Evacuations in Beirut
14/07/2006
As a result of the escalation of tensions in the Middle East, SOS Children's Villages yesterday evacuated its office in the Lebanese capital, Beirut.
The decision to move staff out was taken by Director of SOS Children's Villages in Lebanon, Zeina Allouche. The office will stay closed until further notice.
The decision was forced by the security crisis in the capital city, which has come under fierce attack by Israeli forces following following a cross-border attack by Lebanese Hezbollah soldiers on Wednesday in which eight Israeli soldiers were killed and two others abducted.
The four SOS Children's Villages in Lebanon - a country where the organisation has been active for the last 40 years and has ensured care for children through even the most difficult decades of civil war - remain open and unaffected by the current fighting.
The current crisis in the Middle East has been ongoing between Israel and the Palestinian Territories since the end of June, following the capture of an Israeli soldier in Gaza by the group Hamas. The SOS Children's Village in Rafah, in the Gaza Strip, has been badly affected by the fighting.
Back to the Middle East Crisis news page
Relevant Countries: Israel, Lebanon, Palestinian Territories.