Lebanon: humanitarian crisis under Israeli bombardment

UN officials on Sept. 26 warned of a rapidly worsening humanitarian crisis in Lebanon as death tolls mount from Israeli air-strikes. Secretary-General António Guterres told the Security Council:  “Hell is breaking loose in Lebanon and we should all be alarmed by the escalation.” The warnings came just as Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu arrived in New York for the UN General Assembly. Human Rights Watch one day earlier called for urgent UN action, reporting that some 1,600 Israeli strikes have killed at least 558 people, including 50 children, and injured thousands in the span of two days. The UN’s Refugee Agency revealed that some 90,000 Lebanese residents had been displaced in the span of 72 hours.

The United Nations’ head of peacekeeping operations, Jean-Pierre Lacroix, meanwhile painted a grim picture of chaos along the UN-patrolled line of separation between Lebanon and Israel, or Blue Line. But Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz struck a defiant tone, asserting via social media: “There will be no ceasefire in the north.”

Israel has faced growing calls to respect international humanitarian law in recent months, amid reports of devastating civilian death tolls in Gaza. It faces ongoing charges of genocide against the people of Palestine before the International Court of Justice.

From Jurist, Sept. 26. Used with permission.

See our last reports on genocide accusations against Israel.

Photo: UNICEF/Dar Al Mussawir via UN News