SUZAN EBU SAID

Beirut- The attacks of Israel targeting civilians, hospitals and schools have continued for 38 days. The death toll in Gaza has risen to 11,180. According to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), there has been mass displacement of 1.5 million people, including 600 000 from the north to south of Gaza and 710 000 taking shelter in  151 UNRWA facilities; 588,000 internally displaced persons stay in 94 UNRWA shelters in the south.

Initiative launched to be in solidarity with IDPs

An initiative called, “Lebanon Youth Campaign Initiative for Relief in Gaza and the South” has been launched by young people in Lebanon to be in solidarity with approximately 100,000 IDPs in Gaza and Southern Lebanon. NuJINHA spoke to Faten Zein, president of the Shabebik Association and a member of the initiative, about their activities.

“What has been happening in Gaza prompted us to do something for the people of Gaza. We launched this initiative to be in solidarity with the displaced people of Gaza and Southern Lebanon. We first made a plan about what we must do. We have made a list including the urgent needs of the people in Gaza such as medical and food supplies by taking into account the needs of women in Gaza, as they suffer from very special conditions,” Faten Zein told us.

‘IDPs need our solidarity’

Mariam Bilal, a Lebanese political, social and environmental activist, reminded that the initiative was launched on the first day of Israel’s attacks on Gaza. “Israel’s attacks on Gaza have negatively affected all people, mostly women and children. We first determined the basic needs of IDPs. We have made a list of them. Now, we are making contact with international organizations and activists to deliver aid. Many people living in border villages in Southern Lebanon have been displaced due to clashes. We had to be in solidarity with the displaced families. Our efforts are still individual and we hope that this effort will expand across Lebanon. There are displaced people in Lebanon and they all need our solidarity. They need not only financial support but also moral support.”

‘Villages in Southern Lebanon are subjected to brutal attacks’

Journalist and activist Fadia Jumaa, the coordinator of the initiative in the city of Tyre, said, “Due to the lack of international resolutions to stop the genocidal attacks on Gaza, we see the villages in Southern Lebanon are subjected to brutal attacks. The displaced people from southern villages need help and humanitarian support. We launched this initiative to support the displaced people in Gaza and Lebanon.”

In Lebanon, many initiatives were launched during the Covid-19 outbreak, after the 2020 Beirut explosion and the earthquake that struck Syria. The members of the Lebanon Youth Campaign Initiative for Relief in Gaza and the South consist of human rights activists, journalists, environmentalists, social activists, and others. “This initiative is growing. We can make the voices of displaced people heard more and collect donations. Most members of the initiative are volunteers from different sectors across Lebanon.”