UN proposal to create permanent refugee camps in Lebanon likely to be rejected by Lebanon’s cabinet

Dubai The United Nations High Commmissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has announced plans to naturalise 100,000 Syrian refugees in Lebanon, according to Social Affairs Minister Rashid Derbas, who says he obtainted the report. In comments published in the Al Liwaa daily, he said the UN would also be issuing passports for the refugees.

The government is likely to reject the proposal given the country’s history with refugees dating back to the Palestinian Nakba of 1948 which saw a massive influx of Palestinian refugees who have been living in Lebanon for decades in camps. Palestinians also were involved in the Lebanese Civil War which drudges up uncomfortable sentiments among Lebanese about the role refugees play in politics and changing the religious demographics of the country.