Caritas Lebanon: Help us save refugees from Syria
Beirut (AsiaNews)
- After fleeing from war, over 400 thousand Syrian refugees are now in danger
of dying of cold, hunger and disease. The
recent snowfall and floods have flooded tents and shacks, depriving them even
of clothing and the little food provided by humanitarian organizations. Some
do not even have shoes to walk in the snow and mud. "The
situation of Syrian refugees in Lebanon is increasingly dramatic," Fr. Simon Faddoul president of
Caritas Lebanon tells AsiaNews. "The
media - he continues - just provide numbers, but behind the cold figures are stories
of indescribable suffering, the names and faces of people who have left their
husbands and children, who may never see each other again."
The
priest said that the war and the violence of recent months have hit every
religious community, ethnicity, pro-regime and pro-rebel groups. The
humanitarian agencies on the border with Syria can not cope with this
emergency. "Every
day - he said - we need food for those already set up in tents or in makeshift
shelters, but there is nothing to give to newcomers, who need everything."
Since
the beginning of the refugee emergency in Lebanon, Caritas has helped over 50
thousand including women and elderly, as well as children who count at least 16
thousand. "Now
- said Fr. Faddoul-we have stopped counting how many people cross the border. No
one knows their exact number in the Bekaa Valley, but we are talking about
hundreds of thousands. Honestly we do not know how long we can resist."
The
head Caritas says that "there are days when the number of people is so
high that we can not meet their needs, however small. We are in desperate need
of blankets, hot meals, adequate clothing, but unfortunately we do not have
enough resources to
find them or distribute them among the people. "
Fr. Faddoul
is appealing to all Catholics and inviting every man, woman of this world
"to please hurray and make a contribution to our brothers and sisters who
have fled Syria for Lebanon. Their desperate situation of absolute poverty is heart
renching". "Your
help - he says - is needed. Even a small contribution can help alleviate the
suffering of many refugees." (S.C.)
At the request of Fr. Faddoul
and Caritas Lebanon, here below we publish the bank details for those who wish
to send their contributions to the refugees:
Caritas Liban
Rue Dr Youssef Hajjar Sin el-Fil-Kalaa.
PO.Box :16-5274-Achrafieh-Beirut-Liban
Account Number: 1141307132400 Bank of Beirut
Sin El-Fil, Horsch Tabet, Lebanon
Bank to bank transfer:
IBAN:
LB55007500000001141307132400
Account number for those who pay in Euro: 4041307132400
Coordinates for other countries:
IBAN: LB20007500000004041307132400
SWIFT Code: BABELBBE
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