Lebanon is facing a crisis in crisis – EURACTIV.com

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In this week’s version: The winter in Lebanon is approaching, the tariffs between the European Union and the United States are over, and the Western Balkans become the focus.

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Due to decades of mismanagement and corruption, Lebanon is increasingly plunged into a financial and economic crisis, and the challenges posed by global fuel shortages will exacerbate Lebanon and the country’s 1.5 million Syrian refugees.

A few weeks ago, the lights in Lebanon went out. Due to lack of fuel, the two power plants that supplied electricity to the country have ceased production.

Hyperinflation has caused food prices to rise, fuel is difficult to obtain, and the COVID-19 pandemic has further hindered the country’s weak health system.

In addition, the controversy over the Beirut bombing in 2020 escalated in early October, resulting in at least 6 deaths and 30 injuries in a large demonstration.

With a population of only 5.5 million, Lebanon is one of the countries with the largest number of Syrian refugees per capita in the world.

In the past decade, approximately 1.5 million Syrians have fled their civil war-torn country to their neighbors. This influx has placed a heavy burden on a country that is already struggling in poverty. Although the situation has been brought under control to some extent, in the past few months, as Lebanon was on the verge of collapse, the situation has deteriorated sharply.

“Compared with the first few months of this year, the situation has deteriorated further,” Ayaaki Ito, the new UNHCR representative in Lebanon, told EURACTIV.

“Unlike earlier and in August, when I visited refugee sites, about 90% of refugees were in extreme poverty, about 50% of refugees were food insecure, and only 53% of refugee children between the ages of 6 and 14 were visiting. School,” Ito said.

“The real consequence is pure survival,” he added.

Ito said that in Lebanon, only local and international aid organizations take care of refugees, but in recent years they have received less and less funds.

“The winter in Lebanon is very harsh. Normally, we provide winter support to refugees,” said the UNHCR representative.

“But this year, it’s more challenging because Lebanese host communities are also suffering. Some heating systems don’t have fuel supplies. We try to support refugees very tolerantly, but our goal is the same for vulnerable Lebanese families,” Ito Say.

It can be said that the Lebanese government has contributed to the gradual stigma of Syrians, especially on the eve of the 2022 parliamentary elections. Therefore, the integration of Syrians into Lebanese society has become increasingly challenging.

“For refugees, especially refugees in Lebanon, integration is not an option. The other two options are voluntary return or resettlement,” Ito said, adding that according to the UN refugee agency, it is estimated that resettlement from Lebanon is required. 107,000 refugees. Nevertheless, the current available quota is less than 9,000.

“At the beginning of the Syrian crisis, Lebanon opened the door because Syria is a neighboring country, and you can’t close the door to neighboring countries-what is important now is that the international community also supports the host community more,” Ito said.

The international community, including the European Union, has repeatedly urged Lebanese political actors to advance reforms in response to the multiple crises facing Lebanon.

The Lebanese parliament voted Thursday to hold legislative elections on March 27, confirming the vote challenged by President Michel Aoun earlier last week.

This election will be the country’s first election since the popular uprising at the end of 2019, when hundreds of thousands of people began to demand a radical change in the political and economic status quo.

Donors headed by the former colonial power, France, pledged to provide millions of dollars in humanitarian aid, but on the condition that Lebanon establishes a government capable of solving the problem of corruption.

When asked whether the international community should continue to restrict its humanitarian relief assistance before Lebanese politicians carry out reforms, Ito said that this is “very difficult to strike a balance.”

The UNHCR representative said: “This will harm the most vulnerable Lebanese and refugees because it will create tensions between the two sides-those affected by the current situation should not be punished.”

Although the overall international financial support for Lebanon, including EU aid, is strictly conditional on reforms, the EU’s chief foreign affairs spokesperson Peter Stano told EURACTIV that humanitarian assistance will not be restricted, and pay special attention to supporting Lebanon’s hosting of Syrian refugees. .

“With the confirmation of the new government led by Prime Minister Mikati last month, the recent agreement on the date of legislative elections, and the expected resumption of technical negotiations with the International Monetary Fund, we have made some progress in ending the political deadlock (International Monetary Fund). IMF),” Stano said.

In the past 10 years, the European Union has allocated 200 million euros of the 2.8 billion euros to Lebanon to support them in responding to the Syrian crisis.

“We will not let the Lebanese people pay for the mistakes of their politicians-humanitarian aid is provided directly to people to alleviate their suffering, so restricting it will only affect the most vulnerable,” he said.

As far as the Lebanese leave their country collectively, EU officials do not believe there will be another refugee crisis. But if the situation worsens, what will the Syrian refugees do?

A small group of Lebanese and Syrian citizens have already travelled to Cyprus. EURACTIV also learned that more and more refugees and workers are abandoning Lebanon in favor of new immigration routes into Europe through Belarus.

The spokesperson of the German Ministry of Foreign Affairs acknowledged that direct flights from Beirut, Damascus and Amman to Minsk have increased significantly. German wave Report.Nearest local media reports It also shows that this situation is increasing.

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