LEBANON: MARCH 2 SHARM EL-SHEIKH CONFERENCE, GOL

C O N F I D E N T I A L BEIRUT 000199 SIPDIS DEPT FOR NEA/FO, NEA/ELA, NEA/IPA ALSO FOR IO PDAS WARLICK P FOR DRUSSELL AND RRANGASWAMY USUN FOR WOLFF/GERMAIN/SCHEDLBAUER NSC FOR SHAPIRO/MCDERMOTT E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/09/2019 TAGS: PREL PGOV PTER PINR UNSC MARR MOPS IS KPAL IR, LE, SY SUBJECT: LEBANON: MARCH 2 SHARM EL-SHEIKH CONFERENCE, GOL PREARING SECOND SHIPMENT OF AID REF: A. STATE 1457 ¶B. BEIRUT 56 Classified By: Ambassador Michele J. Sison for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d). ¶1. (SBU) DCM delivered Ref A demarche to PM Fouad Siniora's assistant, Rola Noureddine, on February 18. Noureddine had no substantive response. ¶2. (SBU) Per Ref B, Lebanon continues to provide assistance to Gaza. Ambassador Khalil Mekkawi, President of the Lebanese-Palestinian Dialogue Committee (LPDC),told us February 19 that Lebanon plans to send a second shipment of assistance to Gaza "very soon hopefully." This second shipment will consist entirely of medical supplies with an estimated value of $250,000 - $300,000. The Ministry of Health (MOH) is preparing this shipment, which will be sent via Jordan and delivered to Gaza by UNRWA, Health Minister Advisor Rasha Hamra told us. The LPDC and the MOH are coordinating efforts to provide this assistance, which is based on requests from the Palestinian Health Ministry, both Mekkawi and Hamra said. This will bring to approximately $450,000 - $500,000 Lebanon's contributions out of its $1 million pledge in assistance for Gaza. ¶3. (SBU) Asked about the LPDC campaign for cash contributions (Ref B),Mekkawi said that a few weeks ago approximately $70,000 had been raised in the LPDC account opened at the Central Bank of Lebanon for this purpose. The account is still open for contributions, he said, but none of the money has been transferred to Gaza yet and may be used instead to purchase additional in-kind assistance to Gaza over-and-above the $1 million pledged by the GOL on December 30. SISON