Friday 20 Mar 2026
Smoke rises after an Israeli strike on a residential area in the southern suburbs of Beirut, Lebanon, March 17, 2026. (Photo/Reuters)
The United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights has issued a severe warning regarding recent Israeli air strikes in Lebanon. Reports indicate that these operations have devastated residential buildings and civilian sites, leading to significant loss of life, including families, women, and children. The UN has highlighted specific concerns regarding strikes on sheltered displaced persons and healthcare facilities. While Israel maintains that its actions are defensive strikes against Hezbollah infrastructure, international observers are increasingly concerned about the proportionality of these attacks and their impact on civilian populations. This crisis is compounded by a rapidly deteriorating humanitarian situation characterized by mass displacement and severe aid delivery disruptions.
Israeli air strikes on residential areas and civilian sites in Lebanon may violate international law and could amount to war crimes, the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights has warned.
Speaking in Geneva, UN human rights spokesperson Thameen Al-Kheetan said on Tuesday Israeli strikes had flattened residential buildings in densely populated areas, killing entire families, including women and children.
“Israeli air strikes have destroyed entire residential buildings in dense urban environments,” he said, adding that civilians were often killed together in the attacks.
The UN office also called for investigations into strikes on displaced people sheltering in tents along Beirut’s seafront and on a healthcare centre in Bint Jbeil.
“International law is very clear that deliberately attacking civilians or civilian objects amounts to a war crime,” Al-Kheetan said.
Israel claims it is targeting Hezbollah infrastructure, describing its operations as defensive after the group launched rocket attacks from Lebanon following the start of the war on Iran.
Mass displacement surges
The humanitarian toll in Lebanon is rapidly worsening.
Lebanese authorities say at least 886 people have been killed, while more than one million have been forced from their homes amid widespread Israeli evacuation orders.
The UN says roughly one in five people in Lebanon are now displaced, with warnings that expanding evacuation zones — including areas between the Litani and Zaharani rivers — could amount to forced displacement under international law.
UN humanitarian coordinator Imran Riza said civilians are paying the heaviest price.
“Displacement is increasing incredibly quickly. Hundreds of thousands of people left their homes, many with very little,” he said.
Aid efforts under strain
Humanitarian relief is struggling to keep pace with the crisis.
Aid deliveries have been hampered by funding shortages and supply chain disruptions, while airspace restrictions linked to the wider regional conflict have limited access to Lebanon.
An air bridge previously used by Gulf countries during earlier fighting is currently inactive, with only a handful of aid flights reaching the country in the past week.
As the war expands, concerns are mounting that the humanitarian situation in Lebanon could deteriorate further without urgent international intervention.
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Source: TRT
