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3. Hezbollah’s Grip on Displacement Centers Threatens Civilians and Aid

More than a million Lebanese have been displaced since Hezbollah plunged Lebanon into war with Israel, with many now seeking refuge in communal shelters draped in Iranian flags and guarded by the militant group’s fighters.

Hamed Abou Zahr, head of the Aamalouna displacement center in Sidon, warned that other shelters were “openly affiliated with Hezbollah and operating under its influence.”

Officials and humanitarian workers warn that Hezbollah’s presence at displacement shelters not only politicizes aid, but also undermines state authority and exposes civilians to significant security risks.

Exploiting Aid

At several displacement shelters, Hezbollah has subverted aid from the Lebanese state, fueling concerns over the politicization of humanitarian assistance.

“Hezbollah affiliated NGOs remove government labels from aid packages and replace them with labels from Hezbollah or affiliated entities,” former deputy prime minister Ghassan Hasbani told This is Beirut.

Hasbani, a Lebanese Forces MP, said the tactic is intended to foster allegiance among displaced communities to Hezbollah rather than to the state, the actual provider of the assistance.

Echoing those concerns, MP Fouad Makhzoumi, founder of the National Dialogue Party, said Hezbollah’s presence at some displacement shelters was enabling the group to exploit and control aid distribution.

Hezbollah-linked organizations have also reportedly restricted aid from non-aligned organizations, raising concerns about impartiality and humanitarian access in displacement centers.

“We’ve had incidents where aid organizations were trying to deliver medicine, and Hezbollah affiliated NGOs were preventing them from entering the camp,” Hasbani said.

Yet even as these organizations restrict outside aid, their own provisions fall far short of what is needed. “The Council of the South only provided a single box of food,” Abou Zahr said, “which is far from sufficient given the scale of need.”

Endangering the Displaced

Concerns are rising that Hezbollah’s presence in communal shelters is endangering displaced families amid Israel’s targeted campaign of assassinations against the group’s officials.

Hezbollah’s involvement in the shelters poses a significant security risk, Abou Zahr said, adding that his organization has a strict policy of keeping its centers free of political affiliation.

Makhzoumi agreed that Hezbollah’s presence was putting entire displacement centers at risk. He urged the government to deploy the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) and security agencies to screen personnel inside and around shelters.

“The message is simple: the only legitimate authority in displacement management must be the Lebanese state,” Makhzoumi said, adding that displacement should be treated as a matter of national security.

Ghassan Hasbani, for his part, said such measures are important for protecting not only displaced families but also surrounding communities.

Government Must Step Up

For Makhzoumi, humanitarian spaces cannot be left open to infiltration, influence, or control by any political or armed actor.

He argued that the government must adopt a clear national plan for displacement management, create a central registry of all displaced persons and centers, and ensure full state supervision.

“There must be full visibility on where aid is going, who is administering it, and who is benefiting from it” he said, explaining that NGOs must be carefully vetted, especially where there are concerns over their political affiliations.

Hasbani stressed the need for the Lebanese state to assert its authority and deliver aid directly to displaced families, ensuring it is not diverted through Hezbollah-affiliated NGOs.

“The government needs to be more visibly present, whether in providing security in towns and cities or delivering aid and essential services, and all of it must clearly carry the government’s label, not anyone else’s,” he said.

As the Lebanese government seeks to restore state sovereignty amid a war started by Hezbollah, asserting authority over aid has become a key test in shaping perceptions among the displaced, many of them from the group’s support base.

“The displaced are no longer following the news. They are tired of it. What matters to them is who will help them,” Abou Zahr said.