A recent International Labour Organisation report found Lebanon has lost roughly one-third of its private-sector workforce, with unemployment soaring in the country’s southern governorates. Unemployment is at 43.2% in South Lebanon, and a staggering 76.5% in Nabatieh.

(Photo courtesy of Heart For Lebanon)

Displacement from the fighting has been a major driver of those job losses, leaving many families without both income and access to basic necessities.

Camille Melki with Heart For Lebanon says, “They have been disconnected from the rest of the country. They are having the challenge of providing basic necessities of survival. Many of these villages are completely cut off from the rest of the world.”

Getting relief into those communities isn’t easy.

“Heart For Lebanon has attempted many times to provide food and basic hygiene supplies, some medicines, and we’ve been successful in many cases, but also have failed in others – all due to the security situation,” Melki explains. “We need all kinds of security clearances from many parties involved in this conflict before a truck of aid reaches those villages.”

Yet, Heart For Lebanon continues, compelled by Jesus’ love, to bring aid to villages in southern Lebanon – reaching both Christians and Muslims.

Melki says, “Everything that Heart For Lebanon does [is done] unconditionally. So we tend to families who come from a Muslim background. We tend to families who come from a Christian background. So we serve all Lebanese communities who have been affected and have suffered tremendously.

(Photo courtesy of Heart For Lebanon)

“Not only is this an immediate need, but this seems that there is going to be a long-term need before families are able to rebuild, restructure, and be able also to get back to a normal, steady life.”

Pray for open Gospel doors. Ask God to protect believers and civilians in southern Lebanon, provide for families facing prolonged hardship, and give Heart For Lebanon continued opportunities to share the love of Christ.

You can also find ways to support Heart For Lebanon here!

Header photo: Bint Jbeil Road, Southern Lebanon (Photo courtesy of Ahmad Bader via Unsplash)

Peace talks negotiated by the United States produced a framework agreement between Israel and Lebanon’s government at the end of June. However, implementation of the deal remains problematic as Hezbollah refuses to comply, and Israeli strikes continue.

Walk through the South today and you won’t find peace. You will find neighborhoods reduced to dust and over a million displaced souls living in cars, tents, and overcrowded shelters. The world’s attention turned away, leaving families to navigate a shattered reality.
(Graphic, caption courtesy Heart for Lebanon)

Though many Lebanese criticize the framework agreement, Heart for Lebanon’s Camille Melki says the Lebanese government didn’t have much choice.

“If we miss the push towards peace and negotiations in the region, we will be left with a terribly destroyed southern part of Lebanon with no hope of rebuilding, nor hope of seeing the internally displaced having the chance to return home,” Melki explains.

While Lebanese citizens disagree on how peace should be achieved, Melki says most agree it’s necessary for the nation.

“Lebanon, as a majority population, is eager and thirsty for living in peace with its neighbors, and in peace with one another.”

The stalled peace process carries a human cost, especially for Shia Muslims in southern Lebanon.

War costs and opportunity

Some of Hezbollah’s biggest supporters are also the most affected by the ongoing violence. “The whole nation has been dragged into a war, but the Shia Muslims are the ones who are suffering the most,” Melki says.

“Lebanon is divided into three major religious groups: one third of our population is Shia Muslim, another third is Sunni Muslim, and the [final] third are Christians. Hezbollah comes from a Shia Muslim background, so one-third of our population today feels it’s been held hostage by Hezbollah.”

(Graphic courtesy Heart for Lebanon)

Pray for believers as they extend help and hope to those in need, regardless of their background.

“Pray that we can show the love of Jesus Christ, unconditional love, to people who have not heard of the Christian faith before,” Melki requests.

Help through Heart for Lebanon here. Your assistance enables Gospel workers to meet the immediate needs of people who are struggling or displaced due to the ongoing war in Lebanon and to share the life-changing hope of the Gospel with them.

“Heart for Lebanon has doubled its ministry opportunities in southern Lebanon. Today, we care for more than 7,000 families every month. It has stretched us to the limit, but we also understand that it is important to help a family survive this hardship,” Melki says.

