Shoukry visits Egyptian field hospital in Beirut, says 'accumulations led to suffering in Lebanon'

CAIRO - 11 August 2020: Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry visited on Tuesday the Egyptian field hospital in Beirut, where he was given full explanation of the healthcare services it provides it the Lebanese people at this troubled time.

Shoukry praised the role the hospital plays, especially that it has received people who were injured in the port explosions last week, and that it’s services are free of charge for everybody in Lebanon. 

 

 

Ahead of the visit, Shoukry was received at Baabda palace by President Michel Aoun. The minister expressed Egypt’s keenness on working with Lebanon on its priorities in coordination with the Lebanese authorities. In a phone call with Maronite Patriarch Bechara Boutros Al-Rai, Shoukry said Egypt will help Lebanon in every way possible. 

In a short press conference, Shoukry said that “accumulations led to lots of suffering in Lebanon,” emphasizing the sovereignty and stability of the country.

He called for “a political framework that can face this crisis and guarantee the stability and unity of Lebanon, as well as distance it from regional disputes” to avoid their impact on the country.

He also called for prioritizing the needs of the Lebanese people, reconstructing the country and facing humanitarian challenges.

The Egyptian minister will meet in the evening with former Prime Minister Saad el-Hariri and other former prime ministers who remain to be politically active.

During a virtual donor conference organized by French President Emmanuel Macron on Sunday, President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi called on the Lebanese people to “focus their efforts on strengthening the Lebanese national state institutions and meeting the aspirations of the Lebanese people, through implementing compulsory economic reforms, which can no way be adjourned,” also highlighting distancing Lebanon from regional disputes.

The deadly blasts at the Beirut port claimed the lives of more than 150 people, injured more than 6,000 others and rendered thousands homeless.

The Lebanese National News Agency reported Egyptian ambassador to Beirut Yasser Alwi as saying “it was decided to triple the size of the aid, so that a plane arrives to Beirut every 48 hours. The total volume that I have been notified about so far is 210 tons and it will increase. It includes food supplies, flour and relief materials. Contributions were also sent from the Egyptian Red Crescent and many associations because Lebanon is present in the hearts of all Egyptians who are always ready to provide all support to Lebanon,”

Alwi added that Egypt has launched a sea bridge to ship sent by the Egyptian the Federation of Industries, carrying glass, aluminum and marble, to contribute to the reconstruction of the demolished apartments.

The third Egyptian plane carrying medical assistance arrived in Lebanon on Monday, carrying 14 tons of medicines and wheat to cover the country's local needs after it lost its strategic stockpile following the collapse of silos in the port blast.