Jdeidet Yabous: The first group of Syrian refugees returned home from Lebanon on Tuesday under a new plan the United Nations developed with the Lebanese government following the downfall of Bashar Assad’s rule in December.
Syria’s uprising-turned-conflict displaced half of the country’s pre-war population of 23 million over the last 14 years. Lebanon hosted an estimated 1.5 million refugees, at one point making up roughly a quarter of its six million people, with many having been smuggled across the border and unregistered with the UN.
The new plan has the UN refugee agency offering $100 in cash to each repatriated Syrian refugee and the Lebanese authorities waiving any fees or fines they owe.
The UNHCR also says it will help returning Syrians with “cash grants, legal assistance for civil documents, psychosocial support, livelihood opportunities, and other protection services”.
Lebanese authorities have repeatedly requested the repatriation of Syrian refugees over the years, a call that grew louder with the widespread poverty in the Mediterranean country and shrinking funding for aid agencies.