DUBAI: Three American University of Beirut students have launched a donation campaign to support families across Lebanon displaced by the 13-month war with Israel.

Titled “Hope for our Lebanon,” the campaign distributes food supplies, sanitary boxes, and clothes through a collaboration with ‘Wahad Activism’ charity organization.  

Nour Farchoukh, Celine Ghandour, and Kian Azad told Arab News that they provide the aid based on the needs of each family.

“We put snacks or diapers if there are children. We also ask if they need clothes,” said Ghandour, adding that the group depends on people’s in-kind donations.

So far, the donation campaign has reached more than 1,000 families in Baabda, Beirut, Chouf, Batroun, Barouk, and Hazmieh among other areas.

Israel stepped up its military campaign in south Lebanon in late September after nearly a year of cross-border exchanges launched by Hezbollah in retaliation for the war on Gaza.

Over 13 months, the war killed more than 4,000 people across Lebanon, injured over 16,600 people, and displaced 1 million people, according to the latest figures of the Lebanese health ministry.

On Nov. 27, a 60-day ceasefire agreement, brokered by US and France, was signed between Hezbollah and Israel.

Azad said the campaign was still running after the ceasefire, with clothes donations being distributed to orphanages.

“We know that no matter how small the number of families we help, it will still make a difference,” he added.

“Every volunteer and every donation help rebuild Lebanon bit by bit. The hardship of war should never be faced alone,” Farchoukh said.

The three students have invited the community to take part in the initiative through donations or volunteering.

JERUSALEM: The Israeli military reported it conducted air strikes on Friday targeting “infrastructure” on the Syrian-Lebanese border near the village of Janta, which it said was used to smuggle weapons to the armed group Hezbollah.
“Earlier today, the IAF (Israeli air force) struck infrastructure that was used to smuggle weapons via Syria to the Hezbollah terrorist organization in Lebanon at the Janta crossing on the Syrian-Lebanese border,” the military said in a statement.
It did not specify whether the strikes were on the Syrian or Lebanese side, but they came a day after Lebanon’s army accused Israel of “violation of the ceasefire agreement by attacking Lebanese sovereignty and destroying southern towns and villages.”
There is no official crossing point near Janta but the area is known for illegal crossings.
The UN peacekeeping force in southern Lebanon, UNIFIL, has also expressed concern over “continuing destruction” caused by Israeli forces in south Lebanon.
The Israeli military said Friday’s strikes were aimed at preventing weapons falling into the hands of Hezbollah, with whom it fought a land and air war for more than a year until a ceasefire was agreed upon last month.
“These strikes are an additional part of the IDF’s (Israeli military’s) effort to target weapons smuggling operations from Syria into Lebanon, and prevent Hezbollah from re-establishing weapons smuggling routes,” the military said.
“The IDF will continue to act to remove any threat to the state of Israel in accordance with the understandings in the ceasefire agreement.”
The truce went into effect on November 27, about two months after Israel stepped up its bombing campaign and later sent troops into Lebanon following nearly a year of exchanges of cross-border fire initiated by Hezbollah over the war in Gaza.