Rescue workers search through the rubble after Israel's overnight bombing of Beirut's southern suburbs.
Xinhua/Shutterstock
Last updated: March 9, 2026
Escalating conflict in the Middle East is creating a massive humanitarian crisis. The consequences of the unlawful attacks by the United States and Israel and retaliatory strikes by Iran are being borne by people across the region, including families, forcibly displaced communities, and most acutely by women and children. Vulnerable communities, already bearing the brunt of ongoing conflicts, will face the most severe effects of the war. The conflict is forcing more people to flee, and will deepen poverty as economies contract and inequality gaps grow.
Oxfam and our partners are already responding to meet the needs of people in Lebanon, where tens of thousands of people have been displaced. We are working in collective shelters to provide hygiene kits, bedding, and water and sanitation.
We are also closely monitoring the evolving situation across the Middle East and assessing its impacts on civilians, frontline staff, our partners, and programs. Oxfam and the partners we work with across the Middle East will be ready to respond as needs increase across the region.
Oxfam in the Middle East
For more than four decades Oxfam has worked alongside communities in the Middle East and North Africa, helping them face emergencies, recover, and thrive. In 2025, Oxfam reached 5.4 million people across the region through 176 projects and programs with 110 local partners. Oxfam partners with communities and local organizations to challenge inequality, defend rights, and build just and resilient societies. We work to advance gender justice, strengthen livelihoods, and support people, especially women and marginalized groups, to lead responses to crises, confront the climate emergency, and shape lasting and transformative change.
Lebanon
Oxfam and our partners are already responding to meet the needs of people in Lebanon, where hundreds of thousands of people have been displaced. We are working with collective shelters to provide hygiene and menstrual hygiene management kits, bedding, water, and sanitation. We are also closely monitoring the evolving situation across the region and assessing its impacts on civilians, frontline staff, our partners and programs and ready to respond if needs increase across the region.
Read More: What’s happening in Lebanon
Occupied Palestinian Territory
Escalation of conflict in the Middle East starting on February 28 has led to immediate impacts in the Occupied Palestinian Territory where communities already living through profound hardship are experiencing renewed strain.
In Gaza, the renewed conflict in the region, economic pressure, restricted movement and persistent insecurity are deepening an already severe humanitarian crisis. The closure of Gaza’s borders triggered a rapid spike in prices. Markets saw panic buying among those who could afford it, while shopkeepers quickly emptied shelves, a familiar pattern in which goods are withheld and later resold in small quantities at sharply inflated prices. The flow of aid and commercial goods into Gaza remains constrained, and while some fuel has entered the Gaza Strip, supplies remain critically low, affecting humanitarian operations and daily life alike.
Oxfam, together with partner organizations, continues humanitarian programming in areas including hygiene kit distribution, livelihoods and agricultural support, food security interventions, and water and sanitation and hygiene activities. Oxfam, and our partners’ presence and local networks remain essential for maintaining minimal levels of assistance.
Read more: “What’s happening in Gaza and Israel”