Youssef,
perplexed, didn’t know what to do. Should he tell them
to go home and take some rest? Or should he rather keep them
on alert, as clashes continued in Nahr el-Bared refugee camp?
Youssef Boutros, head of the Lebanese Red Cross Emergency Medical
Service (EMS) teams in the Northern District, was reluctant
to be unfair to the young men and women who looked exhausted
and whose bodies longed for sleep after weeks of very long days
and very short nights. He did not want to take the decision
himself, so he left the matter to them. “Those who want
to leave can, those who want to stay are welcome to,”
he said.
They all opted for the second choice. The call of duty was stronger
than fatigue.
Youssef Boutros is proud of the first aid workers and their
constant preparedness. He says his team is very realistic about
their work, sometimes in the line of fire, and what they do,
they do with love, dedication and sacrifice. He considers them
his first family, and his real family comes second. “I
have held the Red Cross in high regard for all my life. When
I married, I told my wife that volunteering was my life.”
He feels for the paramedics and their families. Some of the
first aid workers have not gone home or to university since
clashes began. Youssef sometimes asks female first aid volunteers
to leave and take some rest with their family. But they refuse
and are just as enthusiastic as their male colleagues, even
more so, he notes.
Youssef volunteered with the Lebanese Red Cross (LRC) in 1989,
first at the Koura centre in Northern Lebanon. He was then successively
promoted until he reached his present post as head of the EMS
teams in the Northern District. He sometimes gets angry but
attributes this to mental more than physical fatigue, especially
under current circumstances.
There are six new first aid posts near the entrance of the Nahr
el-Bared camp, staffed by more than 50 first aid workers, and
equipped with 15 ambulances and several small vehicles. Work
takes place under a lot of pressure. All Northern centres are
mobilized to help, with about 90 first aid workers – including
Youssef and his team - and 15 other ambulances, coordinated
in an operation room.
“I regret nothing and expect nothing in return,”
he says. “I feel satisfied after 19 years of work at the
Red Cross. My work is humanitarian; I feel joy and happiness
at every step I take, helping the wounded, transporting the
sick or providing first aid.”
Youssef praises the “great job” and total cooperation
of the Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) first aid workers
with their colleagues in the LRC, who are just as enthusiastic
and prepared. “This makes our work much easier,”
he says, noting in addition the importance of a “wise,
courageous and round the clock leadership” for the successful
management of this large emergency team.
“I sometimes felt fear, but not panic. Fear is necessary
in order to preserve your life and do your work carefully. Panic,
however, paralyses you and makes you go home.”
Many scenes have affected him. He cannot forget, for example,
the face of that elderly, handicapped man whom he helped. He
saw him as his father; he ran to him and carried him with no
hesitation, motivated by a love and caring feeling he had never
experienced before when carrying a wounded or sick person. Youssef
has never discriminated between theneedy. He cares for everyone.
This elderly gentleman, however, with his teary eyes, made him
sad as he raised his voice, praying that all wars come to an
end and that peace prevail.
For 19 years he never cried, says Youssef, because a first aid
worker must control his emotions. However, he wept with bitterness
for his two fallen comrades from the Lebanese Red Cross, Boulos
Meemary and Haitham Sleiman, who were recently killed near Nahr
el-Bared refugee camp. He cried for them, companions “full
of compassion, love and humanity, whose only fault was that
they believed in humanity. From saving victims, they became
victims themselves.”
But Youssef remains hopeful. He calls upon everyone capable
of contributing time and effort to volunteer with the LRC. He
argues that those who did not serve with this humanitarian organization
will not know the value of human beings and the value of their
presence on this earth. Youssef believes that “the human
being is a message to be read through his acts.”
Nahr el-Bared - field report from the Lebanese Red Cross
(20 May to 26 June)
Despite announcements that military operations in the Palestinian
refugee camp of Nahr el-Bared had ended, fighting between the
Lebanese army and Fatah al-Islam continues. The ongoing violence
is hampering relief and evacuation operations carried out by
the Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) inside the camp, working
with the Lebanese Red Cross (LRC), in cooperation with the International
Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).
An intermittent lull allowed more than 5,000 families (around
22,000 persons) to flee Nahr el-Bared, but, according to unconfirmed
reports, several hundred families may still be inside Nahr el-Bared
camp. They face very difficult living conditions, with no power
or water, no means of livelihood, and shortages of medical items
and food.
Because of the fighting it is becoming harder and harder to
bring supplies into the camp and evacuate the wounded and civilians.
The most recent delivery of aid to Nahr el-Bared camp, 760 kilos
of food, took place on 20 June.
From 20 May to 26 June, in cooperation with the PRCS, and in
coordination with the ICRC and the Lebanese army, Lebanese Red
Cross emergency medical teams transported 450 wounded people,
59 corpses, 320 sick people and 1016 civilians fleeing the camp.
Aid is also being provided to displaced families in the Palestinian
camp of Beddawi. Over that period, some 70 tonnes of food were
provided. LRC volunteers are also documenting the number of
displaced persons in Beddawi camp and evaluating their needs.
Since 13 June, LRC youth volunteers have been managing two displacement
centres at Beddawi camp set up in two public schools, containing
87 families (nearly 500 people). Working in cooperation with
PRCS volunteers they are distributing food parcels and humanitarian
aid, and have set up welfare, cultural and health information
activities for children, youth and women, as well as psychological
support programmes.
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Youssef
Boutros, head of the Lebanese Red Cross Emergency Medical
Service (EMS). Youssef volunteered with the Lebanese Red
Cross (LRC) in 1989, first at the Koura centre in Northern
Lebanon. He was then successively promoted until he reached
his present post as head of the EMS teams in the Northern
District. (p15854)
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Youssef
Boutros between two volunteers of the Palestinian Red
Crescent near Nahr-el-Bared camp during the preparation
of civilians evacuation. (p15855)
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Youssef
praises the “great job” and total cooperation
of the Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) first aid
workers with their colleagues in the LRC, who are just
as enthusiastic and prepared. (p15856)
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