Interior minister Bassam Mawlawi at Beirut's Grand Serail in Sept. 2023. (Credit: Anwar Amro/AFP)
In light of the escalating security situation, Interior and Municipalities Minister Bassam Mawlawi on Monday instructed governors to cooperate closely with the ongoing mass displacement from southern regions. To facilitate this effort, he convened a meeting with the crisis management cell at the ministry, attended by Hilda Khoury, Director of Guidance and Orientation at the Ministry of Education and Higher Education.
As part of the measures taken to ensure the safety and security of Lebanese citizens, it was decided to open the following official schools and institutes as emergency shelters, the Interior Ministry's office said in a statement.
The schools ready to receive displaced people are as follows:
Zahle and Bekaa:
- Houch al Emara Institute, Zahle
- Qab Elias Official Primary School
- Qaroun Official School
Baalbeck-Hermel:
- Deir El Ahmar Official Intermediate School
Sour:
- Sour Official School
Beirut and Surrounding Areas:
- Parliamentary Speaker Nabih Berri Complex in Bir Hassan
- Dekwaneh Hotel Management School
Tripoli:
- Tripoli Hotel Management Institute in Mina/Tripoli.
Additionally, several official schools in safe areas of the south, along with institutions in Mount Lebanon — specifically in the Chouf, Aley, and Baabda districts — have begun receiving displaced persons.
Mawlawi indicated that further announcements regarding additional shelter locations will be made as needed. He also requested that the General Directorate of Internal Security Forces and all security agencies support the displacement and shelter operations, ensuring the safety of Lebanese citizens, maintaining order, and protecting both public and private property.
Israel carried out hundreds of strikes against large swaths of southern Lebanon and the Bekaa Valley on Monday morning, including against several villages that it has hit for the first time since cross-border strikes began. In the wake of this quickly escalating violence, the Israeli army promised "more extensive" raids against Hezbollah and issued a warning to people in Lebanon to "stay away from Hezbollah targets."
The Lebanese Ministry of Health has so far announced the death at least 100 people as a result of the bombing campaign, which has also injured more than 600.
