Fear over children trapped in Beirut

Dubai: A desperate father has criticised British authorities for refusing to evacuate his two young daughters from Beirut.

Karim Rizkallah has accused the United Kingdom of being "insensitive and inhumane" in not allowing Elsa, 6, and Caline, 10, to leave Lebanon with British evacuees.

The Lebanese 40-year-old and his wife Gina, 39, who are at their home in Dubai, fear for the lives of their daughters if they are left to stay in Beirut.

The youngsters, who were on holiday for the summer in the Lebanese capital with Gina's parents Joseph and Jacky when tensions erupted, are said to be terrified by events.

Gina is a dual British-Lebanese national. So she and Karim contacted the British Embassy in Beirut in the hope they would include the children in the evacuation.

They faxed their children's details to the embassy but officials later told them that nothing could be done to help them because they hold only Lebanese nationality and are not dual passport holders.

"I don't want them to stay in a war zone ? it's escalating every day and there's no end in sight. It is innocent people who are being killed so we are very worried," he said.

"Absolutely they are frightened. They are not used to this at all. They want to leave."

Warships from the UK's Royal Navy are set to rescue thousands of Britons in Lebanon over the coming few days, and the first evacuees have already arrived in Cyprus.

Families with children are among the groups being given priority.

Karim added, "It's insensitive and inhumane. When they are evacuating thousands of people they could easily evacuate two more."

"I cannot see why the children of a British citizen should be left in a war zone. If they can evacuate British citizens then they can evacuate their children."

Karim said he would rescue the children himself, but land routes in and out of Beirut are damaged.

Vicky Lee-Gorton, second secretary for political and media affairs at the British Embassy in Dubai, said she sympathised with the family, but added that the UK had to help its citizens first.

"I cannot begin to imagine how people must be feeling, especially when it concerns children."

"In terms of the British government's responsibility, it is to get British citizens who want to leave to safety.

"It is these people the British government and the British Embassy in Beirut are working towards helping. We have to focus on British nationals or dual nationals," she said.