Update: MSF emergency response in Lebanon

Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) has scaled up its emergency response and mobilized teams across the country to provide urgent medical and psychosocial support to people who have been displaced.

The intense Israeli bombardments have forced more than one million people to flee their homes, according to national authorities.

"Families are fleeing their homes in search of safety. Many of them are seeking refuge in underprepared and overcrowded shelters,” says Dr. Luna Hammad, MSF medical coordinator in Lebanon. “People who have been displaced are very vulnerable - children, women, elders, and people with physical disabilities - living in terrible conditions including limited access to clean water, sanitation, and basic healthcare services. The needs are huge."

Across Lebanon, there are currently 875 shelters, with over 70 per cent already full, according to national authorities. Most displaced people urgently need assistance, having fled without basic necessities, while the communities and shelters hosting them are also in dire need of support.

In response to the dire situation, MSF has scaled up its emergency response and sent various mobile medical teams, including doctors, nurses, psychologists, counsellors and health promoters, to schools and other shelters across the country. These teams have already provided over 1,780 general medical consultations over the past week and continue to provide assistance to displaced individuals and families, and more teams are on the way to reach areas in need of support.

Additionally, MSF is donating essential items such as mattresses, blankets and hygiene kits to displaced families in locations including Saida, Tripoli, and several sites in Beirut and Mount Lebanon. MSF is also distributing meals and drinking water, as well as delivering large quantities of washing water to shelters in Beirut and Mount Lebanon to ensure basic hygiene standards in structures that are often not equipped to house people. As of Oct. 2, MSF team have donated ​ 6,523 hygiene kits, ​ 16,118 liters of drinking water, 643 mattresses, 699 blankets, 7,000 litres of fuel to hospitals, and 713,000 litres of water to shelters across the country.

To support healthcare facilities, MSF has previously prepositioned over 10 tonnes of medical supplies in hospitals since the beginning of last November. MSF teams have also conducted mass casualty preparedness training to 117 healthcare staff in hospitals across the country.

MSF’s mental health teams are also witnessing immense needs for psychological and psychosocial support. The mental health helplines are receiving over 100 calls daily from individuals struggling with rising mental health challenges amid the fear and displacement.

MSF is gravely concerned about the ongoing bombing campaign, much of which targets densely populated urban areas. The organization is urging for the protection of civilians, healthcare workers, medical facilities, and ambulances. Many MSF staff in Lebanon are displaced themselves; some have lost loved ones or have family members who have been injured.