The conflict in the Middle East has resulted in refugees fleeing the violence. The United Nations estimates that there are more than 500,000 displaced people, mostly in Lebanon but also in Israel.

AIP, a leading charity watchdog that issues letter grade (A+ to F) ratings of nonprofit groups, identifies the following relief charities, which are providing aid to the refugees. These charities have received an “A” or “B” grade based on the portion of their budget going to program services and their fundraising efficiency.

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· American Jewish Committee (A)
  1-212-751-4000

· American Near East Refugee Aid (A)
  1-202-347-2558

· American Refugee Committee (A+)
  1-612-872-7060

· Catholic Relief Services (A+)
  1-800-736-3467

· Direct Relief International (A)
  1-800-676-1638

· Doctors Without Borders - USA (A)
  1-888-392-0392

· International Medical Corps (A+)
  1-800-481-4462

· International Rescue Committee (A)
  1-877-733-8433

· Lutheran World Relief (A)
  1-800-597-5972

· Mennonite Central Committee (A)
  1-888-563-4676

· Mercy Corps (A)
  1-800-292-3355

· Oxfam-America (B+)
  1-800-776-9326

· Save the Children (A)
  1-800-728-3843

· United States Fund for UNICEF (A)
  1-800-367-5437

These charities perform favorably in relation to AIP’s benchmarks:

1) A charity should spend at least 60% of its budget on program services.

2) Charities should spend no more than $35 to raise $100.

Contact your favorite charities to find out if they provide the specific types of aid that you would like to fund, e.g., emergency relief, health care, infrastructure development, education, etc.

DONORS BEWARE
Americans wanting to help refugees in the Middle East should send contributions to only those charities with an established track record of helping in the region.

Tips for Making the Most of Your Donation:

· Give to newly created charities only if you have reliable third-party verification of their credibility and/or have knowledge of and trust the officers and directors of the new group.

· Do not assume that a claimed celebrity endorsement is real or that the celebrity has adequately scrutinized the charity.

· Give with check or credit card instead of cash. There is little assurance that coin or currency donations will actually go to the intended beneficiary.

· Be cautious about giving to individual disaster victims that show up on covers of magazines or on television. Unpublicized victims may be more in need than publicized victims who are often flooded with gifts. For more tips on giving click here.

SEND A CHECK, NOT GOODS
The best way to help is by sending a check. Cash donations enable charities to buy the most needed types of food, medicine, clothing, shelter materials and other supplies. By buying relief products locally or regionally, charities can reduce shipping costs and more rapidly deliver assistance. Before sending any goods, first contact the charity to find out if they are appropriate and if it will be cost effective to distribute them. For example, after the tsunami in southeast Asia, boxes of donated winter coats, scarves and fuzzy hats, completely useless items in tsunami stricken nations with tropical climates, were sent to these nations.