Lebanon may be forced to work with Syria on refugee issue: Aoun

Lebanon is home to the world’s largest per capita population of Syrian refugees, with around 1.1 million. The refugee crisis has worsened since 2011. (AP)
Updated 04 May 2019
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Lebanon may be forced to work with Syria on refugee issue: Aoun

  • Our goal is to resettle a million refugees during the next 10 years, says UNHCR official

BEIRUT: Lebanese President Michel Aoun told Spanish Foreign Minister Josep Borrell on Friday that Lebanon is hoping the EU will change its stance over the return of Syrian refugees “to avoid repercussions for Lebanon.” Aoun warned Borrell that Europe’s current stance “will force us to take steps to organize this return with the Syrian government.”

In a meeting with Egyptian Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly on the same day, Aoun said that Syrian refugees “face political incitement and exploitation because they have not returned to their country, which raises questions about the reasons.”

On Thursday, Volker Türk, the assistant high commissioner for protection at the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), announced in a talk at the American University of Beirut (AUB) that the UNHCR’s goal during the next 10 years is to resettle a million refugees around the world in other countries.

“We want to encourage countries to host refugees,” he said. “This number does not only include Syrian refugees, because the refugee crisis has worsened since 2011, due to conflicts that have erupted around the world.”

Türk said that there are more than 6 million internally displaced persons (IDPs) inside Syria and more than 10 million Syrian refugees in neighboring countries. “The peak of this displacement was when Syrian refugees suddenly flocked to Europe, and European countries did not have the mechanisms in place to deal with this matter,” he said. There are 1.1 million Syrian refugees in Lebanon, according to the UNHCR.

Türk flew to Beirut after a visit to Syria, during which he held meetings with Syrian officials and discussed the issue of Syrian refugees. “The discussion with the Syrian side was forthright, and they conveyed a clear message that they want to work with us (to assist) Syrian refugees who wish to return,” he told Arab News.

Arab News learned that, during his visit, Türk met an assistant to Syria’s deputy foreign minister, but did not meet with any senior officials from the Syrian government.

Türk said that he and his accompanying delegation visited the Zabadani district, much of which has been destroyed by the Syrian conflict. He said that he focused during his meetings with IDPs who have returned to their homes “on the quality of life they lead as well as their needs.”

Türk believes that the Global Compact on Refugees (GCR), adopted by the UN General Assembly in 2018 by a large majority to improve the way the crisis is managed at an international level “(will) keep the asylum issue in the international community’s mind in a sustainable manner instead of addressing it occasionally.”

Türk emphasized that the importance of the GCR is that it includes an item on the protection of refugees who cannot return to their countries, notes the situation of refugees living below the poverty line, and makes clear to the international community that it has a responsibility to deal with the consequences of these crises and to find solutions to them.

The GCR — which is not binding — was ratified by 181 countries. America and Hungary voted against it, and the Dominican Republic, Eritrea and Libya abstained.

The compact contains four main objectives: Taking pressure off host countries; promoting the self-reliance of refugees; broadening access to third-country solutions; and contributing to securing the necessary conditions for the refugees’ safe and dignified return to their countries of origin.

The GCR also includes a paragraph on the adoption of the 2016 New York Declaration for Refugees and Migrants, which focuses on the protection of people who are forced to flee their countries and on supporting the countries that host them.

During the AUB session, there was a lively discussion about the extent to which countries can be pressured to resettle refugees. Türk was also confronted by skepticism about the resettlement of refugees — with some suggesting that they should be have to remain in the first host country they enter.

Tarek Mitri, former Lebanese minister and director of the Issam Fares Institute, which organized the session, said: “Lebanese society is divided between demands for the immediate repatriation of refugees and support for their voluntary and safe return; thus, this society is in fear. The most important question is whether the Syrian regime wants the refugees to return at a time when it is immersed in engineering a new demography in Syria. And what has become of the Russian initiative to facilitate the return of refugees? Its owners are now saying during private meetings that it has become so difficult to implement. They have even admitted that pressure from the Syrian regime has stopped the initiative, and that this has nothing to do with securing finance for the reconstruction of Syria.”

Türk stressed that it is important for Syrian refugees to obtain birth and citizenship documents, adding that this is a right for all refugees as per international conventions.

However, while he insisted on that refugees who wish to return home must be allowed to do so, he did not offer any assurance that the Syrian authorities are willing to receive them.

“Those who know refugees who wish to return can inform our offices in Lebanon and we will see what can be done,” he said.


