The UAE has reached out to South Lebanon to build the first specialised hospital which is expected to serve over 35,000 villagers.

The health facility is being executed as part of the UAE Project for Support and Reconstruction of Lebanon which was launched 10 months ago.

At a site near Shibba town that borders with the occupied Palestine, bulldozers and earth movers are reclaiming the ground for constructing the ''Khalifa bin Zayed Hospital''.

Director General of the UAE Project for Support and Reconstruction of Lebanon Mohammed Khalfan Al Rumaithi, said the hospital, the contract of which was signed last month, is part of a series of infrastructure projects aimed at serving the underprivileged population in Lebanon.

''The southern Shibba-based Khalifa Hospital stands as a shining testimony for the resounding success achieved by the Project,'' said Al Rumaithi.

Khalid Al Naqabi, architect supervising the construction of the hospital, said the grand health facility would be ready to receive patients within 10 months.

''Sprawling 12,500 square metre ,the four-storey hospital will be fitted with necessary medical equipment to serve a number of villages in south Lebanon including Shibba, Hebaryia, Fardise, Rashiya Al Fakhar and Kafer Hamam,'' he added.

Abdullah Al Ghafli, the Project's Media Relations Officer, said that demographic and topographic factors had been well-studied in determining the location of the hospital.

'The Lebanese people will always cherish Shaikh Khalifa's humanitarian initiative. Tens of thousands of south Lebanon villagers are praying for the soul of the late Shaikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan for his unstinted support for Lebanon. They also pay tribute to his successor Shaikh Khalifa for his unforgettable humanitarian stances,' said Omar Al Zuhairi, chairman of Shibba Municipality.Trade Arabia News Service