Lebanon Confronts Humanitarian and Economic Crisis Amid Drone Strikes, Refugee Burden, and Historic Drought
Lebanon is facing a convergence of crises as Israeli drone overflights and lethal strikes, a massive refugee population, and its worst drought in 65 years strain the country’s fragile infrastructure, economy, and civilian life, according to multiple reports.
Israeli drones flew at low altitudes over Beirut and its southern suburb Dahiyeh on Wednesday, the state-run National News Agency reported. The flights followed a drone strike on Sunday in southern Lebanon that killed five people, including three children, in Bint Jbeil, according to the Health Ministry. The victims, members of the Charara family, were unarmed civilians with no links to Hezbollah, and the strike also killed a local motorcyclist. The Israeli military said it targeted a Hezbollah operative who operated within a civilian population and acknowledged civilian casualties, stating it is reviewing the incident, according to Arab News. The European Union condemned the attack and called for full respect of the 2024 ceasefire agreement.
President Joseph Aoun, addressing the UN General Assembly on Tuesday, highlighted Lebanon’s “triple crisis”: instability from the Gaza war, the Syrian refugee situation, and reconstruction needs in the south, as reported by Arab News. He called for Israel’s full withdrawal, the disarmament of Hezbollah under Lebanese state authority, and the protection of Lebanon’s religious and cultural balance. Aoun also stressed economic reforms, including an independent audit and restructuring of the banking sector, alongside anti-corruption efforts, to restore domestic and international confidence. He emphasized Lebanon’s model of coexistence between Christians and Muslims as a rare example in the region.
Concurrently, Lebanon is experiencing severe drought, with average rainfall falling nearly 50% and Lake Qaraoun, the country’s largest reservoir, receiving just 45 million cubic meters of inflow compared with a 350 million cubic meter average, according to the UN refugee agency, UNHCR. Approximately one-third of the population — more than 1.85 million people — live in drought-prone areas, and 44 percent rely on costly and often unsafe trucked water, a feature article from Arab News noted. Water shortages have disrupted irrigation for farms, affecting food production and livelihoods, particularly in southern Lebanon and the Bekaa Valley. Potato and citrus farming have been severely curtailed, leaving tens of thousands of tonnes of produce unsold.
The drought, compounded by damage to water infrastructure from past Israeli bombardments and years of mismanagement, poses long-term risks to public health and food security. Aid groups have called for immediate interventions, including restoring pumps, repairing pipelines, expanding solar-powered wells, and ensuring safe water distribution.