US defense chief holds first call with new Israeli counterpart

Updated 55 min 59 sec ago
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US defense chief holds first call with new Israeli counterpart

  • Katz was sworn in before parliament the previous day
  • The US defense chief also discussed “the need to improve the dire humanitarian conditions in Gaza“

WASHINGTON: US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin discussed Lebanon and Gaza on Friday in his first call with his new Israeli counterpart Israel Katz, the Pentagon said.
Katz was sworn in before parliament the previous day, after his predecessor’s shock dismissal by the prime minister over a breakdown in trust during the war in Gaza — a conflict that began with a devastating Hamas attack against Israel on October 7, 2023.
Austin “held an introductory call today with the new Israeli minister of defense, Israel Katz, and congratulated him on his recent appointment,” Pentagon spokesman Major General Pat Ryder said in a statement.
He told Katz that Washington is committed to a deal that allows Lebanese and Israeli citizens displaced by more than a year of cross-border violence to return to their homes, as well as to the return of hostages seized by Palestinian militant group Hamas, Ryder said.
The US defense chief also discussed “the need to improve the dire humanitarian conditions in Gaza,” after he and Secretary of State Antony Blinken told Israel in a letter earlier this month that it needed to allow more aid into the small war-wracked coastal territory.


Palestinian leader tells Trump ready to work for Gaza peace

Mahmud Abbas told Donald Trump he was ready to work toward a “just and comprehensive peace” in Gaza. (Reuters)
Updated 56 min 46 sec ago
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Palestinian leader tells Trump ready to work for Gaza peace

RAMALLAH: Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas expressed readiness to work toward a “just and comprehensive peace” in Gaza during a phone call with US President-elect Donald Trump on Friday, his office said.
Trump’s victory came with the Middle East in turmoil after the outbreak of the Gaza war in October 2023, triggered by the unprecedented attack on Israel by Palestinian militant group Hamas.
Congratulating Trump on his victory, Abbas expressed “readiness to work with President Trump to achieve a just and comprehensive peace based on international legitimacy,” his office said in a statement.
It said that Trump also assured Abbas that he will work to end the war.
“President Trump stressed that he will work to stop the war, and his readiness to work with president Abbas and the concerned parties in the region and the world to make peace in the region.”
While Trump struck a note of peace during his campaign, he also touted his status as Israel’s strongest ally, even going so far as to promise Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu he would “finish the job” against Hamas in Gaza.


Lebanon says three dead in Israel strikes on Tyre

Updated 08 November 2024
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Lebanon says three dead in Israel strikes on Tyre

  • The strikes targeted three buildings in the city
  • Israel had issued no evacuation warning ahead of the strikes

BEIRUT: The Lebanese health ministry said at least three people were killed and 30 others wounded on Friday in Israeli strikes on the southern city of Tyre.
The official National News Agency said the strikes targeted three buildings in the city and caused heavy damage to neighboring apartment blocks.
It said Israel had issued no evacuation warning ahead of the strikes.
Israel has been at war with Lebanese militant group Hezbollah since late September, when it broadened its focus from fighting Hamas in the Gaza Strip to securing its northern border, even as the Gaza war continues.
Hezbollah began low intensity strikes on Israel in support of Hamas following its Palestinian ally’s October 7, 2023 attack on Israel which triggered the Gaza war.


‘Strong likelihood’ famine imminent in north Gaza, say food security experts

Updated 08 November 2024
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‘Strong likelihood’ famine imminent in north Gaza, say food security experts

  • The warning comes just days ahead of a US deadline for Israel to improve the humanitarian situation in Gaza

LONDON: There is a “strong likelihood that famine is imminent in areas” of the northern Gaza Strip, a committee of global food security experts warned on Friday, as Israel pursues a military offensive against Palestinian militants Hamas in the area.
“Immediate action, within days not weeks, is required from all actors who are directly taking part in the conflict, or have influence on its conduct, to avert and alleviate this catastrophic situation,” the independent Famine Review Committee (FRC) said in a rare alert.
The warning comes just days ahead of a US deadline for Israel to improve the humanitarian situation in Gaza or face potential restrictions on US military aid.


