Following the devastating explosion at the Port of Beirut, Facebook has pledged to donate more than $2m to support relief efforts.
Ramez Shehadi, Managing Director, Facebook Middle East and North Africa, said: “In support of the vital work that organizations and individuals are doing on the ground in Beirut, we are donating more than $2.1 million to local hospitals, medical institutions and NGOs to support relief and recovery efforts, $1 million of which has been matched by our community as part of a Facebook fundraiser. Moreover, we’re working with hospitals and local partners to launch local access to our Blood Donation tool – which allows blood donors to find nearby blood donation centers in need of support – and supporting local newsrooms impacted. We will continue to work with different organizations that are making a real difference at this critical time.”
In a statement, Facebook said: “As the nation continues to deal with the devastating impact of the explosion, we’ve seen the community quickly activate Safety Check on August 4, with tens of thousands of people letting their friends and loved ones know they’re safe, and hundreds of thousands of people visiting the Crisis Page to get first-hand information and offer and request help — from opening their doors to those who’ve lost homes to searching for missing loved ones and providing other critical services such as blood donations.
In addition, those looking to support people impacted can use Facebook and Instagram to:
- offer help and share timely information on the Crisis Page for the explosion,
- donate to fundraisers like this one and this one;
- provide support to those looking for missing loved ones family and friends through this Instagram page;
- provide help and information to those on the ground in Groups such as the Red Cross and: this one, this one and this one.
