A message from Embrace the Middle East marking one month since the start of the US-Israel war against Iran
One month since the outbreak of hostilities following US and Israeli military action against Iran — a conflict that has rapidly expanded across the region — Embrace the Middle East is deeply alarmed by the erosion of the international, rules‑based system intended to protect human dignity and civilian life, and by the lack of accountability for violations in times of war. Millions of innocent people who bear no responsibility for political or military decisions are now enduring bombing, displacement, and profound loss.
Lebanon has been pulled into a dangerous new phase of violence. Heavy shelling and airstrikes in Beirut’s southern suburbs, southern Lebanon, and the Bekaa Valley have caused significant civilian casualties and driven mass displacement. More than one million people have fled their homes, with over a thousand killed and thousands more injured. Our Lebanese partners describe overwhelmed facilities, terrified families fleeing at a moment’s notice, and communities struggling to meet urgent medical and basic needs. Many tell us they no longer know where safety can be found as displacement orders expand and areas once considered outside immediate targeting are now being hit.
Iraq is increasingly being drawn into the crossfire between Iran and the United States, with US strikes on pro‑Iran militias and Iranian attacks on US‑linked sites, particularly in the north. Our partners there express deep concern about the impact on community safety and on an already fragile economic situation.
In neighbouring Syria, around 130,000 people have crossed the border from Lebanon in recent days, many with no financial resources or support networks. Given Syria’s already dire economic and security situation, this new influx is placing further strain on limited humanitarian resources. Our Syrian partners warn that additional military escalation could trigger further displacement.
Across Palestine and Israel, the widening regional conflict is creating even deadlier conditions for Palestinians. Alongside escalating settler violence and land confiscation, airstrikes, missile threats, and severe movement restrictions have made daily life in the West Bank extraordinarily difficult. All communities in Israel and Palestine are living with the fear of falling shrapnel and missiles. Many Palestinian communities, even within Israel, have no shelters, further deepening community divides. In the West Bank Palestinians have to rely on sirens from nearby Israeli settlements for warning. In Gaza, civilians continue to endure catastrophic shortages of food, water, medicine, and safe shelter. Despite immense personal risk, our partners remain committed to serving their communities with extraordinary courage.
As one partner in Lebanon shared: “We cannot preserve what has been lost. But we can help preserve dignity, care, and community, because even in war, compassion must remain stronger.”
Embrace the Middle East calls for immediate de-escalation and a diplomatic resolution to prevent further death, injury, and trauma.
You can stand alongside our partners by giving to our Keep Hope Alive Emergency Appeal to enable urgent, lifegiving responses, and writing to your MP urging them to press for an end to the escalating violence across the region.