“This is our opportunity to bring Jesus to every home, to every community, and to every villager. Now, what they do with that – that’s between them and God.”

Header image is a representative photo that depicts mourning Shia Muslims. Photo courtesy of Payam Moein, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons. 

Hezbollah flag
(Photo courtesy mhrezaa/Unsplash)

The agreement said Israel and Lebanon had agreed to launch a pilot program in two areas near the “yellow line,” which marks Israeli-held territory. Under the plan, Hezbollah would be dismantled, and the Lebanese army would gain control of those areas.

Hezbollah, which did not take part in the negotiations, rejected the agreement. Hezbollah MP Hassan Falallah told Al Mayadeen that Beirut would be unable to enforce the deal unless it was willing to risk a civil war.

Next steps

Key military leaders met yesterday to discuss how to implement the pact. The proposed “framework” for future talks between Israel and Lebanon drew mixed reactions from Lebanese citizens.

Heart for Lebanon’s Camille Melki says Friday’s trilateral agreement between Israel, Lebanon, and the U.S. is important because “Lebanon, as a nation, never has declared a war against Israel, nor has Israel declared a war against Lebanon.”

Instead, Melki says, “It has always been Hezbollah, now, and other paramilitary groups in the past decades, that have used the Lebanese territory as a launching pad for attacks against Israel.”

Civilians pay

Meanwhile, Lebanon is paying a heavy price for Hezbollah’s wars. The current conflict follows fighting that Hezbollah began in 2023 in defense of Hamas.

“For two years, Hezbollah and Israel have been tit-for-tat shelling each other in southern Lebanon. 11,000 homes have been destroyed, more than 4000 individuals have been killed, and more than 13,000 individuals have been injured,” Melki says.

“All those are innocent civilians; we’re not counting militants. Add to it the 1.2 million internally displaced folks, predominantly people from southern Lebanon, fleeing that region to Beirut and the Bekaa Valley.”

Help and hope

Heart for Lebanon helps people caught in the middle, Christian and Muslim alike. Find ways to support that work here.

(Photo courtesy Heart for Lebanon)

“There are more than 33 small villages along the borders between Lebanon and Israel where Christian villagers live and are completely disconnected from the rest of the world,” Melki says.

“We’re one of the very few faith-based Christian ministries that are able to reach these villages.”

Working alongside nongovernmental organizations, Heart for Lebanon helps organize an aid convoy to Christian villages in the war zone. First, the team gathers requests: “We receive a list of the material needed by those villagers through the municipality or elders in the village,” Melki says.

Next, the convoy is assembled: “Every NGO will bring in what they have as supplies, put them in a convoy led by the Red Cross, and then negotiate the safe passage of those trucks to the villages.”

Header image depicts Hezbollah flag. Photo courtesy Paul Keller via Flickr/CC-BY-NC 2.0.

Heart for Lebanon’s Camille Melki says, “Our prayer is that those negotiations will go forth productively and will come up with some very affirmative steps to keep the ceasefire holding and lead into a long-term peace agreement.”

So far, talks have done little to stop fighting on the ground. Melki says, “Prior to this last ceasefire, there have been more than a dozen ceasefires that did not last for more than an hour or two hours.”

The longest pause after three months of war began Saturday night. The ceasefire came as a result of a U.S.-Iran agreement to stop fighting on all fronts – including Lebanon.

Because today’s peace talks involve Israel and the Lebanese government, the Iranian proxy Hezbollah remains a wildcard.

“Neither the Lebanese government nor the US nor Israel wants a seat for Hezbollah at the (negotiating) table,” Melki says.

“Our presidents made it very clear: ‘We welcome every party that wants to help, but no one negotiates on behalf of Lebanon except its government.’”

(Photo courtesy Heart for Lebanon)

Meanwhile, suffering continues. Fighting has killed over 4,000 people since March, and more than 1 million have been displaced.

Heart for Lebanon is meeting needs in Christ’s name, and your support keeps the work going. Learn about giving options here.

