In a July 26 letter to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, the interim President of the largest alliance of American non-governmental organizations (NGOs) operating abroad, Julia Taft of InterAction, noted Rice’s acknowledgement of the desirability of an urgent cease-fire in Lebanon and asked that she exert every possible effort to make a cease-fire a reality.

Reporting that access by American NGOs to civilians in zones most at risk remains extremely dangerous, Taft also asked the Secretary to do everything she can to see that pledges of safe passage for humanitarian shipments and personnel are followed by the concrete measures necessary to open humanitarian corridors to those at greatest peril.

Full text of the letter:

July 26, 2006

The Honorable Condoleezza Rice
Secretary of State
U.S. Department of State
2201 C Street NW
Washington, DC 20520

Dear Madame Secretary:

On behalf of InterAction, the largest alliance of U.S. based international humanitarian and development organizations, I write to you with urgent concern regarding the current crisis in Lebanon.

As you know, hundreds of civilians have been killed in the ongoing violence and more than a half million Lebanese have fled their homes. Perhaps an equal number are at substantial risk of death or injury where they are presently located but are unable or afraid to try to move to safer locations due to the insecurity. Over a hundred thousand Lebanese have fled their homeland to become refugees in foreign countries. Humanitarian organizations report that fuel needed for transport and for operation of the country’s physical infrastructure is running low. There are credible reports of shortages of food and water. Thousands of injured require medical assistance.

Our members appreciate your acknowledgement of the desirability of an urgent cease-fire and hope that you and your American diplomatic colleagues will exert every possible effort to make a cease-fire a reality.

The $ 30 million that you have announced is being made available by the U.S. government for humanitarian assistance is a welcome start to what we expect will be a generous American government response to the heavy cost of preserving civilian lives and limiting their suffering.

The news that initial U.S. shipments of relief commodities have begun to arrive in Lebanon is reassuring. Our colleagues in the country are ready to assist in the distribution of these supplies. However, they report that access to civilians in zones most at risk remains extremely dangerous. Please do everything you can to see that pledges of safe passage for humanitarian shipments and personnel are followed by the concrete measures necessary to open humanitarian corridors to those at greatest peril.

We are in close contact with officials of the State Department and USAID responding to this emergency. We hope to hear from them that you and your team are making headway in facilitating a cease-fire and the activation of humanitarian corridors.

Sincerely,
Julia V. Taft
Interim President and CEO
(InterAction)

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