Lebanon to deport Syrian refugees despite international opposition, Aoun says

Lebanon will power through with its plan to send Syrian refugees in the country back to Syria despite "suspicious" international resistance to the plan, Lebanese President Michel Aoun said on Wednesday.

Aoun made the comments during a meeting with a Canadian delegation that included international development minister Harjit Sajjan, according to a statement from the Lebanese presidency.

Lebanon’s plan to return 15,000 Syrian refugees per month to Syria has been met with international condemnation, with the EU, UNHCR and human rights groups saying Syria remains too dangerous a place for refugees to return to - in part because of the ruthlessness of Assad regime security forces.

According to the Lebanese presidency statement, Aoun said that such fears were unfounded, claiming that Syrians who had previously returned from Lebanon "did not report any harassment they were subjected to after their return".

"We are now suspicious of the positions taken by some countries and organisations," the statement quoted Aoun as saying in the meeting.

"If the goal is to settle the displaced Syrians in Lebanon, we reject that categorically, as we previously rejected the settlement of the Palestinians on our land."

He said any efforts by foreign powers to force Lebanon to integrate Syrian refugees would be "a crime that Lebanon will not accept".

More than five million Syrians fled their country when war began 11 years ago, with most of them now living in neighbouring countries Turkey, Lebanon and Jordan. Lebanon alone has taken in one million Syrians.

Calls for the return of Syrian refugees have increased in Lebanon since its economic downturn began in late 2019, leaving three-quarters of Lebanese living in poverty. For Syrians, living conditions have become much worse.

Syrians who have previously returned to their country have faced arrest, torture, and even execution at the hands of security forces, according to reports from rights groups.

Lebanon put forward its deportation plan in July. The Syrian regime said earlier this week that it was "ready" to repatriate the refugees.