“This is our golden opportunity, not only to care and support families in great need, but also to bring the Gospel in meaningful and tangible ways [to] people who have been deceived [and] indoctrinated,” Melki says.

“Our goal is to make sure that every family we touch, every individual we serve, we tell them of the Jesus that we believe in.”

Header and story images courtesy of Heart for Lebanon. 

On Monday, Israel ordered the residents of seven villages in southern Lebanon to evacuate. Two of the villages are a mere 20-minute drive from Heart for Lebanon’s Hope Center. 

“We still can operate from our center, we still can reach out to people, but you could tell the fear that it can become another battleground,” says Heart for Lebanon’s Camille Melki.

Peace talks brokered by the United States haven’t fully collapsed yet. However, renewed fighting between Israel and Hezbollah, and the threat of Israeli strikes on Beirut, have thrown the talks off track. 

“If things keep getting worse, Israel might push the evacuation line beyond the Zahrani River, which means then our center would become part of those areas that need to be completely evacuated,” says Melki.

(Photo courtesy of Heart for Lebanon)

Heart for Lebanon’s summer outreach is on the line, including their Summer of Hope programs.

“This is VBS on steroids, a lot of fun activities, a lot of music, teaching, games, Bible stories, drama, singing,” says Melki. These programs give kids the space to be kids again and to learn about God. 

The Summer of Hope has already begun in the Bekaa Valley in eastern Lebanon. But for their Hope Center in southern Lebanon, the team is developing an alternative plan.

“Instead of bringing the students to our center for our Summer of Hope ministry, we will take them to safer areas in southern Lebanon — places where they can play freely, where they don’t hear those drones over them all the time, or hear the air strikes,” says Melki.

Safety is becoming harder to find, however. On Wednesday, Israeli Defense Forces issued evacuation warnings for three more villages in southern Lebanon. The IDF has also warned Christian neighborhoods of Tyre that Hezbollah militants are among them. If residents do not expel Hezbollah, the IDF said, they will order more evacuations and take action. Tyre is less than a 40-minute drive away from Heart for Lebanon’s closest Hope Center.

Find your place in the story

Pray that Lebanese believers can continue to share Christ in word and deed.

(Photo courtesy of Heart for Lebanon)

“The number of families that we are reaching to help keeps growing. In fact, the resources are very limited in the entire nation. We are coming alongside other churches and other church ministries and faith-based organizations providing aid to those small entities,” says Melki. 

For example, on June 1 alone, Melki says Heart for Lebanon provided 540 food parcels to sister churches and faith-based NGOs who had run out of resources.

“Pray for wisdom, pray for safety, pray for perseverance, and pray for the much-needed resources, so we can continue to do what God has called us to do: help lead people from despair to hope in Christ, and Christ alone,” says Melki. 

Connect with Heart for Lebanon and learn how you can help resource their ministry in further prayer and financial support.

Header photo of Summer of Hope outreach courtesy of Heart for Lebanon via Facebook.

Secretary Marco Rubio attends working-level peace talks with Israel and Lebanon at the White House in Washington, D.C., April 23, 2026. (Official State Department photo by Freddie Everett)

Tensions reached a boiling point yesterday when Israel responded to Hezbollah attacks, carrying out its deepest incursion since the 2000 war. U.S. President Donald Trump described a de-escalation between the warring sides on Monday afternoon:

U.S. President Donald Trump said Monday that Israel and Hezbollah have agreed to dial back fighting after he held talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and communicated with the Lebanese militant group through mediators.

Trump announced the development in a social media post following a call with Netanyahu, whose forces recently made their deepest incursion into Lebanon in more than a quarter-century. Trump there would be no Israeli troops “going to Beirut, and any Troops that are on their way, have already been turned back.”

Cease-fire hopes falter

As with most Middle East conflicts, the latest escalation doesn’t occur in a vacuum.

“Last Thursday and Friday, a military delegation from the Lebanese army met at the Pentagon with an Israeli delegation, which is the first time in the history of those two nations that military representatives meet together,” Heart for Lebanon’s Camille Melki explains.

