Lebanon Charity Picks up Pieces after Israeli Bombing

The center was impacted when Israeli strikes targeted branches of a US-sanctioned financial firm with links to Hezbollah - AFP
The center was impacted when Israeli strikes targeted branches of a US-sanctioned financial firm with links to Hezbollah - AFP
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Lebanon Charity Picks up Pieces after Israeli Bombing

The center was impacted when Israeli strikes targeted branches of a US-sanctioned financial firm with links to Hezbollah - AFP
The center was impacted when Israeli strikes targeted branches of a US-sanctioned financial firm with links to Hezbollah - AFP

Near gaping holes where walls used to be, workers at a center for women and children in south Beirut assess the damage after a nearby Israeli strike devastated their facility.

It's "going to take us a lot to have our center running again", said Zeina Mohanna from Lebanese charity Amel Association International, lamenting the space had ended up as "collateral damage".

She said she was "astonished" at the extent of the destruction after the strike hit the building across the street in south Beirut's impoverished Hay al-Sellom neighbourhood.

In late September, the Israeli army began heavily bombing Beirut's southern suburbs, normally a bustling, densely populated urban area where Hezbollah has strong support.
Amel, founded during Lebanon's 1975-1990 civil war, has been literally picking up the pieces at several of its centers since a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah began last week, after more than a year of hostilities.

The Israeli army frequently issued evacuation warnings before the strikes, which it said targeted "Hezbollah facilities and interests".

In Amel's center, where illustrations for children decorate brightly colored walls, parts of the ceiling have been blown off and jagged chunks of glass sit precariously in window frames.

The words "Dream big" and cut-outs of clouds and butterflies were near the entrance where a woman was mopping up water from a broken pipe, as the sound of glass tinkered on the debris-covered street below.

- Al-Qard al-Hassan -

Mohanna said 13 of Amel's 40 centers, which provide social, health and other services nationwide, were damaged in the conflict.

The Hay al-Sellom center, an Amel health facility nearby and a space for migrant workers in south Beirut's Shiyah district were impacted when Israeli strikes targeted branches of Al-Qard al-Hassan, she said.

A Hezbollah-linked financial firm sanctioned by Washington, Al-Qard al-Hassan was targeted as Israeli army says it "directly funds Hezbollah's terror activities", and warned on October 20 that the military would soon attack the firm's "infrastructure".

It later said it hit nearly 30 targets related to the firm, and conducted further raids the following month.

Sokna El Hawli, who runs the Hay al-Sellom center, said around 100 children and 40 women used to go there daily.

"The night I heard there was a strike near the center... I cried and didn't sleep until morning," said Hawli, fighting back fresh tears.

"The people of this area really need this center," said Hawli, herself displaced by the war from her home in the neighborhood.

- 'Shattered' -

The United Nations condemned the October strikes targeting Al-Qard al-Hassan, saying they caused "extensive damage" to civilian property and infrastructure, while Amnesty International said they should be "investigated as a war crime".

Mohanna said the Hay al-Sellom center was home to safe spaces for women victims of gender-based violence and programs for children including one connected to United Nations agency UNICEF.
The United Nations condemned the October strikes on the area, saying they caused "extensive damage" to civilian property and infrastructure

The UN agency told AFP that "the re-establishment of safe spaces for children in their community is vital".

Mohanna said Amel had officially communicated all its centers' locations to the UN -- "to try to protect" them, she added with chagrin.

A few kilometres (miles) away in south Beirut's Shiyah, people were checking Amel's space for migrant workers, heavily damaged in a strike that flattened another building's Al-Qard al-Hassan branch a couple of doors down.

Internal walls were blown apart, broken glass lay everywhere, and the explosion had thrown a neighbour's old-fashioned couch onto the center's debris-strewn balcony.

"You feel shattered... We spend most of our time here... this is our home," said Amel worker Nour Khazaal, as photos of happier days sat among the mess.

Khazaal, who fled her Shiyah house with her one-year-old baby, expressed optimism Amel's facility would bounce back.

"I hope the center will be not only like before, (but) 10 times, 100 times better," she said.



What Might Happen in Israel’s Parliamentary Dissolution Vote?

Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid takes part in a demonstration against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his nationalist coalition government's judicial overhaul, in Tel Aviv, Israel June 17, 2023. (Reuters)
Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid takes part in a demonstration against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his nationalist coalition government's judicial overhaul, in Tel Aviv, Israel June 17, 2023. (Reuters)
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What Might Happen in Israel’s Parliamentary Dissolution Vote?

Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid takes part in a demonstration against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his nationalist coalition government's judicial overhaul, in Tel Aviv, Israel June 17, 2023. (Reuters)
Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid takes part in a demonstration against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his nationalist coalition government's judicial overhaul, in Tel Aviv, Israel June 17, 2023. (Reuters)

Opposition party Yesh Atid has submitted a vote to dissolve the Israeli parliament, known as the Knesset, for June 11, amid rising tensions in the ruling right-wing coalition.

Here are some key facts about the Knesset, the procedure for a dissolution vote, which would lead to an election, and possible scenarios.

KNESSET COMPOSITION

Total seats: 120

Simple majority needed to pass the vote: 61

Current government majority: 8 seats

LEGISLATIVE PROCEDURE

The Yesh Atid motion faces four votes with an absolute majority of the Knesset required in the final stretch to become law, thereby bringing a premature end to the legislature and triggering an election, which must be held within five months of the motion passing.

In practice, if the initial vote passes, the subsequent stages could occur all the same day or take months.

OPPOSITION STRATEGY

A bill to dissolve parliament will only be brought to a vote if Yesh Atid is confident of securing a majority. If not, it can withdraw the motion anytime before June 11, preventing a vote.

ALTERNATIVE SCENARIOS

Ultra-Orthodox coalition parties could decide to leave the government to protest at its failure to put forward a law granting exemption from military service to ultra-Orthodox men. At the same time, they might refuse to vote for dissolution of parliament, allowing a minority government to continue.

COALITION NUMBERS

The coalition led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has a majority of around 68 seats in parliament, though its size has fluctuated due to internal political shifts.

The two coalition ultra-Orthodox parties, United Torah Judaism and Shas, hold 18 seats collectively. If they united with the opposition, they would have enough votes to dissolve parliament and trigger early elections a year ahead of schedule.