Page 10 - ARUBA TODAY

A10 WORLD NEWS
Friday 29 June 2018
Hundreds of Syrians leave Lebanon for long-awaited reunions

By BASSEM MROUE ten driven to leave by "op-
ARSAL, Lebanon (AP) — pressive" living conditions in
Hundreds of displaced Syr- Lebanon, including a lack
ians left Lebanon for their of residency rights, restric-
war-torn homeland Thurs- tions on their movement
day in a repatriation that and inability to enroll chil-
will reunite them with rela- dren in school.
tives they have not seen In Arsal, the refugees gath-
for years. But many of them ered in the town's Wadi
also are leaving behind Hmeid area, where a
loved ones who are stay- Lebanese security officer
ing in the tiny Arab nation checked their IDs against a
that has become home to list before allowing them to
the highest percentage of cross into Syria.
refugees in the world. Most are farmers and their
Mohammed Suleiman Dar- families, and some of them
wish, 76, was among those rode pickup trucks and
who left this border town tractors.
for Syria with his 9-year-old The Syrian army, backed
granddaughter, Israa, who by its allies Russia and Iran,
has not seen her parents has regained more terri-
since 2013 and will meet Syrian refugees gather in their vehicles getting ready to cross into Syria from the eastern Lebanese tory from the rebels, Leba-
younger siblings who were border town of Arsal, Lebanon, Thursday, June 28, 2018. non's government has ar-
born at home while she Associated Press gued that many areas in
sought safety in Lebanon. Syria have become stable
Darwish and his grand- on Syria's Qalamoun region old wife, Baseema, in Leba- from the Lebanese and Syr- enough for refugees to re-
daughter were among a in 2013, young Israa was non while he repairs their ian governments. They are turn.
batch of about 300 Syr- staying with her paternal badly damaged home be- part of a total of 3,194 Syr- But the U.N. is more cau-
ians crammed into trucks, grandparents, who decid- fore she can rejoin him. She ians who have registered tious, saying Syria is not yet
tractors and other vehicles ed to take her with them will stay in Lebanon with her to return, he said, adding safe.
piled with mattresses and to Lebanon. Israa's parents other son and his family. that the rest will head back Lebanon's general security
blankets. were in the same village of "I missed my parents a lot in batches in the coming chief Abbas Ibrahim said
They began crossing the Suhul but stayed at home when I lived here," said Is- weeks. Wednesday the UNHCR
border for an uncertain fu- as Syrian troops marched raa, who wore blue jeans, The General Security Direc- has been notified about
ture. in. a white-and-blue sweater torate, which is in charge of the return of the Syrians "so
When Syrian government Now Darwish and Israa are and flip-flops as she sat foreigners in Lebanon, said they can bear their respon-
forces and their allies heading back to Suhul. on the ground next to in a statement later Thurs- sibility."
launched a wide offensive But he is leaving his 63-year- her grandparents before day that 294 Syrians had But Lisa Abou Khaled, a
heading to Syria. "I spoke headed back. It did not spokeswoman for UNHCR
with them regularly by tele- give an explanation but in Beirut, said the agency is
phone, but now I even for- apparently not all those not organizing the returns.
got how they look." who were registered had She said the agency's rep-
When Israa left Syria in 2013, departed. resentatives are only pres-
her younger sister, Aya, was The repatriations come ent at the border crossings
2. Since then, two other sis- amid a dispute between to answer questions. She
ters and a brother, Youssef, the government of Leba- confirmed that authorities
were born, she said. non and the U.N.'s refugee informed them of the repa-
"I want to see them to- agency, which Beirut ac- triations.
day," said the green-eyed cuses of trying to discour- "UNHCR, as in previous
girl who seemed excited age refugees from going movements ... will be pres-
about the trip. home. UNHCR rejects the ent at the departure point
Darwish's wife said her other charges. to attend to any query or
son has a job in Lebanon. Lebanon hosts around 1 any needs the refugees
"I hope that the war that million registered Syrians — may have as they prepare
splits us ends, and we can roughly a quarter of Leba- to leave to Syria," she said.
all gather again in Syria," non's population — and Human Rights Watch's Fakih
she said as she put her officials have said that the said research on Syrians in
9-month-old granddaugh- country can no longer af- Arsal revealed "oppressive
ter Fatima in her lap. ford the strain on its fragile conditions" that led many
The small exodus is part of economy. to return. A similar convoy
a repatriation program that U.N. officials and rights left Arsal last year for areas
the Lebanese government groups have expressed held by insurgents in Syria. It
says is voluntary — the first concern over the orga- was not immediately clear
batch of refugees to return nized repatriations, calling what happened to those
to Syria from the border them premature as vio- who returned.
town of Arsal this year. lence and a government Arsal Mayor Basil al-Hujeiry
Khaled Abdul-Aziz, a Syrian crackdown continue in said more than 3,000 Syr-
who heads a committee Syria. ians have registered to re-
for the returnees, said 472 Lama Fakih, deputy di- turn home from the border
Syrians were expected to rector of the Middle East town. Syria has asked that
make the crossing Thursday region for Human Rights the repatriations take place
after requesting permission Watch, said Syrians are of- in phases, he added.q