Caritas Manila helps wounded Lebanon
by Kenneth Corbilla

The charity organisation of the Philippine Church has responded to the appeal of Caritas internationalis to help Lebanon following the blast that hit the Port of Beirut.


Manila (AsiaNews) - Caritas Manila donated 242,000 Philippine pesos (US$ 5,000) as financial help for Lebanon after the deadly explosion in the Port of Beirut, which killed almost 200 people and wounded almost 6,000.

In a letter to Caritas Internationalis, cited by Radio Veritas, Caritas Manila says: “We, at Caritas Manila, the social welfare arm of the Archdiocese of Manila, with its Manila Auxiliary Bishop Broderick S. Pabillo as appointed chairman, following the reassignment of Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle for Rome, and Rev. Fr. Anton C.T. Pascual as its Executive Director, heard the appeal of Caritas Lebanon for help due to the devastation of the recent port explosion that happened in Beirut last August 4, 2020.”

“During this Covid-19 pandemic, this unfortunate disaster which caused a lot of lives, casualties, infrastructure damages and ill effects to our brothers and sisters in Lebanon, left a heavy struggle for everyone to survive.

“Thus, we wish to donate an amount of USD 5,000 to Caritas Lebanon to support the needs of the affected families and communities. We hope that this amount could contribute to the needs of the people”.

The Caritas Manila initiative is a response to Caritas Internationalis’s appeal to Caritas organisations around the world to help the people of Lebanon.

Reports note that ammonium nitrate stored in the Port of Beirut was responsible for the explosion that caused damage estimated at 10 to 15 billion pesos (US$ 310 million).

Caritas Manila also extends its deepest sympathy and expresses its willingness to help the victims of the explosion at this time of crisis brought about by the coronavirus pandemic.