‘Tens of thousands’ have fled Lebanon: UN
Tens of thousands of people have fled their homes in Lebanon since September 23rd according to the UN, amid strikes by Israel, according to the Arab News via AFP. “We are gravely concerned about the serious escalation in the attacks that we saw yesterday,” UN refugee agency spokesman Matthew Saltmarsh told reporters in Geneva. “Tens of thousands of people were forced from their homes yesterday and overnight, and the numbers continue to grow,” he said.
Lebanon’s health ministry has said that at least 492 people were killed in Israeli strikes on September 23rd, including 35 children, marking the deadliest bombardment in Lebanon for almost 20 years. The last time Lebanon witnessed this level of bombardment was in the 2006 war between Hezbollah and Israel.
READ: Israel-Hezbollah escalation, 182 killed in Israeli strikes
Geopolitical rivals Israel and Hezbollah have engaged in almost-daily cross-border exchanges of fire since the Hamas attacks in Israeli last October 7th.
“This is a region that has already been devastated by war and a country that knows suffering all too well,” Saltmarsh said. “The toll on civilians is unacceptable.”
Ravina Shamdasani, spokeswoman for the UN rights office, said the agency was “extremely alarmed by the sharp escalation of hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah. She called on “all parties to immediately cease the violence and to ensure the protection of civilians.”
READ: UN peacekeeping forces worried about tensions in Lebanon
Meanwhile the UN children’s agency denounced the impact on young people in Lebanon. “We are warning today that any further escalation in this conflict will be absolutely catastrophic for all children in Lebanon,” said Ettie Higgins, UNICEF Deputy Representative in Lebanon, speaking via video link from Beirut. Yesterday was Lebanon’s worst day in 18 years. This violence has to stop immediately, or the consequences will be unconscionable.”
AFP.
