Lebanon is going to limit Syrian refugee influx as more enter

Lebanon is going to limit Syrian refugee influx as more enter
Tue Apr 15, 2014 17:02:54

Lebanese government is considering measures to reduce the number of Syrian refugees fleeing the extremist-marked war in their country amid rising concerns that Lebanon has reached a breaking point.

Lebanon’s Interior Minister Nouhad Machnouk said Tuesday “Our plan aims to limit the entry of more Syrian refugees into Lebanon and to undertake certain procedures to determine refugee status and the country's ability to absorb them and the services that can be offered, because donations often are few and come late”.

Machnouk who was talking to delegations representing different municipalities said the plan was being coordinated with the European Union.

He added Syrian refugees registered in Lebanon make up 27 percent of the country's population, while in Jordan they make up 10% percent of the population and in Turkey they make up 4 percent.

To escape the violence, more than 2 million Syrian refugees have fled the country to neighboring Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey, Iraq and Iraqi Kurdistan, while thousands also ended up in more distant countries of the Caucasus, the Persian Gulf and North Africa.

On April 3rd, UNHCR said in a statement that Lebanon has now become the country with "the highest per capita concentration of refugees worldwide," and is "struggling to keep pace".

According to the statement, "Lebanon has experienced serious economic shocks due to the conflict in Syria", while security has deteriorated as a result of rising regional instability.

The influx has put severe strains on Lebanon's health and education sectors as well as on electricity, water and sanitation services.

Also according to the United Nations, 6 million people inside Syria needed help and about 4 million Syrians were internally displaced because of the foreign-charged war.

Syria sank into war in March 2011 when pro-reform protests turned into a massive insurgency following the intervention of Western and regional states.

The unrest, which took in terrorist groups from across Europe, the Middle East and North Africa, has transpired as one of the bloodiest conflicts in recent history.

SHI/SHI

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