Tag: Israel

Lebanon’s 2026 Conflict and Displacement Increase Malnutrition

April 8, 2026:  An estimated 1.65 million people in Lebanon are vulnerable to increased food shortages and malnutrition due to the combination of conflict, bombardment, displacement and denied access of food shipments. The conflict between Israel and Hezbollah forces in Lebanon has caused significant agricultural damage, estimated at $704 million, and disrupted livelihoods, especially for small-scale farmers.  However, aid agencies have not reported new rates of malnutrition from population-based surveys.

Pre-conflict, children in Lebanon were found to be 36% anemic from iron deficiency, with reduced dietary diversity and high rates of zinc and Vitamin A deficiency.

Daily military strikes and incursions continue, particularly in the south of Lebanon and the Bekaa Valley, preventing people from returning home and resuming their livelihood.  People are sheltering in schools, public spaces, and even their cars, with many shelters already overcrowded. Hotspots include Baalbek, El Hermel, Akkar, Bent Jbeil, Marjaayoun, El Nabatieh, and Sour.  Seven bridges across the Litani River — a key transport corridor linking southern areas to the rest of the country — were struck as of late March 2026, disrupting supply routes for food, fuel, and medical goods.   Retail activity collapsed in conflict zones: only 15% of shops in El-Nabatieh and one-third in South Lebanon remained fully operational.   Markets south of the Litani River largely ceased operations, with many shops closed or evacuated and supply deliveries significantly reduced

More generally, Lebanese also have seen increases in the price of food, which has been affected by the regional conflict and constraints on fuel.  For example, the price of bread increased 8% at subsidized rates but 30% at many bakeries.  The Ministry of Economy increased the price of bread  by 5,000 Lebanese pounds due to rising fuel costs affecting oven operations and flour transportation.

International Aid

As needs have increased, the funding for aid has decreased. Food assistance coverage has dropped by about 45% between 2024 and 2025, forcing the WFP to reduce the number of people it assists by 40%.

Aid agencies that are responding with nutrition, food and health assistance include the Mennonite Central Committee, the Lebanese Red Cross, Action Against Hunger (AAH and ACF), the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, UNICEF, CARE, Caritas, MedAir, and others.

A new digital platform called Sofra is coordinating an innovative response by connecting international donors with local restaurants to prepare and deliver meals to verified shelters. This initiative helps feed displaced families while supporting local businesses and keeping restaurant staff employed.

Gaza Humanitarian Food Aid – A Report by Senators Van Hollen & Merkley

A detailed report by U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen (Maryland) and Jeff Merkley (Oregon) resulting from a fact-finding CODEL mission to Israel, Gaza’s border, the West Bank, Jordan, and Egypt is a review of their observations of destruction and forced displacement.  (Van Hollen, Merkley Report Following  2025 CODEL to Gaza Border, Israel, West Bank, Jordan, and Egypt, released Sept 11, 2025)

The two Senators begin their report observing that “In Israel, we met with families whose loved ones were taken hostage during Hamas’s heinous terrorist attack on Israel on October 7, 2023. We also returned to Kfar Aza, an Israeli kibbutz near the border with Gaza that we had previously visited in the summer of 2023. What we remembered as a vibrant community had become the site of one of the worst massacres on October 7th, with 80 people killed and 19 taken hostage.”

The Senators assert that U.S. complicity and international inaction have enabled a humanitarian crisis as a form of collective punishment against Palestinians. The Senators’ analysis is that collective punishment has replaced Israel’s initial military goal of defeating Hamas, extending suffering to the civilian population through the destruction of homes, hospitals, schools, and essential services: 92% of homes, 92% of schools, 94% of hospitals, and 86% of water/sanitation facilities have been destroyed or rendered unusable.

The report argues that Israel’s strategy combines the systematic devastation of Gaza’s civilian infrastructure—over 90% of homes, schools, hospitals, and water systems destroyed—with the weaponization of food and aid to render Gaza uninhabitable.

The authors observe that over 87% of Gaza’s territory is under military zones or evacuation orders, especially Gaza City where food access is minimal.

