help increase the number of donations. Egeland was later quoted as saying that the donations were so large and were coming in so fast that "We really have to confirm that we heard right, that the number of zeroes was right." When reviewing the tangible, if non-monetary, assistance of the militaries of the United States, Australia, and other nations in providing disaster relief, Egeland remarked, "Those helicopters are worth their weight in gold now." Time magazine would later call Egeland "the world's conscience." Lebanese aid In July 2006, Egeland launched a US$150 million aid appeal for Lebanon, following the destruction of parts of Lebanon by Israeli forces and subsequent displacement of many thousands of refugees. Egeland, though critical of Israel, lashed out against Hezbollah in terms that no UN official had dared yet, saying: Consistently, from the Hezbollah heartland, my message was that Hezbollah must stop this cowardly blending ... among women and children. I heard they were proud because they lost very few fighters and that it was the civilians bearing the brunt of this. I don't think anyone should be proud of having many more children and women dead than armed men. We need a cessation of hostilities because this is a war where civilians are paying the price. Gaza violence During a visit to Gaza to survey the damage, Egeland was quoted as saying that the bombing of a power plant would affect schools and hospitals more than the militants. "This is very clear, a disproportionate use [of power]," Egeland told reporters. "Civilian infrastructure is protected. The law is very clear. You cannot have any interpretation in any other way." Syrian Civil War Egeland has chaired the United Nations panel on humanitarian access in the lengthy war in Syria and in 2017 was the UN Senior Advisor for Syria where he has advocated for simultaneous convoy exchanges and medical evacuations. Publications In 1989, Egeland wrote Impotent Superpower -- Potent Small State in which he portrayed Norway, which at the time devoted the highest percentage of its money to development of any country in the world, as a moral entrepreneur. In 2008 he published a memoir A Billion Lives: An Eyewitness Report from the Frontlines of Humanity about his time at the UN from 2003 to 2006. Criticism Egeland has been criticized for the way he handles relief programs. In 2007, the Norwegian TV channel TV2 aired a