Mikati tasks Baissari with Syrian repatriation file
Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati on Thursday tasked acting General Security chief Brig. Gen. Elias Baissari with following up on the issue of returning the displaced Syrians to their country.
In the memo sent to Baissari, Mikati said that his decision is related to the ministerial meeting that was held on Wednesday, in which it was decided to take stricter measures in the file.
Accordingly, the premier tasked Baissari with securing “a safe and voluntary repatriation of the displaced Syrians, implementing the decisions of the ministerial panel, and communicating in this regard with the relevant Syrian authorities in order to complete the mission, while seeking help from the public administrations and institutions and civil society groups.”
The ministerial panel has also asked the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees to submit all available data on displaced Syrians within a week. It also decided to strip any Syrian who leaves Lebanese territory of the displaced status.
The Lebanese Army had recently raided homes in various parts of the country, arresting hundreds and deporting dozens who had entered the country irregularly or held expired residency cards.
While Kataeb and Lebanese Forces leaders Sami Gemayel and Samir Geagea both urged for the repatriation of the refugees after meeting U.N. Special Coordinator for Lebanon Joanna Wronecka, Amnesty International has called on Lebanon to "immediately stop forcibly deporting refugees back to Syria."
Source: Naharnet
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