37 Syrians arrived in Rome on a flight chartered by the Italian government to bring people to safety from Lebanon. The evacuation was part of the Humanitarian Corridors program.
The Syrian refugees, together with another hundred people, landed at Fiumicino airport on October 9. Part of the Humanitarian Corridors program, the flight had been organized by the Italian foreign ministry's Crisis Unit and the Italian embassy in Beirut.
Another dozen refugees were due to be evacuated from Lebanon to Italy in the coming days, depending on security conditions.
The Syrian nationals, among them a little girl just a few months old, had been living in precarious conditions in Beirut and Saida, in the south of Lebanon, and in the refugee camps of the Bekaa Valley, areas heavily hit by the military operations.
In Italy, they will be provided with homes by Italian families and associations, the Waldensian Diaconate, and the Community of Sant'Egidio.
The Syrians will all be given integration support by the Humanitarian Corridors, including language lessons and help to gain employment once they obtain refugee status in Italy.
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3,000 people rescued from Lebanon
The Humanitarian Corridors is supported by the Community of Sant'Egidio, the Federation of the Evangelical Churches in Italy and the Waldensian church, in partnership with the Italian interior and foreign affairs ministries. The program has evacuated a total of 3,000 people from Lebanon since 2016, said the Community of Sant'Egidio in a press release.
The organization says the corridors are a concrete solution for vulnerable people and families who have the right to be protected and should be offered life and hope for the future.
In total, the Humanitarian Corridors has brought over 7,700 refugees to Europe.
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