KRCS distributes food, relief aid in Lebanon ---Agencies

BEIRUT: The Kuwait Red Crescent Society (KRCS) announced on Wednesday the latest phase of aid distribution to Lebanese people, displaced Syrians and Palestinians. Relief Coordinator at the Lebanese Red Cross Society, Yousif Boutros, told KUNA that the KRCS begun a new phase of distributing aid, consisting of 12,000 food rations, to Lebanese people, displaced Syrians and Palestinians. Boutros added that the aid is to support displaced people in refugee camps in northern and southern Lebanon, as a result of the ongoing aggression with the Zionist occupation near the south since October. He noted that KRCS continues the process of distributing aid to Lebanese villages and towns in southern Lebanon, which started last year, in light of the difficult security conditions, as well as their bread distributing project for thousands of people in need for years. Meanwhile, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk has called for an urgent de-escalation in the Middle East over fears that the Gaza war could spread. “I am deeply worried about the rising risk of a wider conflict in the Middle East and plead with all parties, along with those states with influence, to act urgently to de-escalate what has become a very precarious situation,” said Turk in a statement. Iran said it had the “legal right to punish” Zionists over last week’s killing of Palestinian armed group Hamas’ political leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran. Zionist entity, which has not commented on the killing but did admit to carrying out a strike on Beirut that left Hezbollah military chief Fuad Shukr dead, has been fighting a war in Gaza since the October 7 attacks by Hamas. It is now exchanging daily cross-border fire with Hezbollah in Lebanon. The international community fears Iran, a backer of Hezbollah and Hamas, could join the conflict. “Already, over the past 10 months, civilians - mostly women and children - have endured unbearable pain and suffering as result of the bombs and guns,” said Turk. “Everything, and I mean everything, must be done to avoid this situation spiraling further into an abyss that will only have even more terrible consequences for civilians.” — Agencies

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

PCG: China’s bullying in West Philippine Sea undermines international law --- Ghio Ong - The Philippine Star

MANILA, Philippines — Letting China sustain its aggression in the West Philippine Sea would make other countries doubt the strength of international law currently being asserted by the Philippines, Commodore Jay Tarriela of the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) said. “Allowing China to blatantly disregard the established rules-based order threatens the very foundation that we all depend on,” he wrote in a post on X last Tuesday. He added, “If we permit this, countries worldwide may forget why this order was created in the first place. Nations could begin to doubt the significance of adhering to international law if powerful bullies can easily violate it.” Tarriela also said defiance of other countries to a rules-based order would result in the prevalence of cruelty. He wrote, “This could lead us back to a time when might makes right, undermining the global structures that keep human greed, savagery and barbarism in check. Such a scenario would not only invite challenges from aggressive ...
Read more

China ships maintain presence in key West Philippine Sea areas --- Michael Punongbayan - The Philippine Star

STAR / Michael Varcas MANILA, Philippines — While Chinese vessels in the West Philippine Sea (WPS) have decreased in number, they have maintained a presence in three key land features where naval and coast guard ships have intensified operations in the past seven days, according to the Philippine Navy. Latest monitoring by the Philippine Navy showed armed ships of the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) maintaining a menacing presence around the grounded BRP Sierra Madre in Ayungin Shoal, Panatag Shoal and Escoda Shoal. According to the Philippine Navy, there are 17 Chinese military vessels and 28 China Coast Guard (CCG) boats spotted inside the country’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ) between Sept. 23 and 30, or one vessel more than in the previous week Sept.17-23. Five of the warships were seen roaming around the vicinity of Escoda Shoal, along with 10 CCG vessels and 12 maritime militia vessels (MMVs). There are also two PLAN ships in Ayungin Shoal as well as 10 CCG boats and 12...
Read more

Social media seen as cause of rising intermarriages --- Helen Flores - The Philippine Star

MANILA, Philippines — The Commission on Filipinos Overseas (CFO) sees social media as the main reason for the rising number of Filipinos marrying or becoming partners of foreign nationals. In 2022, the CFO recorded 6,854 marriages or partnerships with foreign nationals, a 40.1 percent increase from the 4,891 “intermarriages” recorded in 2021. “First of all, what we see in the increase in the marriage rate of Filipinos or Filipinos with foreign partners is because of social media, (that) is number one; matchings; letters, introduction of their friends,” CFO chairperson Romulo Arugay said at the Bagong Pilipinas Ngayon public briefing yesterday. Arugay said the agency has been registering a high number of intermarriages since 2007, but the figures went down during the COVID-19 pandemic. From over 6,500 Filipinos who married foreign nationals, only 600 are men, he said. Most of them are married to Americans, Japanese, Germans, Canadians and Australians, Arugay said. Arugay warned Fi...
Read more