UNHCR: At Least 242,000 Syrian Refugees Currently in Lebanon

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees announced on Friday that the number of Syrians who have left the neighboring war-torn country and came to Lebanon since the eruption of the conflict in March 2011 has reached 242,000.

"The number of refugees in Lebanon has risen by 20,000 during the last week of January,” a statement released by the U.N. said.

It added that 165,000 of refugees have been registered while 77,263 will be added to the list soon.

The UNHCR noted: “The names of 38,000 refugees were registered in January”.

It detailed that the majority of Syrians and Palestinians reside in the north of Lebanon with their number reaching 80,450. Meanwhile, 63,288 refugees are in the Bekaa and 21,265 are spread between Beirut and the South.

President Michel Suleiman urged donors on Wednesday during the International Humanitarian Pledging Conference for Syria held in Kuwait to provide Lebanon with $370 million assistance for refugees from Syria and called for countries to take in some of the displaced after ringing the alarm bell.

He explained that the government had approved a $370 million comprehensive plan for the refugees - $180 for Lebanese state institutions and $190 for international agencies.

The president stressed that “Lebanon insists on preserving its embracing role,” but he warned that the influx “has repercussions on the social and economic situation” in the country.

Meanwhile, International donors pledged more than the targeted $1.5 billion in aid for stricken Syrians, U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon said during the conference.