The Senators reference warnings of famine and that 132,000 children under five are at risk of food insecurity. NGOs reported instances of “starvation ketoacidosis”, an indication of weight loss.  As a result of patchy distribution of aid, northern Gaza appears to have more children who are malnourished than southern Gaza.

1.9 million people (90% of Gaza’s population) have been displaced, many multiple times.

Much of the Senators’ report is about the tight delivery of limited aid from outside Gaza.  Israel’s rejection of UNRWA’s role in aid delivery left 6,000 trucks of food and medicine warehoused and at risk of expiry.   They criticize Israel’s restrictions on entry points, permitting only Kerem Shalom and Zikim to operate irregularly, while Rafah remains closed.   The Jordan Corridor and Egypt aid crossing routes face high rejection rates (e.g., 68% for Egypt in August 2025), delaying non-food essentials like shelter and medicine, which disproportionately affect displaced families and the elderly ahead of winter.

Meanwhile, new customs and screening rules at Ashdod Port and along the Jordan Corridor drastically slowed aid shipments, reducing throughput to less than 10% of capacity.  Drawing on interviews with the World Food Programme (WFP):  “We were told by WFP officials that following the resumption of aid delivery to Gaza after the blockade was lifted, the Israeli government changed its screening practices and customs policies, resulting in the deliberate and unnecessary slowdown of the flow of food into Gaza.  WFP is only able to screen between 20 to 30 containers a day, whereas before these new requirements were put in place, they were able to screen over a hundred a day. The new screening procedures take about 3 to 5 hours per container, and they must physically check each pallet inside the container before the whole container is cleared.”

The authors expressed concern that new lead aid agency, the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), operates only four distribution sites, primarily in southern Gaza Established on May 26, 2025, amid the blockade’s end, the GHF replaced the UN’s extensive network with just four sites (three in southern Gaza, none in the north), leading to deadly chaos. Over 1,300 Palestinians have reportedly been killed near these sites amid chaotic food distributions.  Doctors Without Borders (MSF) called this “orchestrated killing,” with 1,380 casualties (including 174 gunshot wounds to women and children) treated at nearby clinics over seven weeks.

Van Hollen and Merkley write that the current method of aid distribution has devolved into “the rule of the strongest,” where only the most physically able individuals can access assistance.

Israeli authorities have not protected humanitarian convoys from settler attacks, while bureaucratic barriers, including arbitrary “security concerns” and banned “dual-use” lists—further impede deliveries. Items such as water filters, tents, and even peanut butter have been prohibited. The report notes that there are “two sets of laws” for aid delivery at the Kerem Shalom crossing, with GHF trucks having access to a paved, orderly loading platform while UN trucks must use uneven dirt and gravel, making their cargo less secure.  Further, they report, “One of the major problems since the start of the war in Gaza has been that the Israeli government has never published, nor provided to humanitarian organizations, a definitive list of what items are permitted or prohibited. Humanitarian groups we met with on the ground stressed that this lack of transparency has created enormous uncertainty and delays.”

Report Recommendations

The Senators call for:

  •     An immediate ceasefire by both warring factions and hostage release by Hamas.
  •     Unrestricted humanitarian access, including increasing the crossings in Kerem Shalom, Zikim, Kissufim, Gate 96, Rafah. They recommend aid agencies flood Gaza with sufficient humanitarian assistance to restore orderly distributions and lower prices, urgently address shelter needs before winter, and focus on protecting vulnerable populations.
  •     Protection of aid workers and journalists, working inside Gaza. Allow international journalists unfettered access to Gaza to provide independent verification and reporting on conditions; at the same time, push back politically and diplomatically against attempts to dismantle, deregister, or muzzle humanitarian and human rights organizations working in Gaza.

For the full report, see:  www.vanhollen.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/van_hollen_merkley_report_following_2025_codel_to_gaza_border_israel_west_bank_jordan_and_egypt.pdf

Their press presentation can be seen at:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qQBx9SDi2wU

by Steve Hansch, Hunter Notes, Editor, WHES  Board