Conflict
Lebanon
Recovery
Displacement and returns in southern Lebanon
South Lebanon, Nabatieh and Beirut southern suburbs, Lebanon. Reported onset 8 October 2023.
TL;DR
Hostilities along the southern border displaced households northward, and a later reduction in fighting allowed large scale return towards damaged villages. Lebanon also hosts a large refugee population, so displacement and hosting figures overlap.
What happened
- Hostilities along the southern border displaced households from border villages towards Nabatieh, Beirut and further north.
- Collective shelters were opened in schools and public buildings, and many households stayed with relatives or in rented accommodation.
- When fighting reduced, large numbers moved back towards villages where housing and infrastructure had been damaged.
Why it matters for the data
- Lebanon is simultaneously a refugee hosting country and a country with internal displacement, so datasets must be kept distinct.
- Return to a damaged village is recorded as a return even when housing is not habitable, which makes shelter damage data essential context.
- Movement was largely into private accommodation, which is harder to track than collective shelters.
What to watch next
- IOM Lebanon displacement and mobility snapshots.
- UNHCR Lebanon reporting on both refugee populations and displacement affected communities.
- Shelter and housing damage assessments for southern border villages.
Where the figures come from
This page does not publish population figures for the event. Numbers for an active event change faster than any single page can responsibly restate them, and access restrictions mean estimates carry wide uncertainty. The organisations below publish the current figures and the methodology behind them.