Southern Lebanon under daily Israeli attacks: Disrupted services and ongoing uncertainty
Despite a fragile ceasefire, which was announced on 21 June 2026, and ongoing Israeli airstrikes in southern Lebanon, hundreds of thousands of people have decided to return to their hometowns, while others are forced to remain in displacement.
Villages along the southern border are still inaccessible because of the ongoing presence of the Israeli forces. In the villages adjacent to these, houses, roads, water networks and public services have been damaged or destroyed by Israeli attacks. Even where people can physically return, many struggle to imagine how they can rebuild their lives.
As some families try to return, they need a doctor when someone falls ill. They need clean water running from the tap. They need a roof that protects them and a sense that their children can sleep safely at night.
Without these essentials, returning home risks becoming another hardship rather than the end of one.
To help communities navigate these challenges, MSF is supporting access to healthcare, shelter and water, services that people rely on every day and that become even more critical during times of crisis.
Reinforcing healthcare
After months of Israeli attacks, many health facilities were left damaged, understaffed or struggling to provide services. For families considering a return, the absence of healthcare can be enough to keep them away.
To help restore access to care, MSF has supported health facilities in southern Lebanon and Beirut’s southern suburbs/Dahiyeh through rehabilitation, operational support and capacity building.
This includes the full rehabilitation of a primary healthcare centre in Haret Hreik and ten ambulances serving communities across southern Lebanon, helping healthcare workers to continue to provide medical aid where it is needed most.
When home is no longer there
In the villages that are theoretically accessible despite daily Israeli attacks, some houses are destroyed while others remain too damaged to live in safely. Many families continue to move between temporary accommodation, relatives’ homes and collective shelters while trying to decide what the future holds.
MSF teams have rehabilitated and supported many shelters during peak of escalation and afterwards. Most recently, the team in southern Lebanon has fully rehabilitated a shelter in Jbal Al Botm for families relocated from Sour/Tyre and improved living conditions at another site in Maaroub by installing of prefabricated bathrooms and showers.
These improvements offer a temporary solution for families while longer-term solutions remain out of reach.
Restoring water, restoring daily life
Water is often one of the first services disrupted during conflict and one of the last to be fully restored.
Across southern Lebanon and Beirut’s southern suburbs /Dahiyeh, Israeli attacks have damaged infrastructure, affecting access to safe water, which adds another burden for families already coping with displacement and loss.
MSF has supported repairs to water infrastructure in several conflict-affected locations, restoring water systems, treatment facilities and solar-powered networks that communities depend on every day. The teams have also provided fuel to shelters and displacement sites to help keep water pumping and electricity systems operational.
For families trying to move forward, these simple services, which are taken for granted in many places around the world, are what make their daily life possible.