THE fanfare marking yesterday’s arrival of the first American aid to Lebanon was scorned by Esam Haider and 2,000 fellow refugees living in an underground car park after their homes were bombed by Israel.

Mr Haider, aware of recent reports that the US was accelerating the delivery of new missiles to Israel, was furious. “Why does President Bush send billions of dollars of weapons to Israel and hands the Lebanese a few boxes of food and blankets?” the 24-year-old chef asked.

“Is he just trying to fatten us up before he gives Israel bigger bombs to kill us?” he said as his nine-month old daughter slept on the concrete floor of the vast supermarket car park in Beirut’s southern suburbs.

The Haiders live close to the office of Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah, Hezbollah’s leader, so their apartment block has gone and parking bay B4 has been their home for the past fortnight. It is airless, stifling and unsanitary but, as Mr Haider notes, it at least offers protection from the airstrikes.

On Monday the US promised $30 million (£16million) in immediate humanitarian aid to Lebanon, and US military helicopters yesterday flew in emergency medical kits to the American Embassy. There they sat, covered by a Stars and Stripes, until they were handed over to Red Cross officials in a brief televised ceremony.

Jeffrey Feltman, the US Ambassador, said that he was not embarrassed at donating aid to those injured by American-made munitions.

“None of us like seeing pictures of destruction and civilians suffering but we are very proud to hand over this first shipment to help victims of the conflict and we will carry on working for a durable ceasefire,” he said.

Andreas Wigger, the Red Cross director, said: “We care about what is in the box, not who it comes from. Lebanese patients in hospital will not ask who sent these supplies.”

But one senior aid official told The Times: “The US flies in its aid as it pleases, but has yet to get Israel to agree safe corridors so other countries can bring in supplies and the UN and Red Cross can deliver it. I’m not sure American aid is very welcome.”

In the underground car park Mr Haider’s derision at America’s aid was widely shared.

On level 3 of the Beirut Mall car park a group of youngsters chanted Hezbollah slogans and shouted that they would rather starve than accept US food supplies. Sarra Fawaz, who gave birth to a daughter 11 days ago, said she too would shun any US aid.

Her baby, Julia, was born prematurely during a bombing raid and has yet to see daylight. She lay on a stained sheet with a copy of the Koran propped up beside a pink pillow. “It is to bring my baby luck. The Americans have just brought us misery,” said her mother.

Shortly after the aid ceremony at the US Embassy, Israeli jets dropped four more 500lb bombs on the southern suburbs, shaking the underground car park as its inhabitants prepared for another nervous night.

AID LEAGUE TABLE

Saudi Arabia:
$1 billion to prop up Lebanese currency
$500m for reconstruction
$50 million emergency humanitarian aid
USA: $30 million
Kuwait: $20 million
UAE: $20 million
EU: $12.6 million
Britain: $9.2 million
Sweden: $5.5 million
Morocco: $5 million

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