BEIRUT: The government should be working with the United Nations to provide aid and other assistance to Syrian refugees fleeing violence in the country, according to the American ambassador to Lebanon.
The subject was raised during a meeting Wednesday between Ambassador Maura Connelly and Speaker Nabih Berri, an embassy statement said.
The embassy said Connelly discussed “the need for Lebanese government institutions to work with the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees and other international organizations to fulfill Lebanon’s obligations under international law to provide protection to Syrian citizens fleeing the violence in Syria.”Connelly also “reiterated” Washington’s stance that the international community will assess its relationship with any new government in Beirut based on its makeup, policy statement and its actions vis-à-vis the Special Tribunal for Lebanon and other international obligations.
The statement added that Connelly said she considered the “makeup of Lebanon’s government to be strictly a Lebanese decision and called on all parties in Lebanon to protect the government formation process from any external interference.”
Meanwhile, the Higher Relief Council announced Wednesday that nearly 7,000 people had received government assistance up through May 24. In a statement, the council said it had distributed 750 food rations for families, 2,400 mattresses, 2,100 blankets, 912 units of milk for children and 396 packets of diapers to the refugees, who have mainly entered Lebanon’s northern borders, and stayed for varying periods of time.
Syrian refugees have taken the northern area of Wadi Khaled in Akkar as a refuge because of its close proximity to the Syria-Lebanon border and the Syrian town of Talkalakh, where Syrian authorities have cracked down on anti-regime protesters.
Also, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent (IFRC) has announced the allocation of over $43,000 to help relief efforts in northern Lebanon where the organization estimates that between 1,000 to 4,000 Syrian refugees have crossed over in recent weeks.
“Some have suggested the number may be higher, but at the same time, some have already returned. The exact numbers are difficult to confirm,” the IFRC said in a statement issued Wednesday.
The funds have been allotted to the Lebanese Red Cross through the IFRC’s Disaster Relief Emergency Fund (DREF).
The relief operation is expected to run until June 26 and will support the five fully equipped ambulances that have been manning the border since May 15 and transporting wounded refugees to neighboring hospitals, as well as the fixed aid post in Wadi Khalid.
Other LRC departments will also remain “on a level of alert” should the humanitarian situation deteriorate, with the organization warning of a possible rapid shortage of medical personnel and staff, in such a scenario.
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