“We were hoping that the outcome of that meeting would come to a ceasefire and some sort of an agreement on the Israelis’ withdrawal from southern Lebanon and Hezbollah’s disarmament,” he continues.

“Unfortunately, things are going in the wrong direction. That’s not what we’ve been hoping for. That’s not what we’ve been praying for.”

On Sunday, Lebanese media reported progress toward a new cease-fire agreement in U.S.-mediated talks between Israel and Lebanon.

“The Lebanese government needs to figure out a way to contain Hezbollah and convince Hezbollah, for the better of the whole nation, that a cease-fire should be brokered and brokered soon,” Melki says.

“Iran, on the other hand, has pulled away from its negotiations with the U.S., which is not a good indicator at all, because that means even those negotiations seem to be stalled and might lead to further confrontation in the entire region.”

In a season where many feel forgotten, we believe that the Gospel is best shared through a ministry of presence.
(Photo, caption courtesy of Heart for Lebanon)

Christian villages face shortages

Monday was “A very, very violent day in southern Lebanon, in Beirut, in the Bekaa Valley, as well as in the northern villages of Israel,” Melki says.

“Hezbollah continues to shell Israel using drones and other military means, and Israel continues to retaliate against Hezbollah. We have seen a very high spike in casualties and damage all around.”

Most businesses are closed in southern Lebanon, and essential supplies are hard to find.

“There are a lot of small Christian villages right at the borders between Israel and Lebanon, and they’ve been under a significant economic and military siege. We sent 700 food parcels with the help of the Red Cross to those villages,” Melki says.

Each delivery offers encouragement to believers and a Gospel introduction to those who don’t know Christ. You can support a family in need here.

Pray for an end to the violence in Lebanon.

“Tuesday, June 2, and Wednesday, June 3, a State Department-brokered meeting will take place. Civilian delegates from the Lebanese government and the Israeli government will meet, and we hope that those meetings will turn out a little better,” Melki says.

Header and story images courtesy Heart for Lebanon. 

Economy Minister Amer Bisat says Lebanon has lost an estimated $2 billion since the beginning of March, approximately 7 percent of its gross domestic product (GDP). The Lebanese terror group Hezbollah renewed strikes on Israel on March 2, effectively ending a 2024 ceasefire.

According to analysts, the latest clashes between Hezbollah and Israel are costing Lebanon’s economy up to $100 million a day.

“In October 2023, Hezbollah dragged Lebanon into 14 months of war with Israel,” Heart for Lebanon’s Camille Melki says.

“You add that war, plus what’s going on right now – we’ve been in almost two and a half years of major destruction of the southern part of Lebanon.”

Economic struggles

The latest economic drain couldn’t come at a worse time.

Following the financial collapse in 2019, Lebanon lost approximately 64 percent of its nominal GDP in one of the world’s most severe economic crises since the 19th century. Then, the Lebanese pound collapsed, losing 98 percent of its value practically overnight.

Unfinished reforms, overlapping crises, and widespread destruction in southern Lebanon make sustained recovery nearly impossible.

“You have anywhere between $20 and $22 billion of destruction; so many villages that have been completely wiped out, completely destroyed,” Melki says.

“Recently, the interior ministry in Lebanon declared that over 42 percent of the Lebanese population is living at the poverty line, or even below that.”

Believers’ response

These monumental challenges create more work for Heart for Lebanon.

May strength, comfort, and restoration reach every family navigating the difficulties of this time.
(Photo, caption courtesy Heart for Lebanon)

“We had to add 2,600 new families to our beneficiary list. This is over and above the 5,200 families that we were helping early in 2026, and this is only a drop in the bucket of the needs around us,” Melki says.

Yet more work means more opportunities to share the Gospel, especially as summer begins. Pray for wisdom for ministry leaders. Support a family in need here.

“We are in serious conversations as a management team about some of our programs, how should we shift some, align others? Maybe even create new programs,” Melki says.

“To be more effective and capable, and to reach new territories in Lebanon where IDPs live, we have forged a partnership with 50 local churches. Through those small local churches, we can provide support and the resources they need to love and care for people in their own circles of influence.”

