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Home , Ghazi Aridi, Industry minister, Information minister

Higher Relief Commission Daily Situation Report Sit rep No: 55 Date: 22/09/2006 under siege http://www.lebanonundersiege.gov.lb offers up-to-date information on relief efforts and diplomatic initiatives. The site lists locations of shelter and Aid distribution, along with a tally of damage, casualties and official statements. Significantly, the site is available in three languages. This site is the official Lebanese government source of information.

1-General situation.

• Prime on Wednesday sent a letter to UN Secretary- General Kofi Annan regarding maps showing the position of land mines which Israeli troops had planted in southern Lebanon. A statement issued by the media office of the prime minister said that the premier believes should take prompt action to submit the maps of land mines to the UN after the arrival of forces which can help clear the mines, in particular, cluster bombs.

The statement said that these mines affect the safety of the people in southern Lebanon and hamper the efforts to rebuild the country.

• Germany began its biggest naval operation since World War II on Thursday as eight warships set sail for the eastern Mediterranean to help the U.N. keep the peace in Lebanon.

The first of the ships, the frigate Karlsruhe, pulled away from the dock at the North Sea port at Wilhemshayen and moved smoothly across the calm harbor after farewell ceremony. The German force two frigates, two support vessels and four fast patrol boats, along with three ships from Denmark, are to arrive off the Lebanese coast in 10 to 14 days.

• A UN team of experts will arrive to on Saturday to begin a probe into allegations of human rights violations by Israel during last month’s war. UN High Commissioner for human rights Louise Arbour said Monday that the team would stay in Lebanon for two weeks and report back on its findings to the UN Human Rights Council in two months.

• Families of those killed during the recent war with Israel will start receiving compensation today, the announced on Thursday. Speaking following the Cabinet's weekly meeting at the Social and Economic Council in Downtown Beirut, Ghazi Aridi said that an initiative by the United Arab Emirates to compensate families hurt by the war had kicked off on Wednesday. He added that the government would create lists of those wounded in the war and that bills paid for medical treatment would be refunded. • pledged Thursday to provide medical treatment to Lebanese wounded during the recent war. “Suleiman Faqih Hospital in Jeddah offered to treat 500 people wounded during the Israeli offensive,” Samir Kreidieh, head of the Lebanese diaspora in the kingdom, told reporters.

• would join the list of countries helping reconstruction by restoring several destroyed bridges, Information Minister Ghazi Aridi said Thursday, a cooperation protocol was signed between Russia and the relevant ministries, he added.

• Volunteers are cleaning up the black gunk that tarred the 1.1-mile-long beach, Ramlat el-Baida. Shovel-wielding volunteers sifted through oil-stained sand on a beach where tourists once swam, now emptied by a massive spill caused by Israeli bombardment. Two months later, only 3 percent of the oil has been recovered. “It’s going to take a year before it’s back to normal,” said Commander Christian Nedelec, the head of an eight-person French team that has been helping the Lebanese government clean up the slick. Lebanon’s tourist and fishing industries remain battered by what has been described as the country’s worst-ever environmental catastrophe, which erupted when Israeli warplanes struck the Jiyeh power plant in mid-July, spilling up to 110,000 barrels of fuel. Less than 3,500 barrels have been cleaned up. Lebanon couldn’t start any offshore operation for weeks, waiting for Israel to lift its naval and air blockade on Sept. 8. “The timing is quite essential with an oil spill. The more you wait, the more it spreads,” said Luisa Colasimone of the United Nations Environment Program.

• A parliamentary delegation left for Kuwait Thursday to express Lebanon’s thanks to the emirates for its support during Israel’s month-long war against Lebanon.

Meanwhile; Prime Minister Fouad Siniora met with Kuwaiti investors and businessmen Thursday to approve an exhibition aimed at supporting reconstruction to be held in late November.

• Lebanon's army, with its rusty Russian-built tanks and rickety jeeps, faces a tall order in restoring government control over the volatile border region with Israel and winning the confidence of locals. After an absence of four decades from the region, the Lebanese troops have taken up positions, within sight of the peaks along the "Blue Line" that the United Nations demarcated for the border in the wake of Israel's May 2000 pullout from south Lebanon after more than 20 years of occupation.

