivering humanitarian assistance and long-term development programmes supporting vulnerable children and families. The organisation works with local partners to provide emergency food assistance, education support, child protection, clean water, healthcare, livelihoods support, and psychosocial services across the country. 

For more information, please contact:

Evita Jourdi, Advocacy & Communications Senior Advisor at WV MEER: evita_jourdi@wvi.org | +961 71 677 744