The mass movement began after Hezbollah launched rockets into Israel following U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran, prompting sustained Israeli air attacks and a ground offensive. Villages across southern and eastern Lebanon, along with Beirut’s southern suburbs, have been largely emptied, pushing civilians into the capital in numbers equivalent to roughly one-fifth of the country’s population, according to government estimates.

Beirut’s infrastructure has come under severe strain as displaced families crowd into available spaces, including schools converted into shelters, mosques, storefronts and public parks. A sprawling tent settlement has emerged along the city’s waterfront, while others have set up makeshift shelters along the coastal corniche and near Horsh Beirut park.

Residents described deteriorating living conditions, with many lacking access to basic sanitation, electricity and adequate shelter. Some families have resorted to sleeping in vehicles or under tarpaulins, while heavy rains have flooded encampments, exacerbating health risks.

The United Nations refugee agency said the scale and speed of the displacement are without precedent in Lebanon’s recent history. Spokesperson Dalal Harb noted that the figure of one million displaced likely understates the true number, as many have not formally registered with authorities.

Government efforts to accommodate those fleeing have included converting hundreds of public buildings into shelters and establishing temporary facilities in large venues such as sports stadiums. Aid groups have also repurposed damaged infrastructure, including a slaughterhouse affected by the 2020 Beirut port explosion, to house displaced populations.

Despite these measures, capacity remains insufficient, forcing large numbers to remain in informal settlements. Many displaced families have opted to stay in Beirut rather than relocate to northern areas where space may be more available, citing concerns over losing proximity to their homes and communities.

Urban specialists warn that the visible scale of displacement is reshaping the city’s social and physical landscape, creating new pressures on public services and heightening tensions among residents.

The influx has also revived concerns over Lebanon’s fragile sectarian balance, with the displacement of large numbers of Shiite residents from southern regions and Beirut’s suburbs raising fears of demographic shifts in the capital.

Humanitarian agencies say needs are escalating rapidly as the conflict shows no sign of abating. Israeli forces have signaled the possibility of advancing further into Lebanese territory, raising the prospect of additional displacement.

Aid officials warned that conditions for those already displaced could deteriorate further without sustained assistance and a de-escalation in hostilities.

The strikes hit vehicles in Beirut’s southern outskirts and in an area just south of the capital, according to Lebanese authorities and state media.Targeted strikes in capital outskirtsLebanon’s state news agency NNA reported that one strike hit a vehicle in the Khaldeh area south of Beirut, killing two people and wounding three.

A second strike in the Jnah area targeted multiple vehicles, with the health ministry reporting at least five killed and 21 injured.

Israel’s military said it carried out two separate operations aimed at a senior Hezbollah commander and another high-ranking member of the Iran-aligned group, but did not identify the individuals or confirm whether they were killed.

The strikes come amid a widening Israeli offensive in Lebanon that has killed at least 1,200 people and displaced around 1.2 million, according to Lebanese authorities.

Lebanon became directly involved in the broader regional conflict after Hezbollah launched rockets at Israel in support of Iran, following earlier strikes by Israel and the United States on Iranian targets.

The exchange triggered intensified Israeli ground and air operations across Lebanese territory.There was no immediate comment from Hezbollah on Wednesday’s strikes.

The Israeli military said it had begun a “wave of strikes” on positions in the capital’s southern districts, including areas such as Tahouitet Al-Ghadir, following evacuation warnings issued to residents earlier in the day.

Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency reported multiple strikes across south Beirut, as well as in southern and eastern regions of the country. The health ministry said an attack on the town of Saksakiyeh in the Sidon district killed six people, including three children, and wounded 17 others.

In the Bekaa region, authorities said a strike killed a pregnant woman and injured seven people. Lebanese officials estimate that more than 1,100 people have been killed since the escalation began, with over one million displaced, including around 136,000 sheltering in collective facilities.

Hezbollah said its fighters had engaged Israeli troops “at point-blank range” in the villages of Bayada and Shamaa, near the border, and claimed additional attacks on Israeli targets.

It also said it had fired a surface-to-air missile at an Israeli warplane over Beirut. The claims could not be independently verified.The Israeli military said its forces had uncovered weapons, including anti-tank missiles, in a school in Khiam, a strategic border town that has seen repeated fighting.

Israeli troops are advancing into multiple towns in southern Lebanon as part of efforts to establish a buffer zone extending to the Litani River, aimed at pushing Hezbollah forces away from the frontier and securing northern Israeli communities.

Army spokesperson Effie Defrin said Hezbollah continued to operate from southern Lebanon despite earlier commitments by the Lebanese government, adding that Israeli forces would act to neutralize the group if it was not disarmed.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees warned that Lebanon faces a worsening humanitarian crisis, with representative Karolina Lindholm Billing saying the risk of catastrophe was “real.”International Committee of the Red Cross regional director Nicolas Von Arx said civilians were bearing the brunt of the conflict and urged all parties to ensure their protection.

