Qazzi Says Talks with Syrian Government Needed to Address Refugees Crisis

Labor Minister Sejaan Qazzi stressed on Saturday that the thorny issue of Syrian refugees in Lebanon can be addressed through talks with the Syrian government.

“We can't address the problem of refugees without having talks with the Syrian government since it is directly linked to the subject,” said Qazzi to LBCI.

He noted that the Lebanese and Syrian intelligence apparatuses make almost weekly contacts, he said: “Lebanon and Syria make almost weekly contacts between their intelligence agencies.”

“There is a real contradiction between the international position and the Lebanese stance in addressing the problem of displaced Syrians. The Lebanese stance confirms that there is no final solution before a political solution is reached. But we can start with returning the refugees (to Syria) before a political agreement is reached because the latter requires many years (to be accomplished),” said Qazzi.

He pointed out that Lebanon has called for the establishment of a safe zone for displaced Syrian inside Syria.

The Minster added that he will present on Monday an executive project to restore the displaced Syrians back to their homeland.

Qazzi concluded that the only route for refugees to go back to their land is through regime controlled areas along Lebanon's border, he said: “Syrian regions alongside the Lebanese border are controlled by the Syrian regime and the Syrian refugees can return to Syrian only through these areas.”