Humanitarian situation in Lebanon worse than during 2006 war: UN

The statement came as the Lebanese Health Ministry updated the death toll from Israeli attacks on the country to at least 2,968 people. Another 13,319 have been wounded.

The Lebanese government reported some 1.2 million people have been displaced, while the International Organization for Migration said its count shows at least 842,648 people have been forced to flee their homes.

The 2006 war killed 1,191 people in Lebanon, while more than 900,000 fled their homes, according to the International Committee of the Red Cross.

The situation has escalated anew, due to Israel’s forced displacement orders for the residents of eastern Baalbek and southern Nabatieh, OCHA said.

The toll on the population has been exacerbated by the destruction of critical infrastructure, including healthcare, it added.

The UN’s humanitarian agency, citing figures from the World Health Organization (WHO), added there had been 36 Israeli attacks on healthcare facilities since the escalation with Hezbollah in September.

It noted 85 health workers have been killed and 51 others wounded while they were on duty between September 17 and October 31.

It announced medical first responders continued to operate in “highly dangerous situations”.

Israel launched a massive air campaign last month in Lebanon against what it claims are Hezbollah targets in an escalation in a year of cross-border warfare between Israel and the group since the start of Israel’s brutal onslaught on the Gaza Strip.

Israel expanded the conflict by launching an incursion into southern Lebanon on Oct. 1.