SUMMARY OF UAE HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE TO LEBANON

UNCLAS ABU DHABI 003374 SIPDIS SENSITIVE E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREL EAID KMDR LE AE SUBJECT: SUMMARY OF UAE HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE TO LEBANON REF: A) ABU DHABI 03299, B) ABU DHABI 3255, C) ABU DHABI 03195, D) ABU DHABI 03163 Sensitive but unclassified. Please protect accordingly. ¶1. (SBU) The UAEG pledged $20 million in assistance to Lebanon early in the crisis, and has now committed an unspecified amount to rebuild Lebanese hospitals and schools. MFA's Assistant Under Secretary for International Cooperation Ambassador Mohammad Abdul Rahim Abdul Jalil told the Charge August 19 that the money for hospitals and schools would be in addition to the previously committed $20 million and that the UAEG was now looking for an appropriate mechanism to implement the decision. UAE President Khalifa bin Zayed al-Nahyan has also ordered the resumption of a longstanding UAE-sponsored operation to clear an estimated 130,000 mines from southern Lebanon (left from the previous Israeli occupation). ¶2. (U) Private citizens resident in the UAE reportedly have contributed over Dh54 million ($14.7 million) to Lebanese relief efforts. The quasi-official UAE Red Crescent Society (RCS) and Muhammad bin Rashid Charity and Humanitarian Foundation (MbR Foundation) have been the primary conduits for private donations (in addition to their own institutional contributions). The RCS sponsored a telethon and collection campaigns in malls, hotels, and the Lebanese Embassy. Press reports on August 20 claimed the RCS had disbursed approximately Dh35 million ($9.5 million),largely through distribution centers the society has established in Lebanon and on the Lebanon-Syria border. The MbR Foundation reportedly has allocated Dh40 million ($10.9 million) for Lebanon. It maintains its own air bridge and at least 18 makeshift camps for distributing aid to refugees, including a special focus on Lebanese refugees in Syria. RCS and MbR Foundation relief shipments continue to arrive in Lebanon almost daily (including an RCS-coordinated ship loaded with 2,500 tons of supplies). QUINN