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A camp for Syrian refugees in Lebanon was burned down after a dispute between the camp’s residents and a local family. Several residents were injured in the fire.
A makeshift refugee camp for some 375 Syrians in northern Lebanon has completely burned down. Four people were injured and all the camp tents in Al-Minije village were destroyed, said a spokesman for the UN refugee agency UNHCR in Lebanon.
The dispute began with a “personal discussion” between a group of young Lebanese and Syrian workers, the Lebanese army said. The Lebanese fired into the air and then set fire to the camp, which is located near the Syrian border. Several Lebanese and six Syrians were arrested in connection with the incident.
Residents look for other accommodations
The UNHCR spokesperson said several residents had returned to search for useful items among the charred tents. Most of them found refuge in other unofficial refugee camps. But residents also offered them help, Kabbara said.
The Sunni Grand Mufti of Lebanon, Sheikh Abdul Latif Derian, spoke of a “heinous crime” and called on the authorities to bring those responsible to justice. “Syrian refugees in Lebanon are invited. We have to support them until they can return to their country of origin,” he said, according to the state agency NNA.
Tense situation in Lebanon
In Lebanon, tensions rise time and again between residents and Syrians who have fled the country en masse in civil war. More than a million Syrians have sought refuge in Lebanon, almost a quarter of the population that Lebanon had before the Syrian civil war. The country’s already poor infrastructure is also burdened by many Syrians.
There are also historical differences between the two neighboring countries. For three decades, Syria dominated the smaller Lebanon and had thousands of soldiers stationed there. They withdrew in 2005 following the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, which sparked anti-Syrian protests.
