Lebanon receives international aid as Israeli offensive continues

Regional and European aid is being sent to Lebanon as Israel’s brutal military offensive continues. Thousands of Lebanese have been killed, wounded or displaced by the Israeli attacks.

Israel launched its most violent and extensive attack on Lebanon on 23 September, the worst since the beginning of its confrontations with Hezbollah about a year ago. As of Monday evening, at least 970 Lebanese had been killed, including children and women, with a further 2,784 wounded, according to Anadolu new agency’s monitoring of statements from the Lebanese authorities. Tens of thousands of Lebanese citizens have been displaced by the Israeli attacks.

Meanwhile sirens continue to sound at an unprecedented frequency across Israel following Hezbollah’s firing of missiles, drones and artillery shells against military sites and settlements. The occupation state has imposed a strict media blackout regarding human and material losses, say observers.

Some countries have already provided aid to Lebanon, or announced that aid is on its way, according to Anadolu. A Turkish aircraft carrying 30 tonnes of humanitarian aid and medical supplies, for example, arrived in Lebanon last Wednesday. The Saudi Arabian leadership, meanwhile, has ordered the provision of medical and relief aid to the Lebanese people, reported the official Saudi Press Agency on Sunday.

UAE President Mohammed Bin Zayed Al-Nahyan has ordered the provision of an urgent relief aid package worth $100 million to the Lebanese people, “to help them face the current challenges,” said the official Emirates News Agency yesterday.

The Qatar News Agency, meanwhile, said on 24 September that the Qatar Charity had already distributed relief aid in southern Lebanon, without providing specific details. Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi told Lebanese caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati on Sunday that he has ordered the immediate dispatch of emergency medical and relief aid to Lebanon.

Following the latest escalation, Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani announced the establishment of an air and land bridge to transport aid and facilitate fuel deliveries to Lebanon. He also made the decision to “facilitate the delivery of fuel to operate power stations needed by Lebanese hospitals and service institutions, in addition to receiving the wounded and injured in Iraqi hospitals.”

Iraqi government spokesman Bassem al-Awadi told the official Iraqi news agency on Monday that his country has “sent five shipments amounting to hundreds of tonnes of relief supplies, including medicine, food supplies and clothing.” He stressed that Iraq will continue to provide relief supplies to Lebanon.

At least two aircraft of the Jordanian Air Force flew to Lebanon in September filled with humanitarian aid, which was delivered to the Lebanese army for distribution.

Further afield, the Canadian Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced on Sunday that it will provide 10 million Canadian dollars (US$7.4m) in humanitarian aid to civilians in Lebanon. Moreover, when French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot arrived in Beirut on Sunday he announced that a French military aircraft had taken 12 tonnes of medical equipment and delivered it to Lebanese partners to treat 1,000 seriously injured people.

The UK said on 25 September that it was sending £5m ($6.67m) to Lebanon “to support efforts to respond to humanitarian needs,” while the UN, represented by UNICEF, will distribute the aid to those in need. The European Union announced on Sunday that it will provide €10m ($11.2m) in humanitarian aid to help those affected by the Israeli offensive.

Also on Sunday, the World Food Programme announced that it has launched an emergency operation to provide food aid to one million people affected by the situation in Lebanon. The Rome-based programme confirmed that it is “distributing ready-to-eat food rations, bread, hot meals and food parcels to families in shelters across the country.”

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