Lebanon - Recent

Residents of southern Lebanon who have fled their homes in the face of intensifying hostilities along the border with Israel are faced with a bleak future as the sudden exodus of thousands of people has placed enormous strain on the country’s humanitarian resources.

A single plastic chair and a piece of cardboard are what Ahmad Kail now calls "home" after fleeing southern Lebanon. He traveled 14 hours with his family to find shelter under a bridge in the Lebanese capital city of Beirut, away from the Israeli airstrikes.

Although the Israeli Defence Forces say they are only targeting Hezbollah rocket-firing positions, civilians have little option but to pick up their belongings and join the lines of cars stretching for kilometers along highways leading to the capital, where shelters have been set up to provide essentials to those arriving.

According to Lebanon's Disaster Management Unit, shelters have been set up to house about 26,000 people. But there is growing concern that more will need shelter as Israel ramps up its strikes.

Thousands of Lebanese and Syrian families have fled Lebanon for Syria as Israeli airstrikes continued, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said on Wednesday.

The death toll from continued Israeli airstrikes on Wednesday across Lebanon rose to 51, with 223 injured, according to the Lebanese Health Ministry.

The ministry confirmed casualties in several locations across southern and eastern Lebanon, including Bint Jbeil, Ain Qana, Qabrikha and Tebnine.

Shotlist:
Lebanon - Recent:
1. Various of Ahmad Kail, displaced person, taking shelter under bridge with his family;
2. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Ahmad Kail, displaced (starting with shot 1):
"I remember being at work when a missile hit just 50 meters away from my home. Missiles were falling like rain. This was the first time I made such a big decision -- to take such a long journey.";
3. Various of Amal Movement Shelter;
4. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Rinad Najjar, aid worker, Amal Movement Shelter (starting with shot 3):
"We provide what we can: medical aid, tools, and an on-call medical team. We've set up an emergency room and have nurses and medics working on the ground.";
5. Various of smoke from airstrikes;
6. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Bilal Asmar, supervisor, Disaster Management Unit:
"(The displaced people can seek refuge) in any border village in the city of Tyre or in any safe village, and that is plan number two. He may go to one of his relatives or friends, or rent a house and live in it in Sidon, Beirut, or in the north.";
7. Various of vehicles clogging highways leading from southern Lebanon to Beirut.

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