Spain will contribute nine million euros to Lebanon to help cope with the new wave of displaced people

Eduardo González The Spanish government will contribute a humanitarian aid package of nine million euros to Lebanon to cope with the new wave of displaced people generated by the escalation of the armed conflict in the Middle East as a consequence of the war between the US-Israeli coalition and the Islamic Republic of Iran. The escalation of the war in the Middle East “is already completely destabilizing the entire region, has already caused 1,800 deaths, and puts navigation in the Strait of Hormuz in a critical situation,” which is “essential for supplying global energy markets,” declared Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares at the press conference following the Council of Ministers meeting. “To all this is now added the spread of the war to Lebanon, with 500 deaths already, where Israel is very dangerously threatening a ground invasion, which would be a tremendous mistake,” he continued. “We have unequivocally condemned Hezbollah’s rocket fire, but also Israel’s massive attacks against Lebanon, whose security and stability are vital for the entire region,” he warned. According to Albares, the number of internally displaced people in Lebanon “has already reached 517,000; we are talking about almost ten percent of Lebanon’s population.” “Of these, only 112,000 have been able to find shelter throughout the country, and most of them are currently overwhelmed, facing all the problems that entails: overcrowding, outbreaks of disease, lack of water and sanitation, and shortages of food and hygiene products,” he asserted. “Many of those displaced are already Syrian and Palestinian refugees who had previously suffered forced displacement from their countries,” so the new conflict “exacerbates an already critical situation in a country that is key to stability in the Middle East and the Mediterranean, a country still suffering the consequences of the previous Israeli military offensive of October 2014 and experiencing a deep economic crisis since 2019,” Albares warned. “Even before the current crisis, the underlying humanitarian situation was already critical, with Lebanon having the highest number of refugees per capita in the world and most of them living below the extreme poverty line,” he added. “In response, the Lebanese authorities have appealed to the international community for essential humanitarian assistance, including blankets, food rations, and medical supplies, to which Spain has, of course, responded,” Albares stated. “Therefore, I am announcing that Spain’s humanitarian response will take the form of a nine million euro aid package,” with “an initial immediate emergency humanitarian aid package of 2.4 million euros that will focus on assisting the displaced population, providing humanitarian aid with food, water and sanitation, and essential healthcare,” he continued. This first step will be followed by “a plan of additional interventions based on needs, including the shipment of medicines, shelter materials, and food. We will also channel some of the aid through Spanish NGOs present on the ground,” he explained. UNRWA Albares' announcement coincides with the second day in Spain of the Commissioner-General of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), Philippe Lazzarini, who was received by the minister himself on Monday and met on Tuesday with the Prime Minister, Pedro Sánchez. During the meeting, according to Moncloa Palace, the Prime Minister reiterated Spain's firm support for the agency as an essential pillar for the survival of millions of Palestinians "in a global context aggravated by the conflict in Iran." Sánchez and Lazzarini also discussed the international context, and the Prime Minister expressed his concern about the serious humanitarian situation in Gaza, where, despite the ceasefire, "peace has yet to arrive." “Thank you to Spain for its exemplary political and financial support for UNRWA. This principled stance is even more important at a time of rapid deterioration in the Middle East and a relentless assault on the United Nations,” Lazzarini himself posted on social media. The Spanish government awarded him the Grand Cross of the Order of Isabella the Catholic in April 2024, at Albares's suggestion.

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