Israel’s attacks in Lebanon — and the prospect of more — have driven over a million people from their homes, nearly one-fifth of a country that already hosts the world’s highest number of refugees per capita. For two years, Human Rights Watch (HRW) has documented Israel’s displacement strategies in the occupied Palestinian territory, which have forced entire refugee camps and neighbourhoods to flee, often under immediate threat from air strikes or ground operations.
Those same tactics are now visible in Lebanon. Israeli evacuation orders cover large areas of the predominantly Shia south and Beirut’s southern suburbs — roughly 15 percent of Lebanese territory. People have sought safety with relatives, in government shelters, or in makeshift camps along Beirut’s coastline, which itself has been struck by Israeli attacks.
International humanitarian law forbids forcing civilians from their homes except for imperative military reasons or to protect the population; even then evacuations must be temporary and allow return once hostilities end. War does not grant a licence to expel people from their land.
In Gaza, Israeli operations forcibly displaced nearly all of its two million residents through an eviction system that pushed civilians into ever smaller, more dangerous enclaves. In the occupied West Bank in early 2025, Operation Iron Wall resulted in the ethnic cleansing of about 32,000 Palestinians from three refugee camps — the largest displacement there since 1967 — and they have been barred from returning amid demolitions. In southern Syria, where Israel occupies some territory, HRW documented forced displacement, home seizures and demolitions, and restrictions on return.
Israel has said it targets militants and their infrastructure, but that does not justify mass civilian displacement. Displacement must be a last resort; authorities failed in Gaza and the West Bank to show they explored alternatives or ensured temporariness. HRW found that, in both places, Israeli actions reflected an intent to cause massive, deliberate, long-term forced displacement of Palestinians, amounting to war crimes and crimes against humanity. Senior Israeli officials have publicly aimed to expel and keep Palestinians out of parts of Gaza and the West Bank.
Similar signs now appear in Lebanon. UN experts have warned of the risk. On March 16, Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz declared that Shiite residents who evacuated would not return south of the Litani until Israel’s northern residents’ safety was guaranteed. Viewed this way, the displacement of Lebanon’s Shia population risks being less a temporary military measure and more a move toward permanent displacement on a sectarian basis.
As scenes of mass displacement and destruction unfold, states with leverage over Israel should act to halt atrocities: imposing targeted sanctions, suspending arms transfers, banning trade with illegal settlements, suspending preferential trade agreements, and backing the International Criminal Court and its investigations, including enforcing arrest warrants.
Accountability for violations in Gaza and the West Bank must end. Without international pressure and credible prosecutions for war crimes and crimes against humanity, Israeli authorities may be emboldened to pursue forced displacement and permanent denial of return across the region. Governments should urgently act to prevent forced displacement in Lebanon, guarantee the right of return, and stop further attacks on Lebanese civilians.
The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeera’s editorial stance.
