The latest escalation between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah  group is exacerbating Lebanon's dire humanitarian situation . "Lebanon is in a state of panic," Kelly Petillo, program manager for Middle East and North Africa at the European Council on Foreign Relations, told DW. "Thirty-one people were killed on the eve of this week's Eid holiday." Lebanon  was drawn into the wider  Middle East war on March 2, 2026, when Hezbollah fired at Israel two days after the US and Israel attacked