The Spanish committee of the United Nations Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) has warned this Friday that its facilities in Lebanon are "under threat" after the orders of "coercive displacement" issued by the Israeli authorities, which demand "forcibly abandoning areas of Beirut where thousands of people live and there are agency facilities".
In a statement, the organization has specified that these guidelines affect around 700,000 inhabitants of the Lebanese capital, as well as several Palestinian refugee camps. These settlements, it has pointed out, shelter more than 6,000 people, and has added that the Rafik Hariri hospital could also be included in the affected area.
"This measure comes after the wave of Israeli airstrikes on Wednesday, during which more than a hundred places were bombed in just ten minutes, causing more than 300 deaths, 1,000 injured, and the collapse of hospitals in the Lebanese capital," the entity lamented, highlighting the seriousness of the humanitarian situation.
Since the start of the offensive against Lebanon, UNRWA Spain estimates that the million displaced people has been exceeded, of whom 200,000 would have crossed into Syria since March 2. "Among them are more than 1,200 Palestinian refugees from Syria who, after having previously fled the war, face forced displacement and insecurity again," UNRWA Spain has warned.
Even so, he/she/it has remarked that "despite the difficult situation in the country, UNRWA staff on the ground continues to carry out its humanitarian work, providing shelter and basic health, education, psychosocial support and sanitation services", in addition to maintaining its educational activities.
UNRWA Spain has shown its "deep concern" for the humanitarian consequences of the escalation and for the coercive displacement orders affecting United Nations infrastructure, and has made an urgent appeal to end the attacks and "to respect International Law".