British Foreign Minister David Cameron during his visit to Lebanon on Feb. 1, 2024. Photo provided by the United Kingdom Embassy
BEIRUT — UK Foreign Secretary David Cameron announced an $8 million humanitarian aid package for the Lebanon Humanitarian Fund of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). The announcement came on Friday in a statement released following Cameron's whirlwind visit to Lebanon on Thursday.
During his visit, Cameron held discussions with outgoing Prime Minister Najib Mikati, Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, Lebanese Army Commander General Joseph Aoun, and the commander of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), General Aroldo Lazaro.
OCHA supports UN agencies and NGOs in providing food, water, shelter, and other basic necessities to vulnerable communities in Lebanon. The British Foreign Office statement also declared an additional contribution of £2.6 million (around €3 million) to "support the education of vulnerable children through a network of community centers for out-of-school children, as part of UNICEF and the Ministry of Education and Higher Education’s (MEHE) Transition and Resilience Education Fund (TREF)."
The statement — which outlines the financial support as part of an ongoing project to preserve stability in Lebanon and prevent regional escalation — quotes Cameron as saying: "We support the Lebanese armed forces, having trained over 26,500 soldiers, and are providing additional humanitarian aid to aid the most vulnerable."
In the meetings, Cameron "insisted" on the need for a cease-fire and the implementation of UN Resolution 1701, according to the statement. "This is essential if we are to find a long-term peace solution," he said.
British Ambassador to Lebanon Hamish Cowell echoed the sentiment, saying "An escalation of violence is in nobody's interest."
UN Security Council Resolution 1701 put an end to the war between Hezbollah and Israel in 2006. It mandates the exclusive deployment of the Lebanese Army and UNIFIL in southern Lebanon, a clause yet to be fully respected due to Hezbollah's continued presence south of the Litani River.
While in Lebanon, Cameron also gave an interview to Lebanese TV channel LBCI, where he said that he told the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to "start talking about the things a Palestinian state can be rather than the things it can't be."
He added that Netanyahu had "not ruled out comprehensively a two-state solution."