Israel strikes Christian cities north of Beirut
Beirut (AsiaNews) Israel's offensive in Lebanon has reached Christian cities in the Mount Lebanon area, now full of refugees from three weeks of war between the Jewish State and Hezbollah's militias.
"Jounieh, Byblos and Fidar were hit", Former Foreign Minister Fares Boueiz told AsiaNews.
All three large Christian centres now are home to countless numbers of people displaced from southern Lebanon, Beirut and the Bekaa Valley.
According to the former minister, today's bombing destroyed five bridges that link the northern cities to the rest of the country. The result has been the division of Lebanon into five areas now without links to one another.
The overall picture is even worse if taking into consideration the economic situation, the spread of infectious diseases and the lack of water, bread and fuel..
For Boueiz, "the world's conscience has gone to sleep as Israel kills and destroys". In his interview with AsiaNews, he slammed Israel's aggressiveness against Christian communities and asked: "Are there perhaps Hezbollah's rocket launching pads in Jounieh and Byblos? Where is the world's conscience?".
In an appeal to the "free world", the Holy See and the Pope, he asks that someone do something right away. "Here," he said, "God's voice still resonates, asking Cain about his brother's blood crying from the soil".
Similarly, former Lebanese Prime Minister Salim Hoss is no less critical of the silence of the international community. Speaking to AsiaNews he slammed Arab leaders, calling them "weak and ungrateful towards Lebanon".
Recent reports from the frontline indicate that Hezbollah guerrillas have been trying to infiltrate Christian villages armed with rocket launchers in order to provoke an Israeli riposte.
Given the current military situation, nowhere in the land of the cedar tree can be said to be a safe haven for refugees. Not only hospitals have been targeted but they suffer from lack of drugs and other medical supplies. Even funeral homes and undertakers are too scared to do their job.
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08/05/2008