Header and story images courtesy of Heart for Lebanon. 

Hostilities have continued, mostly in southern Lebanon, since U.S. President Donald Trump declared a ceasefire on April 16. Israel has set up a self-declared security zone in the south, saying it aims to guard against Hezbollah attacks.

Heart for Lebanon’s Camille Melki says Washington is not an unbiased host for peace negotiations between Israel and Lebanon.

“The U.S. interest is to end conflicts in the Middle East, especially between Israel and its neighboring nations. The U.S.’s desire is that Israel sign a peace agreement with the other neighbors, as it did with Egypt and Jordan,” Melki says.

However, peace won’t come easily in Lebanon, especially amid the war involving Iran. Yesterday, Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem announced that the terrorist group would not surrender and called for an end to direct negotiations between Israel and Lebanon.

“How can we even ensure a ceasefire when the ones sitting at the table are not the ones shooting at each other?” Melki asks.

“The Lebanese government is negotiating with Israel, but in fact, it’s Hezbollah that is carrying the gun and shooting at Israel.”

Why the ceasefire is complicated

Although Lebanon’s government agreed to a temporary ceasefire with Israel, several factors have made the truce largely ineffective on the ground.

Hezbollah flag
(Photo courtesy Paul Keller via Flickr)

First, Lebanon’s government does not control Hezbollah. “Hezbollah’s loyalty is to the Iranian regime – the ones who pay the bills, the ones who provide the weapons,” Melki explains.

“A lot of the decision makers among Hezbollah are Iranians as well.”

Second, approximately one-third of Lebanon’s population is Shia Muslim, and that community is represented in Lebanon’s government by officials closely aligned with Hezbollah.

Last week, Lebanon’s parliament speaker, Nabih Berri, rejected any peace negotiations without guarantees that ‌Israel would halt attacks.

“The Speaker of the House, though it sounds like he’s speaking on behalf of Lebanon, in fact is representing the Shia population, seeking their best interest and protecting one group, not the entire nation of Lebanon,” Melki says.

“Unfortunately, Lebanon is, though we try not to admit it, a very sectarian nation. The president of the country is always a Christian Maronite, the Speaker of the House is always a Shia Muslim, and the Prime Minister is always a Sunni Muslim,” he continues.

“That’s in our constitution, but it also infiltrates almost every other position in our government.”

How to help

Some 1.2 million people have been driven from their homes in southern Lebanon. Continued conflict won’t stop believers from caring for the displaced.Here’s how you can help.

Pray for Heart for Lebanon teams as they distribute practical aid and Gospel hope.

“It is important that everybody we come in contact with knows and understands what drives us,” Melki says.

“We are sent in with the love of Jesus Christ, sharing it with everyone in need, regardless of their faith, their ethnic background, and their political affiliation.”

(Photo courtesy Heart for Lebanon)

Praise the Lord for positive developments among Lebanon’s leaders.

“Our Lebanese government recently declared all military activity by Hezbollah illegal. The Lebanese government has declared the city of Beirut arms-free,” Melki says.

“A lot of these decisions that our government is making are new. They’re fresh, they’re encouraging, and they’re promising for a better future for the people of Lebanon.”

Header image courtesy of Heart for Lebanon. 

Tit-for-tat strikes between Hezbollah and Israel have spared Beirut until now. Combat in southern Lebanon lingers despite an April 17 truce agreement.

“Two nations have signed a ceasefire, but here we go again. The conflict continues,” Heart for Lebanon’s Camille Melki says.

“Though we have a ceasefire, we really don’t have a cessation of fire. Every day, there has been death, there has been destruction.”

U.S. pushes for peace

Diplomacy runs parallel to ongoing violence. The United States confirmed yesterday that it will host new talks between Israeli and Lebanese ambassadors next week.

“Lebanon and Israel, for the first time in decades of conflict, have agreed to sit face to face in negotiations, rather than have a third party mediate the negotiations back and forth,” Melki says.

