As the humanitarian situation continues to escalate in Lebanon, we spoke with members of Scotland’s International Development Alliance who are currently working in the region.
Lebanese Red Cross
“Lebanon is facing a rapidly worsening humanitarian crisis as ongoing attacks continue across the country. Over one million people have been displaced, more than the entire population of Birmingham with a third of these being children. The Lebanese Red Cross remains a critical lifeline for communities, delivering life‑saving support under extraordinary and dangerous conditions.
Lebanese Red Cross (LRC) teams are responding around the clock through their ambulance network, blood services, and emergency medical care. In total they have deployed 125 ambulances supporting over 11,000 patients and providing health support to over 22,000 individuals. They are doing so while experiencing the devastation first-hand. They are also managing the largest collective government shelter in Beirut at Camille Chamoun Sports City,now hosting over 1,464 individuals. In this shelter so far, the LRC has provided around 62,340 meals, water, thousands of essential items such as hygiene kits, mattresses, blankets, as well as medical support through health services, consultations and medication.”
Right to Play
Right To Play is on the ground in South Lebanon (including Palestinian camps and UNRWA shelters), North Lebanon, and Mount Lebanon — delivering psychosocial support and safe learning environments to children living through active conflict and displacement.
They said:
The humanitarian needs in Lebanon are significant. Over one million people have been displaced, with more than 117,000 currently accommodated in official shelters.Children are experiencing heightened psychosocial stress, disrupted education, and loss of stability.
Right To Play has worked in Lebanon since 2006 and has launched an emergency response. We moved quickly — activating and adapting existing partnerships and donor agreements to fund this response. We are now operating in eight emergency shelters, reaching over 1,000 children with psychosocial support (PSS) and safe spaces for play and learning.
Islamic Relief
Since October 2023, Islamic Relief’s team in Lebanon has significantly scaled up efforts in response to the ongoing Israeli bombing assaults. In the beginning of April this year during escalations, a deadly Israeli strike killed more than 300 people in just ten minutes in Lebanon.
Despite Islamic Relief’s own staff having been impacted by the escalations, including being displaced, the team is responding on ground as the families deal with the aftermath of a dramatically intense phase.
Sana Basim, Islamic Relief’s head of programmes in Beirut, says:
“This was the worst and deadliest hour we’ve ever had. It felt like there was a new airstrike every minute. The city is in a state of fear.
“An Islamic Relief team was distributing aid in a shelter for displaced people when the bombs started around 3 kms away. The strike could be heard in the shelter, and the children were crying in terror”.
Islamic Relief teams in Lebanon are continuing to reach thousands of vulnerable individuals and families across affected areas. To date, more than 2,700 ready-to-eat meals have been distributed, alongside 500 food parcels to help address immediate food insecurity. Access to clean water remains a priority, with over 9,000 gallons of safe water delivered to communities in need.
READ Foundation
Lebanon is facing a rapidly deteriorating humanitarian situation. Since March 2026, escalating violence has displaced over 1.3 million people, placing unprecedented strain on already fragile infrastructure and public services. The education system has been significantly disrupted, with schools across the country closed or repurposed as collective shelters. For children, this is not only a loss of learning, but a loss of protection, routine and psychosocial stability.
In response, READ Foundation is continuing to deliver its core education in emergencies programming while adapting its model to meet urgent humanitarian need. This includes utilising mobile education infrastructure, particularly the School in a Bus programme, alongside local partners to deliver both learning and emergency relief to displaced communities.
Alongside programme delivery, READ has launched an emergency appeal to mobilise funding for the response, leveraging the reach and momentum of its recent Ramadan campaign to drive immediate support for Lebanon. We are also working closely with teams and partners on the ground to ensure needs are consistently communicated, helping to sustain visibility and advocate for continued intervention as the crisis moves beyond the news cycle.
In this context, education in emergencies is not a secondary intervention, it is a core component of humanitarian response.
READ Foundation has been operational in Lebanon since 2020, delivering integrated programmes that combine access to education with essential support for children and families affected by displacement. The current response focuses on maintaining continuity of learning where feasible, alongside the delivery of life-saving assistance.
A central component of this approach is the provision of safe, community-based learning environments. Through the School in a Bus model, mobile classrooms operate in locations such as Beqaa and Akkar, extending access to education for children otherwise excluded due to displacement. These spaces provide not only learning, but psychosocial support, safeguarding and structured routine, all critical for child protection in crisis settings.
READ Foundation also operates a Special Needs Education Hub in Lebanon, providing targeted, inclusive support for children with additional learning needs. In light of the current escalation, aspects of this provision have been adapted in line with safeguarding requirements, ensuring support remains appropriate while prioritising child safety.
Alongside education delivery, READ is scaling emergency assistance to meet immediate needs. This includes the distribution of food parcels, hygiene kits, non-food item kits and the provision of hot meals for displaced populations. These interventions are closely linked to education outcomes, recognising that access to learning depends on meeting basic needs such as food security and safe living conditions.
Programme delivery continues to adapt in response to fluid conditions. In areas where displacement has made it unsafe to operate, including parts of Mount Lebanon, activities have been temporarily suspended or modified in line with humanitarian principles and duty of care.
READ’s work in Lebanon demonstrates the role of integrated programming within education in emergencies frameworks. Education interventions are designed not only to support learning continuity, but to function as protective spaces that contribute to mental health, wellbeing and longer-term recovery.
As needs escalate and funding constraints tighten, approaches that link education with broader humanitarian assistance are increasingly critical. In Lebanon, this ensures children are supported holistically, addressing both immediate risk and longer-term resilience.