The Mayor of Ghobeiry, Maan Al-Khalil, announced in a statement that "the municipality is now unable to bear the burden of the costs of transporting and gathering waste from the Palestinian camps in the southern suburbs, which has been the case for more than 40 years." He called on UNRWA, "which is responsible for managing the affairs of Palestinian refugees, to assume its responsibilities in this matter, find a solution, and cover the costs for the municipality which is no longer able to continue providing services, particularly under the current economic and living conditions, in which the municipality can barely secure salaries for its workers and employees."
He clarified that "the municipality, through the concerned company, is currently lifting and processing about 55 tons of waste daily at a cost of approximately 5,500 US dollars, which is equivalent to three times the municipality's budget." He demanded that UNRWA "study the situation and respond before June 15 of this month; otherwise, the municipality will stop collecting waste from the Barjaineh and Shatila camps and the Sabra area."
Al-Khalil mentioned that "he had previously informed the Director General of UNRWA in Lebanon during a visit to its headquarters over three months ago that the municipality would stop providing waste removal services in the Sabra and Shatila camps."
