"The situation at present in Lebanon is very difficult, if not critical. It is not possible to make assumptions about what may happen in the future, but we know that the prospects are bleak" said Fr Michel Abboud, president of Caritas Lebanon, speaking to AsiaNews.

The humanitarian organisation is working tirelessly to support thousands of displaced people seeking refuge in its shelters.

The bombing, targeting primarily Hezbollah positions, follows reports that Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah was killed in an airstrike.

The Israeli Defence Forces claim that Nasrallah, along with other senior Hezbollah leaders, was "eliminated" in a strike authorised by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu after making a speech at the UN.

Fr Abboud noted the widespread panic in Beirut where Israeli airstrikes have continued throughout the night. "People have poured into the streets not knowing where to go, without a shelter to hide in" he said.

Humanitarian toll mounting

Caritas Lebanon has received increasing calls from people seeking shelter at its centres. The organisation, already strained by the current crisis, is struggling to meet the growing demands.

"We have started working for this, as the situation is really complicated" Fr Abboud said. "Caritas staff are already on the ground, organising aid activities, working with the government and humanitarian associations... but it's not easy!"

The humanitarian toll is mounting, with at least 3,000 people killed or wounded in southern Lebanon. Fr Abboud estimates that over 70,000 people have fled their homes.

Caritas is coordinating with international organisations including the World Food Programme to provide aid. "We are working with major donors and the international community to prepare aid and cope with the emergency, but the needs are huge" Fr Abboud said.

Despite these efforts, the organisation is overwhelmed and Fr Abboud is appealing for further international support to continue its mission.

Sources

Asia News

Detroit Catholic

CathNews New Zealand

Tell me the ideology or political view that outweighs the right to life?

Around 9.3 million of Syria's 23 million inhabitants need aid. The number of people who have lost their homes or been forced to flee has now reached 6.5 million in Syria and over 2 million in neighbouring countries.

But behind every single number there is a fellow human being who cherishes life, loves his or her family and simply wants to live in peace.

Shaha and Abboud Ibrahim have two lovely girls and fled from Hasaki in Syria.

When an eighteen day battle raged around them they were trapped. When they and their children emerged into daylight so they could escape buildings continued to burn around them and dead bodies littered the streets.

Abboud told me, "A lot of our neighbours were killed or injured by shrapnel, we saw their bodies - we thought we would be next - the children were starving. We fled into the wild. It took us a month to walk to Lebanon." Continue reading.

Val Morgan is Media Officer for SCIAF, Scotland's Catholic International Development Agency and part of Caritas International. She recently visited Lebanon.

Source: Caritas Blog

Image: Shaha Ibrahim and one of her daughters, Val Morgan/SCIAF

"It's very cold, and they have nothing," he said.

The U.N. refugee agency said that as many as 2,000 Syrian Refugees crossed into Lebanon on March 5-6 to escape the violence that has claimed hundreds of lives.

Father Faddoul said most of the refugees arrived on foot from areas near the besieged city of Homs.

"They are leaving the young men behind in Syria to guard their houses from attack, " he said.

Fr. Paul Karam, Director of the Pontifical Mission Societies in Lebanon reports that "We have direct experience of Christian families who have fled to Syria from the violence or the oppression of the regime. There are families who have relatives in Lebanon who have fled here and want to change their lives, looking for work. The Church's response in Lebanon was the hospitality and care of these people: we host them in parishes, provide food and clothing, we assist them at an economic level and insert them into the social fabric. The Syrian Christian families are divided into several parishes and dioceses."

"With regards to the non-Christian families we have no direct news, but we know that there are many in the North and the Lebanese government has asked the population to accept refugees".

With regards to the Syrian crisis, Fr. Karam says: "As a Church we reiterate that we are against violence. We want to promote peace and encourage dialogue. As for the Christians, the danger that looms is a scenario like Iraq, where Christians are forced to flee the country. The risk is that a dictatorial regime is replaced with an Islamist type which imposes the sharia".

Source

• CNS
• News.va
• Image: DW