(Arsal) A first wave of Syrian refugees left Lebanon for Syria on Wednesday, according to an AFP photographer, as part of a repatriation plan in coordination with Damascus, but criticized by NGOs.
Posted at 9:08
From six o’clock in the morning in the region of Arsal, buses and vans had gathered, before heading towards neighboring Syria.
The refugees took with them their personal belongings and even pets, noted an AFP photographer.
About 750 Syrian refugees are expected to leave from several regions, according to the Lebanese General Security, as part of the plan for the “voluntary and secure return of displaced persons” that it is organizing.
The resumption of this plan, announced this month, began in successive waves in 2017.
Since then, more than 400,000 Syrian refugees have been sent back to their country, according to General Security, but humanitarian organizations estimate that the number is much lower and evoke cases of “forced” repatriation.
“A group of Syrian exiles arrived from the refugee camps in Lebanon through the Daboussiye border post in the province of Homs (center) to return to their safe and terrorism-free regions,” the official Syrian News Agency reported. Sana.
After the outbreak of conflict in Syria, hundreds of thousands of Syrians fled to Lebanon as the fighting escalated.
“By facilitating these returns, the Lebanese authorities are knowingly putting Syrian refugees at risk of suffering abuse and heinous persecution upon their return to Syria,” said Diana Semaan, acting deputy director for the Middle East and Syria on October 14. North Africa to Amnesty International.
“We will not force any displaced person to return,” defended the Director General of General Security, Abbas Ibrahim, on Tuesday, criticizing the way NGOs are handling this file, without naming them.
Since the Syrian army regained control of most of Syria, some countries have been pushing to send refugees back from their territory, citing a drop in the intensity of the fighting.
But according to human rights groups, the relative end of hostilities does not mean that the return of refugees has become safe, given the dilapidated infrastructure, difficult economic conditions and sometimes lawsuits against refugees.