By: Dana Polak.
According to a report in the Hezbollah-affiliated Al-Akhbar newspaper, the US administration’s envoy, Amos Hochstein, warned the Lebanese government against Iran’s involvement in the country’s post-war reconstruction process. Hochstein stressed that any role of Iran, both through Iranian companies and through direct assistance, would jeopardize the implementation of the full ceasefire and harm the achievement of stability in the country. Subsequently, reports from Lebanon indicate that the Lebanese government rejected the offer of Iranian financial aid for the reconstruction of the country.
However, Hezbollah continues to develop and operate its own self-rehabilitation mechanisms. The organization finances the reconstruction activities using its financial resources, which include donations from Iran, in order to
repair the damage caused during the war. Just this week, it was reported that in Jabal Amal, Hezbollah had transferred an initial payment of $1.6 million for the purpose of rehabilitating the area that was damaged.
For the past month, the “Jihad Al-Bina” Association has been working together with the Meamar company to carry out damage assessments of buildings damaged in the war. So far, more than 60% of the damaged buildings have been inspected throughout Lebanon. The foundation operates according to a model of geographically dividing suburbs and towns throughout the country into small groups, each with 10-20 localities. Each group has an independent center that is managed by a professional team that includes a manager and several engineers under it. This process includes the establishment of 46 regional offices, staffed by 1,319 volunteers and experts who have so far surveyed more than 185,000 structures damaged during the war.
After the damage tests are completed, the reports are sent to control centers, where they are re-examined by additional senior engineers, who enter the data into a special computer system that calculates the cost of compensation. This compensation is transferred by means of checks that can be cashed at the branches of “Al-Qard Al-Hassan” Bank.
In addition, for the first time, Hezbollah’s Public Works Department has resumed its activity of infrastructure rehabilitation. As part of the Public Works and Post-War Damage Repair Service, Hezbollah’s Municipal Works Administration in the Jabal Amal area carried out maintenance work on the main water feeder line between the towns of Kafr Dunin and Chehabiyeh, and new networks were installed that enabled the water to be pumped normally. This line distributes water to about 15 villages in the south.
