15 May 2024

We strongly reject the announcement made by the Lebanese General Security Directorate and the Minister of Displaced about their plan to deport thousands of Syrian forcibly displaced persons from Lebanon to Syria (under the disguise of voluntary return) which they started to implement as of yesterday. The first convoy of Syrians including women, children, defected military personnel and political opponents was sent out yesterday. This is tantamount to handing them over to the intelligence agencies of the Syrian regime which constitutes a direct threat to their lives.
We hold the Lebanese authorities fully responsible for their lives or any risk they may be exposed to due to their handover to the Assad regime. The step, should it be made by the Lebanese state, would constitute a violation to the rights of refugees and a breach of all international treaties and covenants.

 
Notwithstanding that Lebanon is not signatory to the refugee convention, Lebanon is still a member state of the United Nations and is bound by international law obligations. The Lebanese government should, instead, have demanded that Hezbollah militias withdraw from Syria which occupy the areas from which most Syrian refugees in Lebanon come in the first place.
We call upon the UN Secretary General and all relevant international organizations as well as states to act to stop the refoulement of Syrians from Lebanon because this constitutes a serious threat to their lives.

In this context, we would like to reaffirm that we support the return of all Syrians to their homes and areas from which the Syrian regime has displaced them provided that such return is safe and voluntary in accordance with relevant international standards. This must take place after a political solution is reached through the strict implementation of UNSCR 2254.