Since the end of the conflict and under UN ceasefire Resolution 1701, the Lebanese army has made a gradual return to almost every town and village in the south, setting up camps, fixed or makeshift, under the cedar tree- emblazoned Lebanese flag. the Lebanese military, yet to recover from Lebanon's civil war of 1975-1990 when sectarian militias and foreign armies held sway, and starved of modern weaponry and communication equipment, functions more like a police operation than a fighting force. Columns of T-55 tanks, dating from the Soviet era, have been moving in, some of them breaking down with mechanical failure, as soldiers lay telephone wires by the sides of roads plied by army trucks that have been touched up with paint to hide the rust. "We lack tanks and equipment, that's why we have asked for help from the United Nations. We need time. If we are given modern arms, we will have the means to provide security," said a Lebanese military source.

Many of the Lebanese Army brigades and positions across Lebanon were struck by Israel’s air force, destroying army buildings and equipments; the Lebanese army has suffered huge losses during the 34-day conflict with Israel. 44 Army officers and soldiers killed and 423 injured, 10 brigades and Army positions were hit, 295 army tanks, trucks , trailer and jeeps were destroyed or severely damaged, in addition to that more than 96 bulldozers, concrete mixers, compressors and excavators were totally destroyed, The Army losses amounted millions of dollars, a Lebanese army official report stated.

• An economic revival forum will be held in Lebanon on Nov. 23 after a 34-day Israel- conflict dealt a heavy blow to the country's economy, the Lebanese government announced Wednesday. A large number of participants representing private and public sectors from Arab and non-Arab states, as well as senior officials from international financial organizations, are expected to attend the meeting, which is sponsored by the Lebanese government, along with the Lebanese Central Bank and the Lebanese Economy and Business Group. The proposal of holding such a forum was made shortly after the conflict stopped and took shape in the recent meeting of the International Monetary Found (IMF) and the World Bank in . Lebanese Jihad Azour said in the conference that the Israeli war on Lebanon has shrunk the economy, cut revenues and expanded spending. He earlier expected that Lebanese public debt would rise to 41 billion U.S. dollars by the end of the year due to the unforeseen war.

• Lebanon's industrial sector will recover from the severe losses it incurred during the war with Israel, Pierre Gemayel said Thursday. Following a meeting with Qatari Chamber of Commerce and Industry chairman Sheikh Khalifeh Bin Mohammad Bin Jassem al-Thani, Gemayel said he was relieved that Doha was offering aid offered to Lebanon. "I have seen the huge towers in Doha that still need computer systems, electrical equipment and other devices to be fully equipped," Gemayel said. "I am wondering why Lebanese industry does not take a part in the promising market in Doha." All parties need to increase their efforts and help in providing stability in order to regain the expected growth and help the economy recover, Gemayel added. • A leading investment bank on Wednesday expressed confidence that the giant real-estate company Solidere will be able to override the negative effects of the war on Lebanon and maintain its steady profits. In a lengthy report on Solidere, Cairo based EFG-Hermes projected the profits of the company that was founded by late Prime Minister Rafik Hariri to rise from $108.5 million in 2005 to $211.6 million in 2006, $212 million in 2007 and $175.2 million in 2008.

• One of the world's most unlikely and ambitious film festivals is under way in Beirut. Ayam Beirut al-Cinemaiya (Cinema Days of Beirut), which has been running since 2001, was organized almost six months ago. When Israel's bombardment of Lebanon began on 12 July, it was assumed the festival would be cancelled. But artistic director and film-maker Eliane Raheb informed guests that it would go ahead as a sign of "cultural resistance". Under the circumstances, this year's programme had to be cut down from over 100 films to just 40.

