– Children and parents all over Lebanon tell us that they are now terrified of what might happen next. The violence has not only escalated in the south, in recent days there have also been repeated attacks in Beirut, which shows that nowhere is safe in Lebanon, says Jennifer Moorehead, Save the Children’s country director in Lebanon, in a press release.
– The children will bear the burden of this conflict for years to come, with serious consequences not only for their physical well-being, but also for their mental health in the long term. This has to end now, says Moorehead.
– Boil over
On Tuesday night, the Israeli military began what it called limited ground operations in southern Lebanon. However, both Hezbollah and a source in the Lebanese army say that so far nothing that can be called a ground offensive has been launched.
At the same time, new fierce Israeli air strikes against Beirut’s southern suburbs were again reported.
– The violence between Israel and Hezbollah is boiling over, and the consequences for civilians are already terrible, says Liz Throssell, spokesperson for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, at a press conference in Geneva.
On Tuesday, Lebanon’s Ministry of Health stated that at least 95 people had been killed and 172 injured within 24 hours. In the last two weeks, over 1,000 people have been killed as a result of the Israeli escalation, according to the overview.
– Not going to end well
The UN’s special coordinator for Lebanon believes that the spiral of violence has reached a dangerous level as a result of Israeli attacks in all parts of Lebanon and the crossing of the border by Israeli soldiers.
– This cycle of violence is not going to end well for anyone, says Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert.
The UN’s emergency aid coordinator OCHA has also expressed great concern about further developments.
– We ask all parties to prioritize the protection of civilians, to follow international humanitarian law and contribute to an immediate de-escalation to prevent more lives being lost and more suffering, says OCHA spokesman Jens Lærke.
Together with Lebanon’s prime minister, OCHA has asked the international community to contribute 426 million dollars – 4.5 billion kroner – to deal with the acute humanitarian crisis over the next three months.
Houthi escalation
Throssel points out that even before Israel started the airstrikes against Lebanon, tens of thousands of homes had been destroyed in attacks that have been carried out over the past year. She also points out that over 60,000 people have been displaced in Israel in the past year as a result of Hezbollah’s rocket attacks.
– The consequences of the escalation as a result of the Houthis’ rocket attacks from Yemen against Israel are also deeply worrying, she says.
– Far too many innocent children, women and men have been killed, and the destruction is too great.
Earlier on Tuesday, the UN peacekeeping force in Lebanon, Unifil, also established that any crossing of the border is a violation of Lebanon’s sovereignty and UN resolution 1701. The force insists on remaining in southern Lebanon despite the threat of an Israeli ground invasion.
– Despite this dangerous development, the peacekeepers remain in their positions, a statement says.
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2024-10-03 00:11:22
