Bilal Harmoush, head of the Lebanese Gathering for Justice and Development, called for handling the Syrian refugee issue in Lebanon with justice and fairness, urging a departure from sectarian or racist tendencies and upholding the law in addressing this increasingly complex and stability-threatening matter. He emphasized that the government must take certain actions to prevent future catastrophes, primarily the reorganization and registration of Syrian births in Lebanon, as unregistered births would leave hundreds of thousands without legal status and unable to return to Syria.
Harmoush asserted that Lebanese citizens should not bear the costs of the Syrian regime's efforts to negotiate the return of Syrians in exchange for lifting sanctions against the regime, labeling this as blatant extortion. He noted that the primary responsibility for the displacement of Syrians rests with the regime and those who participated in the war, which resulted in the displacement of residents from areas like Qusayr, Qalamoun, Zabadani, and Homs, where settlements have been established preventing their return to lands they and their ancestors had cultivated for centuries.
He also called for the regulation of human trafficking across illegal crossings, as it drains the military and security forces’ resources, complicating their law enforcement tasks, and reflects the extortion operations carried out by the Syrian regime and its allies by facilitating and organizing illegal entries of Syrians.
Harmoush warned that the proposal to send Syrians to a third country acknowledges the success of the displacement and depopulation process in Syria. He considered that the priority now should be to enforce the law and prevent those who enter and exit Syria from remaining in Lebanon, as they enjoy safety in their own country, and they should be deported immediately in accordance with the Lebanese government's decision during the term of President Tammam Salam, requiring Syrians on Lebanese territory to comply with the law.
