The presidential vacuum crisis and the refugee situation in Lebanon are among the most important issues that the state and government prioritize, given the significant pressure they impose on the country’s budget amidst difficult economic conditions. The number of displaced persons and refugees approaches 2 million, the majority Syrian nationals. Lebanon was one of the first countries that Syrians thought of seeking refuge in when the security situation deteriorated there. The geographical proximity and family ties played a significant role in the decision of many Syrian families to settle in Lebanon. Lebanon shares a very close border with Syria, extending approximately 375 km. Over time, the number of refugees has increased, putting a strain on the state’s budget, as emphasized by the government on several occasions.
Members of the caretaker government continue to raise this issue in various regional and international forums, with the latest being the Brussels Conference on “Supporting the Future of Syria and the Region,” organized by the European Union and held with official Lebanese participation. The international discussion coincided with the Lebanese Cabinet addressing the issue in its session, emphasizing the necessity of the refugees’ return without linking it to political agendas.
Regarding the refugee crisis, according to data provided by “Lebanon24,” the Lebanese stance will be decisive this time, as we have entered a new phase of dealing with the Syrian presence for over a month now. The international community is expected to acknowledge the practical steps taken by the government and security agencies to facilitate the return of Syrians to their homeland. Prior to this, Prime Minister Majid Mikati held a series of meetings with Foreign Minister Abdullah Bou Habib, who represents Lebanon at the conference, where they agreed on the Lebanese details to be presented at the Brussels conference. Lebanon primarily focuses on being a transit country rather than a haven and on the existence of safe areas within Syria to which Syrians can return, emphasizing the necessity of providing direct financial aid to returnees inside Syria rather than those within Lebanon. In this context, the government prepared a detailed report on the situation of refugees in Lebanon, categorizing them into several groups based on their status.
Despite the lack of precise statistics, the number of Syrians in Lebanon is estimated at around one and a half million, making Lebanon the host country with the largest proportion of refugees globally relative to its population. The anti-refugee sentiment is not new in Lebanon, which operates on extremely sensitive sectarian balances. However, practices against Syrians and the measures restricting them have increased significantly in recent times, particularly after the severe economic crisis in 2019. According to the UNHCR, nine out of ten Syrians in Lebanon suffer from extreme poverty. Tensions reached dangerous levels in April when a gang, mostly Syrians, kidnapped and killed a local official from the Christian “Lebanese Forces” party, leading to Syrians being subjected to assault and humiliation in the streets.
Even before that incident, several areas witnessed practices by local authorities and civil groups targeting Syrians residing in the country illegally, such as forcing them to vacate homes or complexes they reside in, leaving their jobs, or even pressuring Lebanese citizens not to rent their homes to them. According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), about 80% of Syrians in Lebanon do not possess legal residency permits. This situation has persisted for years, either because some of them fail to meet the full requirements for obtaining visas or because they cannot afford the required costs. This illegal status means that any Syrian present in the country illegally is subject to arrest or deportation at any moment.
Lebanon’s stance toward Syrian refugees is that Lebanon is not a signatory to the 1951 Geneva Convention regarding refugees. Lebanon also considers that several areas in Syria no longer witness fighting and are therefore safe for refugees to return to. In this context, Lebanon calls on the United Nations to provide assistance to those returning to Syria as an incentive for them to return to their homeland, rather than providing them with aid in Lebanon. Recently, billboards have been erected in various areas of the country calling on the United Nations to cancel what they call the “damage” caused by Syrian refugees. On the other hand, the UNHCR stated in a statement to the BBC: “There is no international conspiracy to keep Syrian refugees in the country, nor is there any hidden agenda regarding this matter. Our position has always been transparent: the United Nations, including the UNHCR, does not hinder the return of refugees to Syria.” However, this does not alleviate the social tensions against Syrian refugees, which adds to the reasons prompting many of them to attempt to seek refuge in Europe by any means.
As poverty rates in Lebanon tripled over the past decade (between 2012 and 2022), reaching 44% of the population, according to a new report by the World Bank titled “Assessment of Poverty and Equity in Lebanon 2024: Overcoming a Prolonged Crisis,” the report, based on a survey of households in five provinces in Lebanon (Akkar, Beirut, Bekaa, North Lebanon, and most of Mount Lebanon), concludes that one in every three Lebanese in these areas was affected by poverty in 2022. The report highlights the disparity in poverty distribution in Lebanon, noting that the poverty rate in North Lebanon reached 70% in Akkar, where most residents work in agriculture and construction sectors.
The percentage of poor Lebanese citizens did not only triple over the past decade, but according to the report, “their poverty has intensified as the poverty gap increased from 3% in 2012 to 9.4% in 2022. At the same time, income inequality seems to have worsened among Lebanese.” The study, conducted by the World Bank in collaboration with the World Food Programme and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees between December 2022 and May 2023, included Lebanese, Syrians, and other nationalities (excluding Palestinians in camps and settlements), and the collected data included demographic characteristics, education, employment, health, expenditures, assets and properties, income, and adaptation strategies.
Lebanese pressures at both official and popular levels have pushed Syrians to choose to return to their country. Some have started dismantling their tents and selling their contents in the Bekaa region in eastern Lebanon, gradually departing to the countryside of Aleppo, Raqqa, and Daraa. Syrians in the Bekaa region of Lebanon say that dozens have left behind empty tents after selling their contents and departing to Raqqa, following security campaigns, official escalations, and governmental measures against Syrian refugees. Prices for each tent offered for sale range between $500 and $700, including furniture, electrical and household appliances, and solar energy, due to the high cost of transportation and customs fees at the border if they want to bring the contents of the tent into Syria.
About 40 families from the camps in the town of Taybeh in Baalbek have left out of 150 families, while the rest are still awaiting their fate. “The Middle East” observed four abandoned tents in the same camp, completely empty, turning into a playground for children who skip school due to their families’ inability to secure transportation allowances to attend the official mixed-gender afternoon shifts at the Dors school. Seven human rights organizations emphasized in a statement issued this month that Lebanon should stop forced deportation operations of Syrian refugees and cancel the unprecedented unfair measures announced on May 8, 2024. The statement added that donor countries should urge Lebanon to respect the principle of non-refoulement and ensure that the assistance they provide is not used to facilitate arbitrary deportation operations.
Two humanitarian relief sources told Reuters that employers have been urged to stop hiring Syrians for menial jobs, and some municipalities have issued new orders banning Syrians from roaming at night, even reaching the point of evicting Syrian tenants from their homes. At least one municipality in northern Lebanon has dismantled an informal camp, leaving Syrian residents homeless. Lebanese security forces issued new directives this month reducing the number of categories through which Syrians can apply for residency, alarming many who are no longer eligible for legal status, exposing them to deportation. Refugees and relief workers say these individuals are directly escorted to cross the borders, raising fears of human rights violations upon return, such as forced conscription and arbitrary detention.
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