Israeli army claims discovery of ‘Hezbollah training center’ near UNIFIL outpost as raids continue in Lebanon

Updated 08 November 2024
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Israeli army claims discovery of ‘Hezbollah training center’ near UNIFIL outpost as raids continue in Lebanon

  • Several videos showed residential houses and tourist, social and religious facilities being set with explosives and blown up remotely
  • Adraee also accused Hezbollah of “using ambulances to transport saboteurs and arms” and called on “medical personnel to avoid dealing and cooperating with Hezbollah members”

BEIRUT: The Israeli army on Friday continued to destroy houses in Lebanon’s southern border villages to establish a buffer zone. The latest bombing targeted the areas of Yaroun, Aitaroun and Maroun Al-Ras in Bint Jbeil.
Several videos showed residential houses and tourist, social and religious facilities being set with explosives and blown up remotely.
In parallel with the deliberate destruction, Israeli army spokesperson Avichay Adraee issued “a new urgent warning to the residents of southern Lebanon,” instructing them “to refrain from returning to the south, or to their houses or olive fields,” describing the region as “a dangerous combat zone.”
Adraee also accused Hezbollah of “using ambulances to transport saboteurs and arms” and called on “medical personnel to avoid dealing and cooperating with Hezbollah members.”
The army will take the “necessary measures against any vehicle transporting armed members regardless of its type,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Israeli army claimed that “surveillance cameras of the Oded Brigade reservists captured a Hezbollah training center just 200 meters from a UNIFIL outpost.”
The army claimed that “the forces discovered the training facility, which was used by Hezbollah for training, studying, and storing large quantities of weapons.”
It said that “the facility contained missile launchers used for firing at Israeli settlements, as well as documents and instructional books detailing Hezbollah’s operational methods, maps of Israel, explanations of the Israeli army’s equipment, and additional weapons.” The army said “the weapons were confiscated and the compound was dismantled.”
The Israeli army resumed raids on the Baalbek-Hermel area, killing and injuring people and causing further destruction.
The Ministerial Emergency Committee estimated that, as of Thursday evening, Israel had conducted 121 raids, including 56 on Nabatieh, 24 on Baalbek and 23 in the south.
The committee said the number of people killed so far in Israeli attacks on Lebanon exceed 3,100, while 14,000 people have been injured.
More than 1.2 million people have been displaced, with close to 200,000 staying in shelters, it added.
Lebanese observers believe this transitional phase, from now until US President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration, is the most dangerous period for Lebanon.
Raids on Kfar Tebnit killed two people after a building comprising residential apartments and commercial shops was destroyed.
A raid on Zebdine in Nabatieh killed Mohammed Fayez Mokaddam and his sons, Fayez and Hadi Mokaddem, after their building was destroyed.
Zaher Ibrahim Ataya, a medic with Hezbollah’s Islamic Health Committee from the southern town of Tair Harfa, was killed when Israeli forces struck a newly established medical center.
The strike was part of a broader Israeli aerial campaign that targeted more than 50 towns across the Tyre and Bint Jbeil districts in the past 48 hours.
The Lebanese Red Cross chief Georges Kettaneh announced that rescue teams have returned to Wata Al-Khiyam to complete the recovery of victims from an incident on Oct. 27.
Working alongside UNIFIL forces and the Lebanese Army, teams recovered four bodies and remains, with efforts continuing to ensure the mission’s completion.
Earlier the Red Cross retrieved 17 bodies from the site where civilians, who had been tending to livestock, sought shelter in a building during an Israeli incursion.
The Israeli military initially stalled permission for the Lebanese Red Cross to recover the victims, eventually granting only a four-hour window for the operation.
The Israeli air campaign extended to Lebanon’s Bekaa region, with strikes hitting Hrabta town west of Baalbek and Hosh Al-Sayyed Ali near the Syrian border north of Hermel.
Sirens sounded across northern Israel, including Haifa, Nazareth, Kiryat Shmona and surrounding areas, as well as the Ramat Trump settlement in the Golan Heights and Israeli media reported approximately 30 rockets launched from Lebanon toward northern Israel and Haifa’s suburbs.
The Israeli military confirmed detecting about 20 rockets, with some being intercepted, and reported drone incursions in northern airspace, including one near Caesarea.
The Israeli military announced the death of a soldier from Battalion 8207, Alon Brigade (228), who succumbed to wounds sustained in southern Lebanon on Oct. 26, while Israeli army radio detailed a fierce battle in the border village of Aitaroun that claimed the lives of six Israeli soldiers.
Hezbollah said on Friday it had launched “dozens of rockets reaching as far as Haifa and south of Nazareth.”
The group claimed strikes on several targets, including the Stella Maris naval base and Ramat David air base, northwest and southeast of Haifa, respectively, Kiryat Shmona settlement, and military gatherings in Misgav Am and Margaliot settlements.
In response to Israeli infiltration attempts, Hezbollah reported targeting Israeli forces south of Adaisseh with artillery fire. The group also claimed to have destroyed a military bulldozer and inflicting casualties on accompanying infantry forces trying to advance northwest of Kfarkila.