The Lebanese government is pushing for Syrian refugees to return to the war-ravaged neighboring country, despite reports that many returnees are being forcibly conscripted into the army — and some even tortured and killed.
There are around one million registered Syrian refugees in Lebanon, the highest per capita number of any country.
One of the government’s most ardent advocates for a return of Syrians is foreign minister and head of the conservative Free Patriotic Movement (FPM) Gebran Bassil. The FPM launched a central committee for the return of refugees on July 13, 2018 (although it is not yet clear how it would operate).
During the launch of this committee, Bassil accused refugees of posing “a threat to Lebanon’s identity and economy”. In May, Bassil declared his support the naturalization of hundreds of mostly Syrian businessmen, furthering widespread impressions that Lebanese citizenship is being offered selectively.
Meanwhile, Lebanon’s Hezbollah party, a key ally of both the Assad regime and Lebanon’s FPM, has opened nine offices across South Lebanon and Beirut, professedly “to help the refugees return to Syria.” Hezbollah’s operations involve having refugees fill out applications which are then sent directly to the Syrian regime for approval.
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