International Alert Lebanon

08/04/2026

🤲We are in awe of the work local women mediators are doing across Lebanon – especially in the South – no matter the circumstances.

The ongoing escalation in the Middle East has hit communities hard, displacing families, straining resources, and pushing relations between people to the breaking point. In Ein El Hilweh refugee camp – home to both Palestinian refugees and internally displaced Lebanese families – these pressures are felt every single day.

But Amal Shehabi, Nahid Kilani, Leila Sleiman, Suha Rahme, Sahar Jumaa, Amne Ata (in the photo below), and four other women mediators are not letting conflict define what they can do for their communities.

Over the past years, we have had the honour of training these women to mediate conflicts, ease tensions, and bring people together – as part of the 'Women, Peace and Security in the Arab States' project supported by UN Women Lebanon.

Today, these skills matter more than ever: women mediators are making sure that humanitarian response is grounded in local needs, and that communities support each other rather than turn against one another.

👉This is yet another reminder of how crucial peacebuilding is in times of instability and conflict – a strategic investment from the very beginning, not an afterthought.

Unity is what people need. And these women are delivering it.

13/03/2026

Local women mediators are on the frontlines of community support across Lebanon responding to the crises.

From coordinating volunteers and distributing food parcels and dignity kits, to listening to displaced families and identifying urgent needs, these women are standing with their communities when it matters most.

These mediators are part of the Women, Peace and Security project implemented by International Alert in partnership with the Professional Mediation Center at Saint Joseph University (CPM), under UN Women’s programme “Women, Peace and Security in the Arab States.”

UN Women provides technical guidance and oversight to support the implementation of this initiative, which is funded by the Government of Finland.

Embassy of Finland in Beirut - Suomen Suurlähetystö Beirut UN Women Lebanon

09/03/2026

Lebanon needs peace.
Now more than ever, our strength is in our unity! 
Across every community, we must choose dialogue over division and solidarity over fear.
Collective action is the only way to prevent further violence and shield our shared future.
 Stand with your neighbour. Stand for peace. Stand as one.

04/03/2026

We’re deeply concerned about the escalating violence in the Middle East, read a comment from our Executive Director Nic Hailey CMG here:

“As violent conflict grips the Middle East we urge leaders to de-escalate and to take action to broker peace in the region. Once again people who have no role in the violence face having families torn apart, losing loved ones, homes and livelihoods.

“Living in peace means feeling safe, without fear of violence, and it is a right that we must seek to protect for all.”

06/02/2026

"Participation is the key to building a healthy society", believes Roula Chami, social worker and trained local mediator from Beirut – who puts these words into action every day.

In Lebanon, where society is marked by successive wars, women have always held communities together. Yet their leadership in peacebuilding has consistently been overlooked.

Through the 'Women, Peace and Security' programme, Roula gained skills in mediation, conflict resolution, and leadership. But more importantly, she found a network of like-minded women.

Together, they are dismantling barriers and proving that women are essential to building peace – not supplementary to it.

Roula's story began with profound loss – her mother killed in war when she was just 14. She transformed that trauma into a lifelong commitment to help her community heal, recover, and rebuild back stronger.

👏 She is now mediating local disputes, offering presence and facilitating healing, inspiring others to work together for a safer, more peaceful Lebanon.

Discover how Roula is bridging deepest divides between communities in crisis and why women mediators are key to lasting peace.

Access Roula's powerful story here: bit.ly/mediators-Roula

In Arabic below👇
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🇱🇧

04/02/2026

“We need everyone in the international community to support people in Lebanon who are building peace in their communities”

Our Executive Director Nic Hailey is in Lebanon this week - hear his powerful message on why continued engagement in this complex context matters so much and what dividends it can bring.

Throughout our work with people affected by conflict in Lebanon we have seen:
🔸 Women becoming leaders and peacemakers
🔸 Families learning to resolve tensions under pressure
🔸 Communities finding ways to live together in peace

These efforts must continue. And we're clear they pay off with stability, strength, and aspiration.

Around 150 women mediators we've trained within the project are not waiting for peace to be delivered. Instead, they are going out there and working with their communities to build it from the ground up.

They work across the country, including in the south, where the conflict is most intense, in refugee camps and in communities to build relationships, heal divides, build trust, resolve disputes, and to spread what they've learned so that others can take this work forwards.

In a region that has seen so much upheaval, this is the work that holds communities together, repairs the cracks and builds the foundation for people to flourish.

See the AR version below👇
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🇱🇧

30/01/2026

In South Lebanon, family communication and dynamics shape everyday life - from relationships with neighbours to how communities cope with crisis. When these relationships are strained, tensions grow and social cohesion weakens.

In areas like Tyre and Abbassieh, where instability runs high, families face mounting pressure that can deepen household conflict and inequality. Yet it's precisely in this complex context that women local mediators have proven indispensable.

