Report: 19 May 2021

With the decrease of new corona infection rates and the proliferation of the vaccine, the ME is increasingly easing restrictions.

Repairing Sursock Museum

In an effort to repair what the August 4 blast damaged, a memorandum of understanding (MOU) was signed between Italy and UNESCO to renovate one of Beirut’s most famous museums. The project which is worth €1 million, comes under UNESCO’s Li Beirut initiative, which aims to repair schools, heritage buildings, museums and galleries damaged in the Beirut blast.

Syria and Lebanon

Humanitarian Update

Reporting period: from 10 to 17 May 2021

Do the Catholic and Orthodox Churches Support Families and How?

International Family Day falls on May 15 of every year and returns this year amid injustice, violence, intimidation and hate speech... but worst of all, a malicious virus from the Corona strain they called Covid-19! A virus that made matters worse, and hit us amid crises and deteriorating living conditions that suffocate families in our Arab world.

On the Ascension Day, Earth connects with the Glory of Heavens

"... you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, throughout Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth" (Acts 1:8), this is what Jesus Christ said to his disciples in the olive mountain - Jerusalem, promising them that they will receive the blessing of the Holy Spirit that brings them closer to the kingdom of God.

Report: 12 May 2021

The WHO gave the green light for the emergency of Sinopharm, China's Covid-19 vaccine, making it the sixth vaccine to receive validation.

Report: 1 to 9 May 2021

COVID-19 over the past year or so have widened economic disparity in the region. Countries with the exception of Cyprus and Jordan, have still to launch a meaningful reform program to improve the livelihoods of their citizens. Instead, corruption and sanctions still mess the scene and everyone in it.

According to “The National” news website, a judicial source informed it that fresh charges will be filed over last year’s deadly explosion at Beirut’s port in the coming “weeks”. The source claimed that the investigation will push to the end, despite any redtape or political interference. Many in Lebanon are still aching to know the truth and lament the lack of accountability within the country; Victims have repeatedly told the media over the past nine months that they fear they may never achieve justice.

Syria and Lebanon

Humanitarian Update

Reporting period: from 3 to 10 May 2021

In the Rosary Marathon: 3 Shrines from the Middle East

The world prays with one heart during the month of May 2021 in the "Rosary Marathon" launched by His Holiness Pope Francis on behalf of the wounded world. Since the beginning of the month, prayers were risen daily, pleading with Virgin Mary to intercede with us before her son to end the danger of Coronavirus and with it, the biggest wound of the world since generations.

In light of the 4th of August incedent last year, the removal of hazardous material from the port of beirut has become one of the top priorities of the teams on the ground. The ongoing work of such teams allowed the removal of forsaken dangerous materials and transporting them elsewhere to be disposed of.

Report: 5 May 2021

Although the various vaccination campaigns are still underway and economies started to untangle, the virus is spreading in neighboring countries at alarming rates as a ‘new deadly strain’ worries scientists.

Syria and Lebanon

Humanitarian Update

Reporting period: from 26 April to 4 May 2021

On the occasion of the April 24, Armenian Genocide Remembrance Day, the Biden administration officially recognized the massacre of Armenians under the Ottoman Empire as a genocide. Prompting the anger of Turkey, President Biden is the first US president to declare so. During the early part of the 20th century, one and the half million people were murdered as part of an ethnic cleansing scheme orchestrated by top Turkish decision makers.

The Light of Christ Overflows on this Divine and Historical Date

What Happens in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre?

“Light up, O New Jerusalem! the glory of the Lord has shone upon you...” are phrases believers recite and sing with great joy on Holy Saturday, an annual date for a divine phenomenon. A miracle that consolidates and revives Christian faith, glorious light shines from the cradle of Christianity, Jerusalem, specifically from the Church of the Holy Sepulcher.

Syria and Lebanon

Humanitarian Update

Reporting period: from 19 to 26 April 2021

Report: 28 April 2021

As ME citizens celebrate Ramadan, word of a new ‘highly transmissible virus strain, has reached the area.

With the various health sectors already under pressure, the spread of such a virus, which had been deemed by scientists as more dangerous, can spell a more difficult year for the world.

Report: 15 to 23 April 2021

As tensions heat up in Eastern Ukraine and the Pacific Ocean, attention seems to be shifting elsewhere away from the ME. For the moment, security risks and challenges seem to be occupying the minds of top decision makers, instead of working to end wars, abolish poverty, and save the children in the Middle East.

On the 23rd of April, Saudi Arabia declared that it has seized large amounts of drugs in a vegetable shipment from Lebanon and consequently, imposed a ban on Lebanese agricultural products. Similarly, Greek authorities announced seizing four tons of cannabis worth €33 million, hidden in dessert-making machinery at Piraeus that was en route from Lebanon to Slovakia.

Bringing life back to St. Mesrob Church and Ishakian School