2023-04-30 03:54:10
It was stated in Al-Rai:
As in every sensitive political or security issue over which the Lebanese public political and popular opinion is divided, the issue of the displaced Syrians turned within days into a first event in the absence of a political event, especially since the new noise around it coincided with the anniversary of the withdrawal of the Syrian army from Lebanon on April 26, 2005.
Although a security and political ministerial meeting was held under the chairmanship of the resigned Prime Minister, Najib Mikati, and it was concluded that the Lebanese General Security was tasked with coordinating the issue of the displaced with the security forces, there is an impression formed by the security authorities that this file is on its way to being closed, in light of the escalation of international pressure and from The human rights groups that took action calling on Lebanon to stop the return of the displaced in the form in which it is taking place.
Recently, the number of displaced persons has increased steadily in a number of regions as a result of smuggling operations through illegal border crossings. With the inability to obtain accurate figures for the number of displaced Syrians in Lebanon, data emerged in some areas on recent waves of Syrian recruitment, which worsened after the earthquake in Syria and the spread of poverty in some of its regions. This means that the new displacements have an economic source, especially since they coincided with surveys in some Bekaa and northern regions that reported an increase in the number of commercial and craft shops for Syrians in recent months. This raised sensitivities with the Lebanese host communities, especially since poverty factors overlap in the Lebanese and Syrian environments in the popular areas.
The security aspect related to the displaced takes an important place. The explosion of the issue of the displaced began in the past days with the deportation operations carried out by the Lebanese army, which raised voices of condemnation, but the army, according to the information, did not open the file to deal with it, which is a thorny international and regional file, just as it did not deport the displaced who came to Lebanon. They are registered through United Nations associations. Rather, it carries out deportation operations following the raids it carries out in several regions in search of wanted persons and those who entered Lebanon surreptitiously or who violated security and wanted for crimes and misdemeanours.
Security sources confirm that there are about 2,000 Syrians who have entered Lebanon surreptitiously since the beginning of this year, and they talk about the activity of smuggling networks between Lebanon and Syria through illegal crossings as a popular trade that smugglers rely on in the north and the Bekaa, during which they charge $100 for each Syrian who enters surreptitiously.
The information indicates that the army, against which a political campaign was launched because of the deportation of Syrians, is continuing these operations that target only the illegal entrants and those who disturb security, in implementation of previous government decisions. For example, the army does not raid camps for the displaced, which are under the protection of the High Commissioner for Displaced Affairs, except to arrest wanted persons and not to deport any of the “legal” residents there, while it continues to raid gatherings of Syrians who entered Lebanon illegally. As for their deportation, which did not exceed a few hundred compared to the thousands of displaced persons, it was criticized for not coordinating with the General Directorate of Public Security, which was entrusted with the task of deporting displaced persons wishing to return to their country. It is assumed that coordination will start with the competent Syrian agencies through the approved security channels in order to secure the transfer of Syrians to their country.
While the government’s decision came to activate coordination between the security forces, it requires more concerted judicial efforts, because the security forces often clash with the release of detainees or smugglers as a result of overcrowding in prisons or the failure of some competent judicial bodies.
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