Saudi Arabia has urged its citizens to leave Lebanon immediately as fighting intensifies and Israel advances its ground operation in southern Lebanon. Israeli forces have deployed thousands of troops with the stated aim of occupying the area south of the Litani River, roughly 30 kilometers from the border, prompting heightened regional concern.

The Saudi embassy in Beirut cited the repercussions of the current events and reiterated that a travel ban to Lebanon has been in place for several years. The warning comes as the United Nations cautions that continued military escalation could lead to a humanitarian catastrophe.

Since early March, more than one million people in Lebanon have been displaced. Over 136,000 are sheltering in hundreds of collective centers, many of them schools operating far beyond capacity with limited access to sanitation. The refugee agency of the United Nations has appealed for more than 60 million dollars to expand its response, warning that needs are rising rapidly as the country faces mounting pressure from overlapping crises.