27,000 displaced by Israeli attacks seek shelter across country: Lebanese minister

By Stephanie Rady

BEIRUT (AA) - At least 27,000 people have been displaced from southern Lebanon and the Bekaa region due to Israeli military attacks, Lebanon’s Environment Minister Nasser Yassin said Tuesday.

Speaking at a press conference following a visit to several shelters, Yassin detailed the destruction in southern cities, Beirut's southern suburbs, and other parts of the country, forcing tens of thousands to flee to safer areas.

Yassin noted that public schools across the country, approximately 252 in total, have been converted into shelters for displaced residents.

He noted that 27,000 people from the southern and Bekaa regions have fled to open shelters across the country due to Israeli attacks.

In the past 24 hours, efforts to distribute essential aid, hygiene kits, and food for roughly 20,000 displaced individuals have begun, he added.

The Israeli army has launched waves of deadly airstrikes on Lebanon since early Monday, killing nearly 560 victims, including 95 women and 50 children, and injuring 1,835, according to Health Minister Firas Abiad.

“The majority of the victims in the Israeli attacks since Monday morning are defenseless civilians in their homes. This refutes the enemy’s allegations of targeting fighters,” he said.

Hezbollah and Israel have been engaged in cross-border warfare since the start of the Israeli onslaught against the Gaza Strip, which has killed more than 41,400 victims, mostly women and children, following a cross-border attack by Hamas last Oct. 7.

The international community has warned against the strikes on Lebanon, as they raise the specter of spreading the Gaza conflict regionally.

*Writing by Mohammad Sio

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