26-08-2026 | di COOPI

Lebanon crisis. 4,000 families supported through Italian Cooperation

The renewed escalation of hostilities in Lebanon has resulted in thousands of civilian casualties and displaced more than one million people, further worsening an already severe humanitarian and economic crisis. Three months after the escalation, 663 collective shelters remain operational: schools, churches and mosques have been converted into reception centres and are currently hosting more than 121,000 displaced people.

In response to this situation, since April, thanks to the support of Italy through the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (AICS), COOPI – Cooperazione Internazionale has implemented the “Multi-sectoral emergency response for the most vulnerable among the displaced people affected by the crisis in Lebanon”.

COOPI distributed emergency kits in 41 shelters across Beirut, Mount Lebanon, Saida and North Lebanon. The assistance included cleaning materials for shared spaces, hygiene kits, menstrual kits and baby hygiene kits.

These items are crucial as many people had to leave their homes in a hurry, often at night, without taking essential items with them.

explains the Head of Mission Pascal Maillard.

COOPI also supported displaced people hosted at the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) centre in Siblin, near Saida, distributing, in addition to the kits, blankets, mattresses, toys and recreational materials for children. Between April and mid-June, the emergency response project reached 3,929 families, including 2,549 children and 7,376 women and girls.

I personally thank COOPI for the work carried out and for the strong organisation of the response. The distribution was well coordinated and families were given exactly what they needed.

stated the person responsible for one of the shelters following the distribution.

Given the still severe situation in the country, these distributions are continuing throughout July.

In North Lebanon, together with the Lebanese NGO Al Fayhaa Association, COOPI also launched recreational psychosocial support activities for 400 displaced children. Open spaces and community courtyards become safe places where play offers children opportunities for expression, relief and connection, with the support of trained staff.

In the suburbs of Beirut, COOPI distributes hot meals every day to around 800 people through Beit El Ataa’ community kitchen.

These meals are a relief for my family; otherwise, we would not always be able to eat. Everything costs more now and we cannot afford it.

said Hala, a beneficiary of the project together with her four siblings and her parents.

For many people, meal distribution also becomes a moment of encounter and support. For those unable to reach the distribution point, including persons with disabilities and older people, COOPI staff deliver meals directly to their homes.

It is the first time I have seen an organisation make such an effort to reach people who cannot move and bring support directly to their homes.

said a community leader.

COOPI continues to monitor needs and adapt its emergency response, in coordination with local authorities, AICS, UNRWA and humanitarian actors present in the country.

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COOPI has been working in Lebanon since 2013, where it works alongside Syrian refugees and host communities – particularly women and children – through projects dedicated to child protection, improving hygiene and sanitation conditions, and strengthening the socio-economic resilience of the population.