Appeal for Middle East crisis: Children paying the price of war
Children…! Their first tears and first shrill laughter, infinite love and devotion in their sparkling eyes looking at us, adults, their bruises, the first school lesson, peaceful sleep and bright and enormous world around them, embracing with family love and challenging with great lot of very important and interesting things to do… Today hundreds of millions of men and women around the world have no doubt that children’s love, laughter and happiness is a divine gift for us, adults! It is something that gives us tenderness, sense, faith, feeling of being immortal! Dear friends! Today children are being killed and injured in latest Middle East conflict… Their mothers and fathers are being murdered, their families are being broken, hundred thousands are forced to leave their houses, their schools, to live without proper food, pure water and medical treatment… The Russian people who have experienced so many terrible wars, unfortunately know and understand very well what it means and what a cruelty our life could be. Especially for the weakest and especially for children! The number of displaced people and refugees in Lebanon particularly is growing up to 1,000,000. More than 110,000 have found a provisional shelter in schools, parks, public buildings; more than 150,000 moved to neighboring Syria; thousands are currently living in the open air close to the Beirut airport… and almost half of them are children! There is no precise information up to date but other thousands can not leave the battle areas due to destroyed roads and bridges, endless gunfire and bombing. Children are dying every day because of bombs and missiles. Due to the devastation the survivors are left without basic living conditions: no pure water, sanitation facilities, proper nutrition; hundred thousands of children are already left with no houses, schools, without necessary treatment, many of them became orphans. There is no doubt that the main task for today is to stop the war and the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) applies all its influence and joins efforts with other international and regional organizations as well as the governments calling for the immediate cease-fire. However, the truth is that it will not stop the sufferings of hundred thousands of survived children. Lack of sanitation together with malnutrition cause spread of diseases. Unsettlement and traumatic shock will have a long-term impact on children’s minds. These children have already had part of their childhood stolen: their home and family are destroyed, there are no schools and toys left and many of them have no future. Apparently human cruelty has no limits. But so do kindness, generosity and compassion – these are the supporting pillars of our world, which do not let us loose the faith. Hundreds of volunteers and members of humanitarian organizations are risking their lives every hour doing whatever they can to minimize the danger for civilians and especially for children.
UNICEF, being the world’s biggest intergovernmental organization dealing with children’s rights protection and one of the biggest and oldest international organizations rending assistance for children in emergency, from the very first days of the conflict joined the field operations in order to rescue the children of Lebanon. Hundreds of tones of humanitarian aid are being delivered; staff and volunteers unfold their activities on the Lebanon territory, delivering cargo, providing children with all the necessary, monitoring situation and possibilities for assistance in unreachable and removed areas. Aid has already reached southern Lebanon, the worst affected are, where the military operations are being held. Particularly, people from devastated areas have already received personal sanitary kits, water purification, storage and transportation equipment, medical supplies for the total price of several millions of dollars. Part of the equipment, materials and medicines is locally purchased but the main supplies come from the UNICEF storage facilities in Copenhagen and Luxembourg. Aid has already been delivered to 100,000 children. Unfortunately, it is not enough taking into consideration the scale of the conflict. Life and well-being of thousands of children depend today, among other things, on the good will of adults around the world and their support of UNICEF efforts in the Middle East. According to the UNICEF experts’ estimations, it is necessary to collect 600,000,000 rubles for prevention and clean-up of the most painful consequences of the tragedy. There is no doubt that each following day of the conflict will increase this figure as well as the number of children appealing for help. The short-term UNICEF objectives are: • provide children with clean water and sanitation facilities; In many developed countries people are joining UNICEF in its campaign “Global Parents”: many of us are being parents and all of the world children are in a certain sense our kids. Today our children are being killed and injured in Lebanon, they are being deprived of the essential things for living, they are being hurt and they suffer. Let’s join forces for the sake of children! Your support is urgently needed! Even the most insignificant sum of money can help to save a child’s life, to relieve his/her sufferings and to give him/her back his/her childhood. If you do not consider it inconvenient to support UNICEF assistance to the children of Lebanon you can transfer an appropriate sum of money to the UNICEF in Russia bank account and it will be immediately assigned for purchasing and delivery to Lebanon of all the necessary aid for affected children. You can find all the information about the raised funds expenditure on the UNICEF in Russia web-page: www.unicef.ru; the information about the course of the UNICEF humanitarian emergency campaign in Lebanon on the UNICEF global web-page: www.unicef.org (unfortunately, available only in English). We will be also happy to provide a written report on the use of donated funds by post if you give us such an opportunity. For any additional inquiries – please don not hesitate to call our Moscow office: 933-8818 or 937-4814.
Your participation is needed every single moment! Thank you!
United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Representative
Bank transfer
|
