Escalating hostilities in Lebanon have gendered impact on women and girls

BCHAMOUN, Lebanon – “We left our homes with only the clothes on our backs. The day we left, an air strike struck our village, killed our neighbors and destroyed our house,” Salwa* told UNFPA, the United Nations sexual and reproductive health agency, as hostilities escalate across Lebanon.

“We couldn’t bring anything with us,” she said.

Salwa and her husband, son and pregnant daughter-in-law are now taking refuge at the Houssein Massoud public school in Mount Lebanon. It took the family two days by car to reach the shelter; though the distance from their home in Nabatieh is under 100 km, the roads are clogged with traffic due to the mass displacement of civilians.

More than 200,000 people have been displaced in Lebanon since the start of the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah in October 2023. Of these, nearly half – 90,530 people – have been displaced since 23 September, when bombardment intensified. Almost 600 people have been killed.

Displacement not gender-neutral

Women, men, boys and girls have all been uprooted, but the impacts of displacement on individuals are far from gender-neutral. Maintaining decent health becomes significantly more challenging for women and girls experiencing menstruation or pregnancy while on the run from violence or taking refuge in crowded shelters. Poor sanitation and menstrual hygiene in emergency settings can lead to illness and curb mobility.

“I have two teenage daughters who are now sharing a bathroom with hundreds of other people,” Alma* told UNFPA. “Risks of infection are very high.”

Fear of gender-based violence – a risk that increases in emergency settings – can also take a toll on women’s and girls’ health.

“It’s so crowded in here and I feel shy all the time,” a 15-year-old girl told UNFPA. “I’m living with people that I don’t know, and I am hesitant every time I need to go to the bathroom, so I haven’t gone to the bathroom for four days now. I feel some pain because of it.”

Some 56,000 Lebanese women and girls of reproductive age are displaced – 25,000 of them since 23 September.

An estimated 2,300 pregnant women are also believed to be among the displaced, 260 of whom are expected to deliver in the next month. Pregnancy in crisis settings also presents serious risks, especially for women who are cut off from prenatal services and safe delivery care.

Essential supplies distributed

In response to these gendered challenges, UNFPA and partners are delivering 8,000 dignity kits – containing menstrual supplies, underwear and soap. Also included are flashlights to help recipients safely access toilets at night, and information on  support for survivors of gender-based violence. All of this is provided with psychological first aid services that are essential for people experiencing the trauma of displacement and violence.

UNFPA has also distributed Inter-Agency Emergency Reproductive Health kits to multiple hospitals. These kits contain enough life-saving drugs, supplies and equipment to support childbirth, and manage obstetric complications, for hundreds of women. Additional kits, pre-positioned within Lebanon, can support an additional 1,260 safe births for women experiencing complications.

“Any feminine-hygiene product is essential at this point,” Alma said.

She and her pregnant daughter-in-law both received dignity kits. “We fled with literally nothing with us.” 

*Name changed for privacy and protection