UK Minister for the Middle East Hamish Falconer has called for an immediate ceasefire in Lebanon during his one-day visit to the country, while announcing £20.5 million in new UK humanitarian funding. The visit included meetings with Lebanon’s top leadership, where he emphasized the importance of diplomatic negotiations and expressed support for direct talks with Israel as a pathway toward lasting peace and stability.
During his engagements, Falconer highlighted the worsening humanitarian situation in Lebanon, where ongoing conflict has led to large-scale displacement and severe disruption of daily life. He visited a public school in Beirut being used as a shelter for displaced families, where he heard firsthand accounts of repeated displacement and the impact on children’s education. He also met emergency response teams coordinating the national crisis response, praising their efforts and stressing the need to protect frontline workers.
The newly announced funding brings total UK support for Lebanon since March to £30 million. The package will support emergency cash assistance for conflict-affected families, humanitarian aid for Syrian refugees, and strengthen the capacity of the Lebanese Red Cross and emergency services through equipment and operational support. It will also fund UNICEF-led programmes focused on education, child protection, and gender-based violence services in shelters and temporary learning spaces.
Additional support will go toward the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) to ensure aid reaches people in hard-to-access areas, particularly in southern Lebanon. The UK government stated that the assistance is aimed at addressing urgent humanitarian needs while reinforcing stability in the country.
UK officials reiterated that the ongoing conflict is causing severe human suffering and displacement, with more than a million people affected. They stressed that diplomatic engagement remains the only viable path forward and reaffirmed the UK’s commitment to working with international partners to de-escalate tensions and support a durable political solution.
