Arab agency donates cash for Nahr Al Bared refugees

Dubai: The first Arab donation pledged for the displaced population of Nahr Al Bared camp in northern Lebanon was handed over in Dubai on Thursday to the United Nations Palestine refugee agency.

More than Dh2.7 million ($750,000) was given by the Arab Authority for Agricultural Investment and Development (AAAID) - an institution concerned with agricultural development and food security in the Arab world - towards purchasing food aid for 4,100 families in Nahr Al Bared, as well as a microfinance project in the Gaza Strip.

"We have a personal commitment to do what we can to alleviate Palestinian suffering... This commitment includes fighting poverty and improving the living conditions of Palestine refugees," AAAID President Abdul Kareem Mohammad Al Ameri told a press conference.

Karen Abu Zayd, Commissioner General of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), described the four months of fierce clashes between the Lebanese Army and the Fatah Al Islam group in Nahr Al Bared camp, as a "disaster for the Palestinians in northern Lebanon. Some of them lost not only their homes, but jobs as well... This contribution from the AAAID is the first Arab contribution that we have received [for the emergency appeal], but we also have pledges from Dubai Cares."