Lebanon crisis: COOPI is mobilising to provide food aid to displaced people

In just two days, more than 1,500 attacks by Israeli forces have hit Lebanese territory. The consequences are devastating: more than 1,200 people have died, 50 of them children, thousands have been injured and more than 120,000 are fleeing south Lebanon. Entire families have lost everything, forced to take refuge in schools and makeshift shelters.

COOPI – Cooperazione Internazionale, which has been active in Lebanon since 2013, is intervening to bring immediate aid assistance to all those who have fled with nothing. Our humanitarian workers are working in the vocational training centre in Siblin, Saida Governorate, and in two schools in Nahr Al Bared, Tripoli Governorate, used as collective shelters. Here we have already welcomed 750 people for whom, thanks to the setting up of two mobile kitchens, we are guaranteeing two meals a day. But the situation is critical. This is why we are launching a fundraising appeal: dona.coopi.org/emergenza-libano

The crisis in Lebanon

Between 23 and 24 September, the situation in Lebanon reached critical levels due to an escalation of Israeli attacks on the territory. The most affected areas are those in the south of the country, the Beqaa and the southern areas of Beirut. The two-day toll is dramatic; more than 1,500 offensives have been registered with disastrous consequences on the population and on the civil and residential infrastructure.

Data from the Lebanese Ministry of Health, updated as of 26 September, speak of almost 1,700 wounded and 600 victims, including 50 children, and the situation is constantly evolving, with a dramatic increase in the number of victims. The International Organisation for Migration (IOM) has reported that in just 72 hours, from 23 to 26 September, the number of internally displaced people doubled compared to the beginning of the hostilities, bringing the total number of people forced to flee to 211,319, including 74,000 children.

Speaking from Beirut, Matteo Crosetti, COOPI's Regional Coordinator for the Middle East, said:

COOPI continues to work actively in Lebanon, both through our headquarters in Beirut and our field office in Tripoli in the north of the country. Our programmes in the Tripoli and Akkar areas are also progressing, and we are coordinating to provide initial food assistance to displaced Lebanese seeking shelter in public shelters. At the moment, people are seeking shelter wherever they can, in Lebanon or in Syria.

The crisis in Syria

The escalation of the conflict has led to a displacement of people, mainly Syrians and Lebanese, towards Syria, via several strategic points such as the Jdaidet Yabous border in Rural Damascus. The latter, according to recent reports by the Syrian Arab Red Cross, registers more than 30,943 new entries. The country is organising itself to provide public buildings, as it did during the 2023 earthquake, to accommodate the population

Crosetti continues:

As COOPI, we are currently organising a response in Syria, as the first flow has arrived in an area where we are already operating, Rural Damascus. From the capital Damascus, where we have our mission headquarters, we are coordinating with our offices in Hama, Latakia and Aleppo, to ensure a timely and targeted intervention for the refugees.

Since 2013, COOPI has been supporting the Lebanese population and, since 2016, the Syrian population, helping communities affected by the economic crisis in Lebanon and Syrian refugees. The NGO has so far implemented 19 projects in Lebanon and 24 in Syria. Its established presence in the two countries allows it to aid the inhabitants even during sudden emergencies, such as the Aleppo earthquake and the current one.