E-mail from Lebanon

[Laotra]

URGENT APPEAL FOR SOLIDARITY WITH LEBANESE CIVIL SOCIETY

Contacts:
Ghassan Makarem: [phone]
Bassem Chit: [phone]
Rafael Greenblatt: [e-mail]

The Israeli offensive against Lebanon is an act of aggression against the
whole Lebanese people. The IDF claims to be attacking an “infrastructure
of terror”, but the attacks on bridges, roads, airports and ships are
cutting the country into pieces, threatening to create a disastrous
situation by impeding the transportation of food and medicines, and
terrorizing everyone. Besides the hundreds killed and injured, thousands
of people are fleeing the country, and thousands of people are fleeing from
the areas where the bombing is heaviest into central Beirut. Even here in
the “safe” parts of the city we can hear the bombs throughout the day and
night, and electrical and water supplies are tenuous.
Political and civil society organizations here are organizing to help
people deal with the effects of the invasion, but there is only so much we
can do on our own. We are calling on our brothers and sisters in the rest
of the world to do two things to help us.
First we call on you to protest at Israeli embassies and consulates, as we
hear some groups are already doing. The Israeli government must be held
accountable for its criminal and terroristic actions here and in
Palestine. We also ask you to send us information about any such protests
you carry out.
Secondly we are asking you to help us with our work with displaced people
here in Beirut. The group we are part of, the Relief Center - Spears, is
working in 23 schools in the central areas of Beirut, which were housing
more than 5,000 people as of the night of July 15th (we don’t know how many
thousands more are in other areas). People there are sleeping 10 or 15 to
a room without enough mattresses, and they are only receiving food and
water irregularly from the government. Many are children or elderly, and
except for trauma centers the only medical care is being provided by
volunteers organized by the Relief Center. These volunteers are lacking
the medicines and other supplies they need to care for people. Media
activists here will shortly be distributing videos documenting the
situation in these schools, which will only get worse if nothing is done.
Besides the humanitarian aspect of the situation, helping displaced people
is crucial to the reconstruction of Lebanon after this crisis ends. One
aspect of the Israeli offensive is an attempt to foment tensions between
different cultural groups in Lebanon. This is the only way they can hope
to achieve their goals without an all-out war, but in the end it would do
more damage to Lebanese society than any amount of physical destruction. A
broad relief effort is an essential part of avoiding such a disaster.
We urgently need money to buy the supplies we need to help the internally
displaced population here. We ask everyone who can to send donations,
however small, the Relief Committee – Spears in the care of the following
two people by bank transfer. Please contact your bank to find out how to
do this.

c/o Georges Azzi:
- Bank Name: Credit Libanais SAL Beirut – Agence Sassine
- Swift Code: CLIBLBX
- Client Name: M. Al Azzi Georges Chaker
- Account Number: 0430012080006817356

c/o Bassem Chit:
- Bank Name: Société Générale de Banque au Liban – Hamra Branch
- Swift Code: SGLILBBX
- Client Name: Bassem Chit
- Account Number: 007004362092875014 or 007004367092875014

These are difficult days for everyone in Lebanon, but we are confident that
with your support we can overcome this situation as we have others before.