One year ago, the conflict in the region ignited when the Palestinian group Hamas launched Operation Al-Aqsa Flood against Israel, prompting Israel to declare war on Gaza. Just a day later, Hezbollah opened its own front, calling it the ‘Gaza support’ operation, which further drew Lebanon into the conflict with Israel.
Operation Al-Aqsa Flood began early on October 7, 2023, when Hamas’ armed wing, the Al-Qassam Brigades, launched a massive barrage of at least 4,300 rockets against Israel. Fighters breached the Gaza border, attacking military bases and nearby settlements. The operation culminated in the capture of 250 Israeli civilians and soldiers, who were taken into Gaza as hostages, with the stated aim of forcing a prisoner exchange deal.
Hamas openly stated that the operation was in response to Israel’s continued occupation of Palestine, the blockade of the Gaza Strip, the expansion of Israeli settlements, rising settler violence, and recent escalations in Gaza.
Since then, Israel has launched a genocidal campaign in Gaza, and has begun to heavily bombard Lebanese territory in an attempt to invade Lebanon.
Over the past year, cross-border strikes have fluctuated, sometimes intensifying and at other times easing. In the last two weeks, the situation has escalated dramatically. In a widespread assault, Israel detonated thousands of pagers and walkie-talkies belonging to Hezbollah members across Lebanon, resulting in civilian casualties as well.
Israel has relentlessly pounded various regions in Lebanon, particularly in the south and the Bekaa Valley, while direct strikes on Beirut’s suburbs – and twice on central Beirut, a city once considered off-limits to Israeli forces since 2006 – have shattered any sense of safety. The bombardments in Dahyeh, Beirut’s southern suburbs, have become a distressing daily reality.
In response to this aggression, Hezbollah has periodically fired rockets into northern Israel, adding to the growing tension in the region.
Genocide in Gaza
In response to Hamas’ attack on October 7, Israel imposed a total siege on Gaza and began a heavy bombardment of the strip, with the campaign increasingly resembling genocide. The official death toll from Israel’s bombardments in Gaza stands at 41,870, with 96,625 wounded.
Among the total deaths, 16,756 are children and 11,346 are women, meaning that 69 percent of those killed in Gaza are women and children. Oxfam reported last week that Israel has caused more deaths among women and children in Gaza over the past year than in any other conflict in the last two decades.
In terms of personnel, the Israeli military stated that 726 soldiers have been killed since October 7, 2023, with 380 casualties occurring during the initial attacks and 346 during subsequent combat in Gaza starting October 27.
The number of injured troops has reached 4,576, and 56 soldiers have died from operational accidents, although the military did not provide specific details about these incidents.
During this period, a total of 13,200 rockets have been fired into Israel from Gaza, according to the Israeli Army.
Lebanon’s Struggle with Violence
The ongoing Israeli attacks on Lebanon have resulted in 2,036 fatalities and more than 9,662 injuries. Among the civilian casualties, at least 127 children, over 260 women, nearly 100 health and emergency workers, and five journalists have lost their lives. The scale of the violence underscores the profound humanitarian impact of the conflict on the Lebanese population.
Israel’s strikes on Hezbollah’s strongholds over the past year have also dealt a significant blow to the group’s leadership.
Fuad Shukr, Hezbollah’s top military official and former Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah’s right-hand man, was killed in a drone strike in Beirut’s southern suburbs on June 30.
Ibrahim Aqil, founder and top commander of Hezbollah’s elite Radwan Force, and Ahmad Wehbe, its senior commander, were assassinated along with several other leaders in Beirut’s Dahiyeh on September 20.
Mohammad Surour, head of Hezbollah’s drone unit, was killed in a strike on Beirut on September 26.
Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, who transformed the group into a political force since 1992, was killed by an Israeli airstrike on September 27, along with 20 members at the group’s underground headquarters in southern Beirut.
Nabil Qaouk, commander of Hezbollah’s Preventive Security Unit and central council member, was killed in an Israeli raid on Chiyah, Beirut, on September 29.
Population displacement: Gaza
After issuing multiple warnings, Israel began depopulating various areas of Gaza, starting with the northern region. A year later, 90.5 percent of Gaza’s residents are now internally displaced, with the vast majority concentrated in Rafah, the southernmost area of Gaza.
Population displacement: Lebanon
As the threat of Israeli strikes intensifies, many Lebanese have fled their homes after receiving evacuation warnings from the Israeli army, particularly in southern Lebanon, the Bekaa Valley, and Beirut’s southern suburbs, Dahyeh.
For many residents in southern Lebanon, Israel’s declaration of an invasion – described as “limited, localized” raids to push Hezbollah back from the border – has become the breaking point, forcing them to abandon their homes amid the escalating conflict.
The government estimates that over 1.2 million people are displaced, with more than 160,000 registered in shelters. This figure is staggering in a country of just 5.4 million people.
In addition, more than 250,000 Syrians and 80,000 Lebanese have fled to Syria, a grim reversal of the past, when Syrians once fled in the opposite direction to escape their own war-torn country.
Civilian infrastructure impact: Gaza
Over the past year, Israeli forces have rendered 80 health centers and 34 hospitals inoperative in Gaza, while 131 ambulances have been targeted, destroyed, or damaged. Additionally, 162 health institutions have faced direct attacks from Israeli forces.
According to Israeli military reports released on the one-year anniversary of Hamas’s attack on October 7, Israel has bombed more than 40,000 targets in the Gaza Strip over the past year, uncovered 4,700 tunnel shafts, and destroyed 1,000 rocket launcher sites.
Civilian infrastructure impact: Lebanon
The war on Lebanon has severely affected civilian infrastructure in the region. A total of over 50,000 residential units have been damaged or demolished, displacing countless families.
Agricultural land has not been spared, with almost 2,000 hectares reported as damaged, leading to significant losses in food production. The Ministry of Agriculture estimates that approximately 340,000 farm animals have also been lost.
The damage extends to critical water facilities, with 25 reported as damaged, impacting around 360,000 residents, according to UNICEF.
The health sector has been hit hard, with 37 primary health centers forced to close and 10 hospitals sustaining damage, hindering access to essential medical services. Additionally, the educational year has been suspended until at least mid-October, disrupting the schooling of thousands of children.