In past years, “it was always some third party that dragged us into a conflict. Before, it was the [Palestine Liberation Organization]. Now, it’s Hezbollah. Previously, it was the Syrian regime that occupied our territory,” Melki says.

“Right now, the United States and the Lebanese people are seeing hope that, for the first time, the Lebanese government can speak for the citizens of Lebanon, and the Lebanese citizens can decide for themselves.”

Earlier this week, Lebanon’s parliament speaker said there could be no negotiations with Israel until fighting stops. Yet the U.S. continues to push for peace.

Washington’s “best interest is to separate Lebanon from the control of the Iranian regime,” Melki says.

(Photo courtesy Heart for Lebanon)

Gospel hope and humanitarian help

Continued fighting in southern Lebanon means higher displacement and more people in need. Heart for Lebanon recently added 2,600 new families to its aid roster. Your gifts help the ministry meet increasing costs.

Pray for believers distributing physical help and Gospel hope. “Prayer for wisdom, perseverance, for the ability to focus on what’s more important,” Melki says.

“What’s more important is that the Gospel is spread, the love of Jesus Christ is shared, and the message of encouragement is given alongside all the humanitarian aid that we provide.”

Header and story images courtesy of Heart for Lebanon. 

“Electricity, water, sewage, roads, everything is affected right now, with extra harm caused by this recent war and having 20 percent of our population forced to find a place of refuge overnight,” Melki says.

Life is “becoming very, very difficult.”

Refugee returns

Lebanon has the highest number of refugees per capita in the world, with roughly one-quarter to one-third of its population being made up of refugees. Most are Syrian; others include Palestinians, Iraqis, and Sudanese.

(Photo courtesy Heart for Lebanon)

“Lebanon cannot afford to host such a large refugee population and care for its own people in great need,” Melki says.

“As Christians, we cannot prefer a people group over others, and that’s not what I’m saying. What I’m saying is right now, Lebanon as a nation and the Lebanese as a community have so much pressure that they’re finding it very difficult to care for refugees.”

Over 200,000 people have crossed from Lebanon into Syria since the war began. While 95 percent are Syrian refugees, the rest are Lebanese people looking for stability.

“Whether from Syria, Palestine, or Iraq, a large return of individuals to their countries will definitely lift some economic [and] socio-political strains on our society,” Melki says.

Following Christ’s example, Heart for Lebanon cares for those who remain, whether refugee or national. Believers’ unbiased attention often leads to Gospel opportunities.

“Desperate people take desperate measures,” Melki says.

“There is a vacuum in their life. It can either be filled by people who give them food to control and indoctrinate them, or it’s our opportunity to come alongside and lead them out of despair into hope in Christ alone.”

Relational care

Heart for Lebanon’s threefold approach is holistic, meeting the felt needs of every man, woman, and child. Here’s how you can help.

“First, we provide the basic essentials for survival: food and hygiene, blankets, mattresses, warm clothing, some medicine when available. It’s rainy season in Lebanon, and people on the run live with the clothes on their backs,” Melki says.

The ministry’s Hope On Wheels team helps kids forget the war raging around them.

Through our partnership with Samaritan’s Purse, we are delivering special gifts to children in the war-torn South. These “Gifts of Joy” are tangible expressions of God’s love and a reminder to these children that they are not forgotten.
(Photo, caption courtesy Heart for Lebanon)

“We go to schools that are being used as shelters for internally displaced people. We go to church parking lots, to villages, and do fun activities for children, giving them the opportunity to play in a safe environment, to laugh again,” Melki says.

Finally, a third team addresses families’ emotional and spiritual needs.

“Our relational engagement team spends long hours every day visiting, encouraging, listening to the stories of the people who are afraid, and even questioning the existence of God.”

Every touchpoint is another step toward the ministry’s goal: “To win the trust of the people we serve and to answer the Jesus question: where is Jesus? Who is Jesus? Who is the God of Christianity?” Melki says.

“I cannot tell you the joy we receive as we see people in tears, coming to faith, and the Bible studies, discipleship classes, and church attendance have increased significantly.”

Header and story images courtesy of Heart for Lebanon.