As the United Nations mobilizes troops to maintain a fragile ceasefire, Southern Baptists are stepping up relief efforts in Lebanon and Israel, funneling more than a half-million dollars in aid into the region.
Damage from air raids and rocket attacks has flattened homes and leveled buildings, leaving hundreds of thousands homeless. Most of the devastation is concentrated in southern Lebanon, an area recently visited by a Southern Baptist medical assessment team.
“They’ve got no possessions left; there is not a single chair that’s intact,” a Christian medical worker said.
“Everything is smashed and covered with concrete. The smell of dead bodies, either human or animal, is prevalent in these communities.”
So far, Baptist partners in both nations have distributed $100,000 worth of supplies — food, water, temporary latrines and showers, medicine and cleaning supplies — to people displaced by the fighting.
An additional $250,000 has been earmarked to provide more of the same, as well as blankets and portable heaters for the region’s rapidly approaching winter.
Food supplies are especially critical, which is why Southern Baptists also have purchased more than 250,000 cans of tuna fish. High in protein, tuna was an obvious choice because it’s already part of the Middle Eastern diet, the consultant said. The cans are slated to be shipped to Lebanon before the end of October. At a cost of $300,000, the tuna bumps the total amount of Southern Baptist aid to those affected by the conflict to $650,000, making it this year’s second-largest relief project.
(BP)
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