People forcibly displaced by Israel's relentless bombing campaign on southern Lebanon, the Bekaa, and Beirut's southern suburbs sleep on the street with little recourse to aid. (Credit: Mohammad Yassin/L'Orient Today)
BEIRUT — After U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres launched an urgent humanitarian appeal during a visit to Beirut last Friday to address the crisis caused by the displacement of hundreds of thousands of people following Israeli strikes, Berlin announced it would release more than $200 million in aid, while London pledged the equivalent of $6.6 million.
Speaking on the sidelines of a European Union meeting, German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul announced the allocation of 188 million euros (about $215 million) in aid for Lebanon, according to Reuters.
British Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper said in a statement published on the government website that the UK would provide more than £5 million, ($6.6 million), in emergency aid to support thousands of "vulnerable and displaced civilians in Lebanon to meet their essential needs."
This aid will be delivered through partners, including the World Food Program (WFP), the Lebanese Red Cross (LRC) via the British Red Cross, as well as the U.N.’s Lebanon Humanitarian Fund (OCHA), according to a statement from the British embassy in Beirut.
The British aid package will be deployed in coordination with the Lebanese government and includes support for the Ministry of Social Development's emergency relief program through the WFP. It also provides additional funding for the Lebanese Red Cross for medical supplies and relief items, as well as support for the U.N. humanitarian fund to assist thousands of vulnerable displaced families.
France sent an initial 60 tons of humanitarian aid last Thursday, while additional humanitarian shipments from European countries are expected in the coming weeks, though no timeline has been announced.
On Sunday, the German Embassy in Beirut also said the federal government had approved an additional 49 million euros in its humanitarian aid for Lebanon "to respond to the increasing needs and massive displacement of the population." German Ambassador Kurt Georg Stockl-Stillfried noted that the funds are part of two European aid packages totaling nearly 200 million euros.
Since March 2, the war between Israel and Hezbollah has forced more than 800,000 people to flee their homes, following Israeli bombings affecting Beirut, its southern suburbs, South Lebanon and the Bekaa.
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