The United Nations has more than doubled the amount of money needed to help Lebanon deal with the humanitarian crisis as the war between Israel and Hezbollah enters its fourth month.
In a fresh appeal on Friday, the UN said it was seeking an additional $331.5 million (€285 million) to deliver aid to 1.4 million people in need.
The United Nations appealed for $308 million in March to support a large-scale emergency response led by the Lebanese government until the end of May.
As of May 31, it said it had received only $185.9 million, which was used to provide assistance to 680,000 people.
It said it would more than double the initial appeal amount, bringing the total to $639.9 million, so aid can reach all of Lebanon’s estimated 1.4 million people who need assistance.
“The humanitarian crisis in Lebanon is severe and worsening,” said the UN humanitarian agency OCHA.
“Repeated displacement, insufficient shelter capacity and limited possibilities for safe return are deepening vulnerabilities,” it said, warning that “the coping abilities of affected people are rapidly being eroded, and pressure on essential services is increasing.”
Lebanon was drawn into the Middle East war in early March when the Tehran-backed militant group Hezbollah fired rockets at Israel in response to US-Israeli strikes that killed Iran’s supreme leader.
Israel responded by sending troops into Lebanon and launching a major bombing campaign.
According to Lebanese officials, Israeli strikes in Lebanon since the beginning of March have killed more than 3,500 people, and displaced nearly a million people. Israel says 26 of its soldiers and four civilians have been killed in Hezbollah attacks over the same period.