The escalating hostilities in Lebanon are having a gendered impact on women and girls

BCHAMOUN, Lebanon – “We left our houses with only the clothes on our backs. The day we left, our village was hit by an airstrike, our neighbors were killed and our house was destroyed,” Salwa* told UNFPA, the United Nations sexual and reproductive health agency, as hostilities escalate across Lebanon .

“We couldn’t take anything with us,” she said.

Salwa and her husband, son and pregnant daughter-in-law are now taking refuge in Houssein Massoud Public School in Mount Lebanon. It took the family two days by car to reach the shelter; Although the distance from their home in Nabatieh is less than 100 km, the roads are clogged with traffic due to the mass displacement of civilians.

More than 200,000 people have been displaced in Lebanon since the start of the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah in October 2023. Of these, almost half – 90,530 people – have been displaced since September 23, when the bombing intensified. Nearly 600 people have been killed.

Displacement is not gender neutral

Women, men, boys and girls have all been uprooted, but the consequences of displacement for individuals are far from gender neutral. Maintaining good health becomes significantly more difficult for women and girls who experience menstruation or pregnancy while fleeing violence or seeking refuge in overcrowded shelters. Poor sanitation and menstrual hygiene in emergency situations can lead to illness and hinder mobility.

“I have two teenage daughters who now share a bathroom with hundreds of other people,” Alma* told UNFPA. “The risk of contamination is very high.”

The fear of gender-based violence – a risk that increases in emergencies – can also negatively impact the health of women and girls.

“It’s so crowded here and I feel shy all the time,” a 15-year-old girl told UNFPA. “I live with people I don’t know, and I hesitate every time I need to go to the toilet, so I haven’t been to the toilet in four days now. It makes me feel some pain.”

About 56,000 Lebanese women and girls of childbearing age have been displaced – 25,000 of them since September 23.

An estimated 2,300 pregnant women are also among the displaced, 260 of whom are expected to give birth in the coming month. Crisis pregnancy also poses serious risks, especially for women who lack access to prenatal care and safe delivery care.

Essential supplies distributed

In response to these gender-related challenges, UNFPA and partners are delivering 8,000 dignity kits, containing menstrual products, underwear and soap. Also included are flashlights to help recipients safely access toilets at night, and information on support for survivors of gender-based violence. All this is delivered with psychological first aid services that are essential for people experiencing the trauma of displacement and violence.

UNFPA has also distributed Inter-Agency Emergency Reproductive Health kits to several hospitals. These kits contain enough life-saving medications, supplies and equipment to support labor and treat obstetric complications for hundreds of women. Additional kits, pre-placed in Lebanon, could support an additional 1,260 safe births for women experiencing complications.

“Every feminine hygiene product is essential right now,” Alma said.

She and her pregnant daughter-in-law both received a dignity package. “We fled with literally nothing with us.”

*Name changed for privacy and protection