In the words of Fidaa Sahili: “We are actively seeking solutions, but without support, our efforts are severely limited”

Fidaa Sahili, 56, is a humanitarian activist who has championed development, social change, active citizenship and youth empowerment in Baalbek-Hermel for more than two decades. She ran for municipal elections in 2016. She currently leads the Assi Association for Development, in Hermel District, and is managing a UN Women-supported project empowering women peacebuilders. Amid intensified Israeli military operations, several women involved in the project have been displaced, some fleeing to Syria; others to Beirut and nearby villages. Those remaining have faced significant are continuing their work and maintaining communication with the displaced, despite limited resources, mobility and risks to their safety.

“Since the onset of widespread displacement and escalating violence, women trained under the ‘Peacebuilding begins with women’s capacity-building’ project – supported by the Women’s Peace and Humanitarian Fund and UN Women – have taken proactive steps to coordinate immediate response efforts.

The Women’s Committees we established have begun responding directly within the five centres accommodating internally displaced persons (IDPs) from affected villages that have endured shelling. Our groups are leading efforts that include inspecting and visiting shelters across three neighbouring villages.

These committees swiftly gathered information on incoming IDPs, conducted preliminary needs assessments, and secured basic supplies such as bedding and essential materials. They also assessed the circumstances of women and girls who were displaced without personal belongings, lacking necessities like mattresses, blankets, clothing and medication.

The families arrived only with what could fit into their cars – a few bags, a mattress and numerous children.

More than 150 families are currently housed in five centres, including schools and vocational institutions in Ras, Al-Fakiha and Al-Qaa, surrounding Hermel.

Women face significant challenges due to the lack of private spaces. Families are crowded into rooms that accommodate three to four families, with men, women and children sharing these confined quarters day and night. Schools and facilities lack private bathrooms, complicating the allocation of spaces for women.

Initial surveys by women’s groups by the Assi Association for Development indicate that over 65 per cent of the displaced are women and children. Many families fled without their male members, who chose to remain behind to safeguard their homes against potential theft as neighbourhoods emptied.

More than 80 per cent of the women are over the age of 12, totalling around 500 girls and women. There is an urgent need for menstrual and other supplies. The committees have also identified a significant number of newborns, as well as pregnant and lactating women.

The presence of women in crowded, non-private environments increases their vulnerability during this crisis. Securing basic necessities like food, water and hygiene products remains a challenge, often relegating women’s specific needs to a lower priority. Overcrowding further heightens the risk of gender-based violence.

Currently, some volunteer groups are providing two meals per person in the shelters, but this is expected to decrease to one meal soon and may halt altogether, due to dwindling resources and donations.

Rehabilitating kitchens – no matter how simple – could help avert a food security crisis for these displaced individuals, who are already facing a profound sense of anxiety and uncertainty.

As women who can coordinate and manage responses while building communities, we fear not the war itself, but the helplessness that accompanies the humanitarian disaster unfolding before us.

The shortage of medicine, infant formula, diapers, blankets and clothing will inevitably lead to health issues and conflict. We are actively seeking solutions, but without support, our efforts are severely limited.”