Sir, – In recent weeks, tens of thousands of civilians have been displaced from the Kalamoun area of west Syria across the border into the town of Arsal in northern Lebanon. Refugees are being housed within the local community in an extraordinary act of bravery and generosity. While they now outnumber the local population, they are still welcomed.
Across Lebanon, more than one million refugees are depending on this solidarity.
Stables are being converted into makeshift accommodation as snow continues to fall in the Bekaa Valley. Within Syria, the most recent attack on Aleppo adds to a growing catalogue of killings and horror. As we approach Christmas, marking the time when the Holy Family sought shelter in a stable, we should look at our world leaders’ collective inaction and shameful acceptance of the conflict in Syria. What will the legacy of the international community be in relation to Syria? UN chief Ban Ki-moon has stated that the situation has “deteriorated beyond all imagination”. It is also beyond belief that the international community watches passively.
In 2014 we will remember the Rwandan genocide 20 years on and wonder why no one did anything to prevent the slaughter of innocents. Twenty years from now we will ask the same about Syria. – Yours, etc,
EAMONN MEEHAN,
Executive Director,
Trócaire,
Maynooth, Co Kildare.