With the support of our project with UN Women, five women local mediators facilitated dialogue and communication sessions that brought families together to:
▪️ Address harmful patterns,
▪️ Promote gender equality, and
▪️ Reduce tensions within households.

🙌 These sessions supported nearly 198 community members, both women and men, to manage conflicts with confidence, challenge stereotypical gender roles, and build more respectful relationships.

While gender-based violence is often linked to contexts of conflict and stress, our women local mediators focus on prevention, awareness, and strengthening healthy family relationships rather than direct intervention.

As one participant shared: "The trainings helped me change my perception towards people who have their own way of thinking and to be more accepting of my surroundings."

This kind of acceptance matters. Family-level dialogue is a powerful entry point for peacebuilding, complementing formal protection systems and strengthening social cohesion during times of crisis.

Five women. Nearly 200 lives reached. And a clear example of how dialogue builds peace where it matters most.

Read our new blog to discover how they did it: bit.ly/family-peace-Lebanon
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🇱🇧

21/01/2026

The work we're extremely proud of!

08/01/2026

Today, we mourn the loss of Samar Salim Nawfal, a local mediator and social worker from Hasbaya, whose life embodied courage, compassion, and unwavering commitment to her community. Despite insecurity, displacement, and her own battle with illness, Samar chose to stand with others—listening, supporting, and building spaces of understanding in the midst of fear and uncertainty.

Her belief in human connection, dignity, and collective resilience guided her work and touched many lives. Samar’s legacy will live on through the bridges she built and the strength she inspired in others.

May her soul rest in peace. She will always remain in our hearts.🕊️

اليوم ننعى سمر سليم نوفل، الوسيطة المحلية والأخصائية الاجتماعية من قضاء حاصبيا، التي جسّدت في حياتها الشجاعة والرحمة والالتزام العميق تجاه مجتمعها. رغم انعدام الأمن، والنزوح، ومعركتها الشخصية مع المرض، اختارت سمر أن تبقى إلى جانب الآخرين، تصغي لهم، وتدعمهم، وتعمل على خلق مساحات للتفاهم في خضم الخوف وعدم اليقين.

إيمانها بالترابط الإنساني والكرامة والصمود الجماعي شكّل جوهر عملها وترك أثرًا عميقًا في كل من عرفها. رحم الله روحها، وستبقى ذكراها حيّة في قلوبنا. 🕊️

UN Women Lebanon

06/01/2026

Last year, women made some of the most remarkable achievements in our peacebuilding work a reality.

In Lebanon, women mediators turned into local leaders that kept strained communities together and transformed how they handle stress, disagreement, and change in the most difficult circumstances.

More about this transformation – and what it entailed – in our new story: https://www.international-alert.org/stories/women-mediators-in-south-lebanon-from-training-to-crisis-response/

UN Women Lebanon

Last year, women made some of the most remarkable achievements in our peacebuilding work a reality.

In Lebanon, women mediators turned into local leaders that kept strained communities together and transformed how they handle stress, disagreement, and change in the most difficult circumstances.

They were showing up for others through thick and thin – resolving conflicts, helping people move from overwhelm to agency and from isolation to participation.

Skills they’d developed through our training before the war broke out became the foundation for action and continue to shape recovery today.

Long-term investment not just in activities – but the very people that can mend the torn fabric of societies – is essential for rebuilding societies based on trust, compassion and understanding.

More about this transformation – and what it entailed – in our new story: https://www.international-alert.org/stories/women-mediators-in-south-lebanon-from-training-to-crisis-response/

This initiative is within UN Women's project "Advancing the Women, Peace and Security Agenda in the context of South Lebanon," funded by South Korea's Ministry of Gender Equality and Family (MOGEF) and implemented in partnership with International Alert and Charitable Intellectual Development Association (CIDA).

UN Women Lebanon

29/12/2025

Looking Toward 2026: Women’s Aspirations for Peace, Security, and Participation



نحو عام 2026: تطلّعات النساء للسلام والأمن والمشاركة

Dialouge Lebanon

18/12/2025

Women local mediators from Ein El Helwe organized dialogue sessions that brought together women and young women from the camp to reflect on community challenges, safety, and social stability.

The session provided a space for sharing perspectives, exchanging experiences, and strengthening connection among participants.

UN Women Lebanon Embassy of Finland in Beirut - Suomen Suurlähetystö Beirut Centre Professionnel de Médiation - USJ

نظّمت الوسيطات المحليات من مخيم عين الحلوة جلسة حوارية جمعت نساء وشابات من المخيم للتفكير في التحديات المجتمعية، والسلامة، والاستقرار الاجتماعي.

وقد شكّلت الجلسة مساحة لتبادل الآراء والتجارب وتعزيز التواصل بين المشاركات.