CNEWA-Pontifical Mission Responds to Crisis in Lebanon

Israeli airstrikes intensified with the assassination of the leader of Hezbollah, Hassan Nasrallah, at approximately 6:20 p.m. on 27 September. This was the most intense Israeli strike in Lebanon since the 2006 war, and it completely leveled dozens of buildings. A few hours after the attack, the Israeli army issued evacuation orders for several neighborhoods in southern Beirut, specifically Hadath, Laylaki and Burj al Barajneh, causing widespread panic among residents and triggering a mass wave of displacement as people fled for safety.

At least 100 additional airstrikes followed, targeting the south of Lebanon — Baalbek-Hermel, Chouf, Jezzine, Nabatieh, Keserwan, Saida, Zahle — and the southern suburbs of Beirut.

Air traffic at Beirut-Rafic Hariri International Airport — the only operational commercial airport in the country — came to a near standstill on the same day, with only a few flights operating. Most airlines have suspended flights to Lebanon for days or weeks due to the escalating conflict.

Thus far, more than one million people have been displaced from their homes, from the south, the Bekaa Valley, Baalbek, the Chouf and Beirut. About 700 shelters — schools, public centers and church grounds — are housing some of the displaced; others have either rented houses or stayed with relatives. Many are without shelter entirely. As a sign of solidarity, many Lebanese have opened their doors to the displaced, who left their homes with nothing. Since Monday, 23 September, more than 2,000 people have been killed, 10,000 people are missing and around 7,000 are injured, in addition to more than one million people displaced.

The situation on the ground is bad. There are not enough shelters to receive the increasing number of displaced families, and the shelters, being schools and public centers, are not properly equipped to meet their needs. Thousands of people are sleeping on the ground without mattresses or blankets; thousands of elderly and disabled persons, as well as those with chronic illnesses, are left without their medication and other care items.

There is a large need for mattresses, blankets, pillows, food, hygiene kits, medication and fuel for light and heat, especially in rural areas.

As a first step, the Ministry of Education and Higher Education has called for the suspension of classes in all universities and schools, whether public or private, until 7 October, with further extensions possible, depending on the developments on the ground. Immediately, an emergency committee headed by the minister of the environment has been developed to coordinate with all existing bodies, including government bodies, schools, municipalities, political parties, nongovernmental organizations and the Lebanese Red Cross.

CNEWA-Pontifical Mission has been in touch with its primary partners, including:

• Bishop Hanna Rahme, the Maronite bishop of Deir el Ahmar and Baalbeck in the Bekaa, who has informed us that the situation in the Deir el Ahmar governorate is chaotic and thousands of internally displaced people have sought shelter there. Many parishioners opened their doors to those in need, and some have welcomed more than 30 people into their homes. There are more than 4,300 people across various villages in schools, parish centers and homes with no mattresses, blankets or medications. Because of the need for fuel and the electricity shortage, the displaced are provided with only seven hours of electricity in their shelters — in the schools — through private generators, which are costly. According to Father Youhanna Maroun Naddaf, the parish priest and coordinator on behalf of the archeparchial center responding to the needs of the displaced, they were only able to provide 700 mattresses to the 4,300 people. Many are sleeping on the ground without any blankets. The need is great for mattresses, blankets, food, milk for children, hygiene kits, medications and fuel, and the government has stated it is not able to respond to all these needs.

• The Good Shepherd Sisters in Deir el Ahmar have been present and active in the Bekaa for decades, providing education to the poor, as well as remedial classes and psychosocial support to Syrian students and families living in tents following the war in Syria. According to Sister Rita Hadchiti, the director of the social center alongside Sister Hiam Baroud, some 500 people, including children sheltered in schools, are showing severe signs of distress and need psychological support. A team of 20 people, including two psychologists, is working to provide counseling to reduce trauma and fear.

• CNEWA-Pontifical Mission has been in contact with its partners in the southern archeparchies and congregations. We have been informed by the Maronite and Melkite Greek Archeparchies of Tyre that most Christian parishioners in these regions have remained in their homes, refusing to leave to their homes. However, according to Maronite Archbishop Charbel Abdallah, the situation of the families remaining in the Tyre Governorate is getting worse due to a lack of financial resources and an inability to harvest their olives. This month is the primary time of harvest. It is to be noted that most of the fields have been burnt, and those that were saved face serious contamination from the phosphorus bombs that have blighted the region. They have screened around 5,000 Christian families in need of food support from Rmeish, Ain Ebel, Debel, Klayaa, Bourj el Moulouk, Marjeyoun, Deir Mimas, Al Khiyam, Sarada, Qana, Safad el Battikh, Braachit, Derdghaya, Tebnin, Alma el Shaab, and Yaroun.

• The Daughters of Charity, as a part of their mission to support the most vulnerable, reacted immediately to the developments and massive displacement of people. The sisters, who run various schools, foyers, hospitals and dispensaries, opened four of their centers to host and shelter displaced families. The strategically located centers in Beirut, Metn, Kesrouan and the Chouf region, offer suitable accommodation with the capacity to receive up to 750 people. To present, the Beirut center is sheltering 400 people seeking refuge. For the other three centers, the sisters are gradually receiving families who are seeking shelter — giving priority to Christian families. The congregation, if the need requires, has two more centers located in Mount Lebanon and North Lebanon that have the capacity of receiving an additional 300 people.

• The Salvatorian Fathers opened the doors of their seminary in the Kesrouan region for families looking for refuge within a safe environment and community. To present, the seminary accommodates 35 people from various southern villages. As a small institution, the rector and staff tend to the needs of the displaced, providing food and basic hygiene kits.

• The Salvatorian Sisters administer a home for the elderly in the coastal village of Damour in the Chouf region. With the deterioration of the situation on the ground, the sisters are sheltering Christian families, around 15 persons, displaced from the southern village of Yaroun.

• The Franciscan Sisters of Mary Immaculate operate a school in the Jbeil region. Over the past few days, the sisters received 10 Christians fleeing the southern village of Tebnine.

• The Blessed Sacrament Sisters in Ain Warka, in the Keserwan region, administer a school where they have received four families — around 18  persons — who need mattresses, pillows, blankets and milk for children, as well as diapers and hygiene kits.

• The Joint Christian Committee and the Little Sisters of Nazareth in the Dbayeh Refugee Camp, where some 500 Palestinian and Syrian families live, have received 30 displaced families from different areas of Lebanon.

• The Sisters of Jesus and Mary Congregation, who are present and active in supporting poor families within the Bourj Hammoud area in Beirut, are housing 80 families from southern Lebanon, from Debel and Ain Ebel, and need food, hygiene products and diapers.

CNEWA-Pontifical Mission would like to solicit support in the total amount of $700,000:

1. Food packages and hygiene packages and kits to around 8,000 families ($560,000)
2. Mattresses, pillows, blankets and other necessary items to around 2,000 persons ($90,000)
3. Psychosocial support to around 500 children and mothers for three months ($50,000)