Khiam, Lebanon. UN Photo/John Isaac. www.unmultimedia.org/photo/
YMCA of Lebanon appeal for support for internally displaced Lebanese families, 6 November 2023
APPEAL
YMCA Lebanon urgently needs to raise USD 260,000 to deliver humanitarian aid.
11,000 internally displaced Lebanese families have urgent needs. Most of these families have three to four children. They have fled their homes with few items of clothing and very little money. The urgent need at present is for baby milk, diapers, blankets, hygiene kits and warm clothing.
BACKGROUND
Exchanges of artillery fire and rockets between Hezbollah and the Israeli army started on 8 October, and have been escalating on a daily basis.
As a result of the shelling of the Lebanese villages on the Southern border (*), thousands of Lebanese families have fled their homes, with around 11,000 internally displaced families recorded to date.
These families have been accommodated in 31 different sites across South Lebanon, while others are staying temporarily with relatives and friends. Many had to find apartments for rent in areas that are considered safe for now.
The internally displaced families are mostly farmers who have lost their main source of income, as their fields are subject to daily shelling. With the continuous exchange of fire on the Southern border, the number of internally displaced families is expected to increase. This situation brings sad memories of the 2006 war and the great destruction of the southern villages and the southern suburbs of Beirut.
The deteriorating economic situation and the devaluation of the Lebanese pound (which has lost 95% of its value) have already led more than 70% of the Lebanese population to poverty.
With the absence of reliable government institutions, Lebanese families are desperate and rely on foreign aid and relatives living abroad to support their daily essential needs.
The displacement of the southern villages only adds to the real need of the families to meet their basic needs of food, lodging, and medication.
Most families live in fear that the current exchange of fire will escalate into war. This feeling has been exacerbated by the decision of several airlines to halt their flights to Lebanon, and the advice given by several embassies to their citizens to leave Lebanon as soon as possible.
YMCA LEBANON RESPONSE
YMCA Lebanon runs a nationwide program for the provision of free medication for chronic diseases. It took immediate action to ensure the delivery of medication to the internally displaced families through a network of more than 500 primary health care centres and dispensaries. The program is coordinated with the Ministry of Public Health and funded by the World Health Organization.
YMCA partner health centres have been instructed to deliver the free medications to the internally displaced families at their new locations. To cater for the increase in patients, YMCA delivered a 6 month supply of medications to the centres, to cover the increase in the number of patients and as a contingency plan in case the security situation escalated and hindered new deliveries.
* Alma Al Shaab, Marwaheen, Aita Al Shaab, Rmeish, Yaroun, Aitaroun, Bleeda, Meis al Jabal, Houla, Markaba, Odeiseh, Kfarkila. Shebaa, Kfarshuba, Dhaira and Al Bustan