• Beirut has held its first fashion show since the month-long war between Hezbollah and Israel, as normal life strives to return to the usually buzzing Lebanese capital. The glitzy affair, five weeks after a UN-brokered ceasefire that is bringing thousands of foreign peacekeepers to the country, attracted 300 people on Tuesday night at a luxury hotel in the Sin el-Fil suburb of eastern Beirut. “Every time Beirut is attacked ... and with a determination which no other city or country has ever known, Beirut re-flourishes and blossoms,” said designer Nicolas Jebran as he unveiled his fall-winter collection.

2- Casualties:

The Cumulative figures of casualties are showing hereinafter.

Estimated No. of Death: 1,191 Estimated No. of Injured: 4,405

3-Movement of Displaced Population:

The overall estimated figures of displaced population in Lebanon are shown here bellow.

Displaced Other Information

Unallocated (Estimated) 200,000 Sheltered with host families, friend etc.

4- Food and non-food items distributed by the higher relief commission. The cumulative figures of distributed aids by the higher relief commission described herein after. Description Cumulative distributed up to date. Food 665,263 Basket/Family/week. Food Basket/children/week 27,039 Blankets 123,710 Mattresses 130,054 Hot meal/family/day 583,988

Cleaning-detergent Kit 11519 Tent 1792 Generator 410 Water tank 376 Kitchen Utensil 2242 Kitchen equipments 500 Pillow 21670 Bed sheet 9660 Mineral water (liter) 98065 Fresh Milk (carton) 17097 Powder milk (Kg) 3075 Biscuit 8953 Fresh Juice (Liter) 5386 Flour (Kg) 483539

Food basket/family/5persons/week Children basket under 2 years Rice 3kg , sugar 2kg , tea 1/2kg , cheese 2kg, Children milk 3 small cans, cerelac 2 cans, 1 tuna cans 185g, meat 500g , spaghetti 3rolls , baby milk bottle , 1 biscuit box, pampers 1 peas 2kg , ghee 1kg oil 1.5L , jam 2kg , bag ,children powder 1 can , underwear 2 milk1.8kg sets, 2 pairs of socks, children soap 2 bars.

5- In kind donations. The followings In-kind donations were received by the higher relief commission. Date Description Unit QTY Donated by. 22/09/06 Food and cleaning Truck 6 Lebanese Business council in detergents. Saudi Arabia. 22/09/06 Food Ton 2 Medicine de mond 6-Destruction/damages: The cumulative figures of Israel destructions in Lebanon are shown hereinafter (Preliminary figures). Description QTY Units

3 No Airports (including Rafik Hariri international airport)

Roads (445,000 M2) 137 Roads Fuel stations 25 No Bridges and overpasses 107 No

Private houses/ Apartments. (Destroyed) 30,000 No Private houses/ Apartment (Major damage). 30,000 No Private Houses/ Apartment (Minor Damage). 70,000 No Commercial sector (factories, markets, farms and medium size 900 No enterprises etc). No Small Size enterprises 2,800 No Government institution (Buildings) 66 No Schools (Destroyed/Damaged) 350 No Hospitals (Major damage). 2 No Health care buildings (destroyed). 12 No Health care building (severely damaged) 38 No Power plant 1 No Power generation stations 14 No Transformers 150 No Main Electrical power supply network 50 No Secondary power supply network 250 No Telecommunication main net work 44 No Telecommunication Sub net work 52 No Telecommunication tower 18 No Mobile transmission station 13 No Radio transmission station 2 No Main Water distribution net work 45 No Secondary water distribution net work 285 No Water purification Units 42 No Water Pumping stations 40 No Main water storage tanks 42 No Water Chlorination Units 62 No Water dam 1 No Main Fuel storage tank 3 3 Sea port 4 No Sewage treatment plant 1 No Main Sewage Disposal system 38 No Secondary sewage disposal system 120 No Radar 4 No Army brigade 4 No

7- Constraints: • Estimated total losses had reached 10 billion USD up to date. • Targeting factories has drastically stopped all kind of local production for food and non-food items. • Unemployment rate has reached an approximate figure of 25%. • Lack of safe drinking water and sewage disposal system in the war affected areas. • Lack of electrical power supply in most of the towns and villages of south Lebanon. • Cluster bombs have contaminated 70% of land in the war affected areas.