UN humanitarian officials have issued an urgent call for action to prevent the escalating conflict in Lebanon from reaching the same level of devastation seen in Gaza.

Matthew Hollingworth, Lebanon's country director for the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP), expressed deep concern about the growing parallels between the two crises. Speaking from Beirut during a press briefing in Geneva, Hollingworth, who previously coordinated WFP's operations in Gaza, warned against allowing Lebanon to descend into similar chaos. "It is in my mind from the time I wake until the time I sleep, that we could go into the same sort of spiral of doom... We shouldn't allow that to happen," he said.

The conflict in Gaza, which began after Hamas’s attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, has resulted in over 41,900 deaths, mostly civilians, according to the health ministry in Gaza. The UN has deemed these figures reliable. The attack left 1,206 people dead in Israel, also primarily civilians, according to official Israeli figures.

The conflict has since spilled into Lebanon, where Israeli airstrikes and ground battles with Hezbollah militants have intensified. In less than two weeks, Israel's bombardment of Lebanon has claimed over 1,100 lives and displaced more than a million people.