The escalation follows Hezbollah’s entry into the conflict on March 2, when it fired rockets toward Israel in response to the killing of Iran’s supreme leader, triggering a broader regional confrontation.

The latest escalation, triggered amid a broader regional conflict involving Iran, is widely seen as potentially the most destabilising crisis since Lebanon’s 1975–90 civil war, exacerbating long-standing fractures across its multi-sectarian society.

Israel bombardment and evacuation orders across southern Lebanon, Beirut’s southern suburbs and eastern strongholds have displaced more than one million people, the majority from the Shi’ite community aligned with Hezbollah.

Many have sought refuge in Christian and Druze-majority areas, where tensions have risen sharply, with some residents blaming Hezbollah for provoking the conflict in support of Tehran. Local authorities have tightened vetting procedures for displaced families seeking accommodation, citing fears that individuals linked to Hezbollah could become targets for Israeli strikes.

Clashes have already been reported. In one incident, residents in a predominantly Christian area north of Beirut confronted displaced families after debris from an intercepted Iranian missile landed nearby.

A foreign official described the displacement crisis as “a ticking bomb,” warning that prolonged inability for displaced populations to return home could severely strain communal relations.

Tensions between Hezbollah and the Lebanese state are intensifying. The government led by Prime Minister Nawaf Salam and President Joseph Aoun has banned Hezbollah’s military wing, called for talks with Israel and demanded the departure of Iran’s ambassador.Hezbollah officials have responded with sharp rhetoric.

Senior figure Mahmoud Qmati accused the government of acting like collaborators, drawing comparisons to Vichy France during World War Two, and warned of potential escalation, though he later said his remarks were misinterpreted.

Druze lawmaker Wael Abu Faour said political divisions and “defiant rhetoric” were heightening fears for internal stability.

Military pressure and strategic stakesIsrael has threatened to inflict Gaza-like destruction and signalled plans to establish a “security zone” extending to the Litani River, effectively preventing large numbers of displaced Shi’ites from returning to southern areas until northern Israel’s security is assured.

An Israeli military official said evacuation orders had focused on Shi’ite villages, while Christian areas remained largely unaffected, a distinction critics say risks reinforcing sectarian perceptions of the conflict.Israeli authorities maintain their operations target only Hezbollah and reject accusations of acting against specific civilian groups.

Meanwhile, Hezbollah retains a military capability that surpasses Lebanon’s national army, complicating efforts by the state to assert control. The group’s rapid redeployment to southern frontlines has further undermined confidence in government authority.

Lebanese politicians warn that the war could reshape the country’s political order. Christian lawmaker Alain Aoun said the longstanding coexistence between state institutions and Hezbollah’s armed wing may be nearing its end.

“The coexistence between the state and Hezbollah arms which we witnessed for decades is nearing its end in one way or another,” he said, pointing to potentially far-reaching consequences for Lebanon’s political system.

Hezbollah officials, however, signal they expect the government to reverse its decisions once the conflict subsides, framing the confrontation with Israel as a priority over internal disputes.

With Israeli officials indicating operations could continue beyond the wider regional conflict, and proposals under discussion involving curbs on Iranian support to Hezbollah, Lebanon’s trajectory remains closely tied to developments across the Middle East.

Lebanon’s official National News Agency, citing the health ministry, said four people were killed in a strike on the town of Adloun, while two others died in an airstrike on an apartment in the Mieh Mieh Palestinian refugee camp near Sidon that also wounded four people.

Earlier, three people were reported killed and 18 wounded in a separate strike on the town of Habboush.There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military on the reported strikes. However, Israel had earlier warned of imminent attacks on Beirut’s southern suburbs, a stronghold of Hezbollah that has faced repeated bombardment.

The latest strikes come as Israel intensifies operations against Hezbollah, which began launching rockets on March 2, drawing Lebanon deeper into a broader regional war triggered by U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran.Israeli military spokesperson Avichay Adraee said in a statement that forces were targeting Hezbollah’s “military infrastructure” across Beirut’s southern suburbs “with increasing force,” urging civilians to evacuate immediately for their safety.

Lebanese authorities say the Israeli campaign has killed at least 1,072 people and displaced more than one million since the escalation began, underscoring the humanitarian toll of the conflict.Israel has indicated it may seek to establish control over territory up to the Litani River, approximately 30 km from the border, reviving concerns of a prolonged ground presence in southern Lebanon.

Israel previously occupied the region for nearly two decades until 2000.Cross-border impactIn northern Israel, ongoing rocket fire from Lebanon has disrupted civilian life, with air raid sirens sending residents into shelters.

Israeli authorities reported that a woman was killed on Tuesday in one such attack.The exchange of strikes highlights the intensifying cross-border hostilities, with no immediate signs of de-escalation.