The UAE will sponsor children who have lost their parents in the deadly port explosion in Beirut.
Sheikh Hamdan bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Ruler's Representative in Al Dhafra Region and chairman of Emirates Red Crescent, instructed the organisation to sponsor orphans and take care of the families who have lost loved ones in the blast.
The ERC and the Humanitarian Aid Office of the UAE Embassy in Beirut are in the process of identifying the orphans and affected families.
The programme will take care of all their basic needs and help to rebuild their homes.
H.H Sheikh Hamdan bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the Ruler's Representative in Al Dhafra Region, and Chairman of the Emirates Red Crescent Authority, directed the authority to sponsor the orphans and care for the families of the deceased and the victims of the Beirut Port explosion.
— الهلال الأحمر الإماراتي (@emiratesrc) August 10, 2020
“Sheikh Hamdan has been monitoring the situation on the ground since the explosion and its affect on people, and is in constant contact with the ERC’s executive management to follow the progress of relief operations,” said Dr Mohammed Ateeq Al Falahi, secretary general of the ERC.
This initiative comes after the UAE Volunteers programme launched a campaign to help send humanitarian aid and reconstruction material to Lebanon.
It has called on Emiratis and residents to volunteer in the UAE to assist the Lebanese people.
The initiative – From UAE and For Lebanon – will run in two phases. The first, from August 10 to 25, will collect and prepare humanitarian goods needed in Lebanon, while the second, from August 15 to September 12 will assess material needed in the reconstruction effort.
Volunteers will help organise the material in the UAE, while qualified engineers, specifically, are asked to volunteer for the second phase of the programme.
It comes following an explosion last Tuesday in Beirut that killed at least 158 people and injured more than 6,000.
The UAE has since sent tens of millions of dirhams worth of aid to Lebanon and 12 tonnes of protective equipment to limit the spread of Covid-19. People can donate to the Emirates Red Crescent relief effort on the charity's website.
