Lebanon donation-matching goal with Ottawa is falling short, charities say – National [Video]

A coalition of Canadian charitable groups is raising the alarm about a shortfall in donations to help with Lebanon’s humanitarian crisis, as Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly joined colleagues at a summit to try helping the country cope with the damage caused by Israeli airstrikes.

France hosted dozens of countries at the summit on Thursday, which it said had raised US$1 billion in pledges for Lebanon. A fifth of that is for the country’s military while the rest is targeted at humanitarian aid.

Canada has already allocated just under $50 million in humanitarian aid to Lebanon this year, but Canadian charities say they’re falling short of a goal set with Ottawa to match donations.

The federal government has pledged to double every dollar the Humanitarian Coalition raises until Nov. 3, to a maximum of $3 million. The funding goes to charities like Oxfam, Save the Children and World Vision to provide things …