The World Food Programme (WFP) has issued a stark warning, indicating that if the conflict along the Lebanese-Israeli border continues to escalate, the program will be ill-prepared to meet the substantial rise in food needs in Lebanon.
Carl Skau, Deputy Executive Director of the United Nations World Food Programme, currently on a brief visit to Lebanon, stated that they have managed the situation so far based on existing resources.
However, he added that the agency lacks the necessary funding to meet the growing humanitarian needs in the event of a deteriorating and escalating situation, amidst donor fatigue and shrinking international aid budgets.
Skau conducted an inspection tour of a WFP warehouse storing food supplies in the suburb of Dekwaneh, north of Beirut, built during the COVID-19 pandemic, allowing the agency to stock some supplies.
He expressed his desire to find ways to expand assistance programs but noted that funding is declining.
Skau stated that their estimates indicate about 25% of Lebanese and refugees suffer from acute food insecurity, with assistance provided to about 2.5 million people last year, and possibly around 1.5 million people this year.
In the current situation, the program fears the rapid depletion of these supplies without a contingency plan.
The clashes between Lebanese Hezbollah and Israel began on October 8, a day after Israel began shelling Gaza following an attack by Hamas in southern Israel, with tensions continuing to escalate between the two sides.
Lebanon has also been grappling with a severe economic crisis since 2019. Additionally, the country, with a population of approximately 6 million, hosts over a million refugees from neighboring Syria
