Over three billion dollars in damage and some 300,000 homeless. This is the first assessment of the "apocalyptic" explosions, which hit the port of Beirut on Tuesday, July 4. If international support is there, the disaster comes at the worst time for Lebanon in the grip of a serious economic crisis with a collapse of the currency, record inflation and a growing wave of protest vis-à-vis the power in square. In this complicated national context, what role will international humanitarian aid play?

Rescue operations

Several days after the explosion, the first aid teams are still working to find any survivors. Several countries have sent teams there, such as France which has deployed 55 rescuers specializing in rescue and clearing. Qatari, Russian and Dutch personnel were also mobilized.

"The goal is to identify as many victims as possible, to take them out and medicalize them," Commander Jean-Paul Bosland, a firefighter, specialist in this type of operations, told France 24. "We use dogs, very efficient and fast to locate the victims. We then have to drill concrete slabs to access people and carry out an initial medical check-up, before organizing outings."

The coordination of foreign rescuers is done through the UN agency Insarag, which supervises the teams and assigns the search for the various rubble.  

"The great difficulty with this type of explosion is that it leaves thousands of wounded in three seconds. We must therefore mobilize a lot and very quickly, hence the importance of international aid which intervenes in addition to local operations. ", says Commander Jean-Paul Bosland. "This type of operation is an absolute emergency but it only lasts about ten days and therefore only constitutes a very small part of the international aid. At the same time, the health structures and the care of the victims are set up. which, for their part, are spread over time, ”he concludes.

Emergency medical aid

While the toll continues to grow, the city's medical services, overwhelmed, rely heavily on humanitarian aid from abroad. 

"We received a first wave of patients, injured by the shock of the explosion, some hit by objects, then a wave of more serious cases, some of which died", explains Firass Abiad, director of the Rafik University Hospital. Hariri, on the outskirts of Beirut, interviewed on France 24. "As three hospitals are out of service because of the explosion, we also had to accommodate many evacuated patients. We are relying heavily on international aid because our means are limited ".

Several countries such as Qatar, Kuwait and Jordan have announced the deployment of field hospitals to make up for the lack of beds. In a context of the economic crisis that caused significant wage cuts, healthcare staff had to manage the wave of Covid-19, which resulted in confinement for more than three months in Lebanon. The port explosion probably comes at the worst time for Lebanese medical staff.

"The country has known war and the staff have extensive experience in emergency medical management, to sort out priority wounded and operate on them simultaneously, for example," said Mego Terzian, president of Médecins sans Frontières interviewed by France 24. " Nevertheless, there is a risk of deterioration of the health situation for these same personnel, due to a lack of equipment, as well as for other patients, suffering from chronic diseases for example. Their treatments can be interrupted because of the destruction of drugs. . At this level, international medical humanitarian aid must play a crucial role. "

Food shortages

While some foodstuffs were already running out due to the economic crisis, the explosion at the port now sees the country deprived of its main commercial hub, as well as of several grain silos.

“We are facing a real risk of food shortage,” worries Maya Chams Ibrahimchah, founder of the Lebanese NGO Beit el Baraka, specializing in food distribution, interviewed on France 24. “We only cultivate 10% of our needs for seeds, even though we are a Mediterranean country. We no longer have access to our currencies because of the economic crisis and we can no longer import food. With this disaster, we risk ending up without flour or milk, which would have disastrous consequences ".

A situation which is worsening since the inflation of basic food products had already skyrocketed in Lebanon, reaching 109% between September and May, according to the UN World Food Program (WFP).

Reforms pending

In April 2018, an agreement was reached with 40 states for a financial aid plan aimed at reducing the country's debt. Aid still blocked because the structural reforms requested then were never implemented.

"The explosion of the port will considerably accentuate the already existing shortages, and this is where the bulk of foreign humanitarian aid must be directed," said Mego Terzian.

"The stakes have changed and the international community must show more flexibility today, because this is an exceptional situation. Foreign aid must focus on the short and medium term for the affected populations and not can be conditioned on radical reforms ".

An opinion that Maya Chams Ibrahimchah does not share. She is worried to see humanitarian aid diverted for political ends and calls on "friendly" countries to be vigilant: "The West, which is the donor of funds, must condition the granting of aid. For thirty years, the population has not seen the color ", she is indignant. "We must direct the funds to the international associations which supervise their use, no longer give the money to the corrupt government, and make them accountable."

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