BEIRUT, July 30, 2022 (Xinhua) Lebanon on Saturday expressed its regret over the statement of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, which spoke of increasing problems and tensions with Syrian refugees on Lebanese soil, blaming it for this because of its failure to respond to his requests.
In a statement on Friday, the UNHCR expressed its “grave concern regarding restrictive practices and discriminatory measures that are being implemented in Lebanon on the basis of nationality once morest Syrian refugees.”
The UNHCR indicated that “an increase in tension between different groups, especially in violence once morest refugees, leads to an escalation of violence on the ground in a number of regions and neighborhoods.”
Lebanon suffers from a shortage of bread caused by a shortage of wheat due to the Ukrainian crisis, and this has led to clashes in front of bakeries between Lebanese and Syrian queues over the preference for obtaining bread in several regions of the country.
In response to the UNHCR’s statement, the Lebanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that “the UNHCR’s failure to respond to Lebanon’s requests in terms of sharing information and data and strengthening early recovery efforts in Syria to allow for the gradual, safe and dignified return of the displaced Syrians is the main reason behind the increasing problems that cause concern and tensions on the Lebanese territory.
The ministry added in a statement that the tensions that are occurring come “in light of the absence of a clear horizon for resolving the Syrian displacement crisis, and the failure of the community of donor countries to present a road map showing appropriate solutions 11 years following the outbreak of the Syrian crisis.”
She expressed regret for the UNHCR’s statement, considering that “similar statements deepen the disparity and increase the crises experienced by the displaced Syrians and the Lebanese communities hosting them,” calling for direct, calm and constructive dialogue.
She explained that “Lebanon has not taken any measures or decisions that would distinguish between the displaced Syrian and the Lebanese citizen,” noting that “the food crisis that the world is witnessing is multiplying its impact in Lebanon due to the economic and financial problems” in the country.
She pointed out that “Lebanon had repeatedly warned that this reality would inevitably lead to competition between Lebanese, Palestinian refugees and displaced Syrians over limited food resources.”
The Lebanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs warned that “the continuation of this situation will lead to an increase in the level of tension, and even in the rate of security incidents once morest all marginalized groups in Lebanon.”
On July 22, the United Nations urged Lebanon to “refrain from fueling negative feelings and hatred in the media and social media,” following the Lebanese caretaker government’s Minister of Displaced Persons, Essam Sharaf El-Din, announced that the government had drawn up a draft plan to secure the return of 15,000 displaced people. Syrian monthly to Syria.
Displaced persons and refugees constitute a third of the population of Lebanon, and 80 percent of the Lebanese live below the poverty line, according to the statement of the Lebanese Foreign Ministry.
According to government estimates, regarding 1.5 million displaced Syrians live in Lebanon, posing social, economic, health and security pressures at a time when the country is suffering from a severe economic, living and financial crisis, which the World Bank has classified as one of the three worst crises in the world since the mid-19th century.
