- Nineteen prisoners use cutlery to break out of cells at Winchester prison
- France wants progress in Ukraine before Russia returns to G7
- Italy president begins talks to seek way out of government crisis
- Italian PM expected to resign as political chaos deepens
- Russia says US cruise missile test ‘regrettable’
- Kremlin - No date set for Normandy talks on Ukraine despite Macron meeting
- Egypt court hands out 6 death sentences on terror charges
- Putin says Russian nuclear explosion poses no threat
- Russian panel eyes alleged foreign interference in protests
- Gran Canaria wildfire triggers evacuation of thousands of people
- PM Johnson calls on Germany and France to compromise on Brexit
- Sudan's ex-president Bashir arrives at corruption trial
TEHRAN, June 14 - The German ambassador to Beirut has rejected reports suggesting that the international community, the UN and certain foreign countries are preventing the return of Syrian refugees in Lebanon to their homes.
TEHRAN, Young Journalists Club (YJC) -Martin Huth said on Thursday that the United Nations and countries contributing to aid programs for more than a million Syrian refugees in Lebanon were “fully committed to an eventual return of refugees to Syria.”
He, however, said the international view was that it was not yet safe for Syrian refugees to return.
“At the same time, and while we do not oppose voluntary returns to Syria, conditions in that country, in our view, do not allow for a general and comprehensive return of refugees at this time,” he added.
The Germany envoy added that the international community was doing its best to help Lebanon cope with the massive influx of refugees in its southern and eastern territories.
“Many of us are doing all we can to alleviate the situation,” Huth said, adding that the international community was “fully aware of the heavy burden Lebanon is bearing.”
The comments came after Lebanese authorities accused the donors, UN and foreign countries of trying to prevent the return of Syrian refugees.
Caretaker foreign minister Gebran Bassil has said the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) and certain members of the international community were blocking the return of refugees. Bassil announced last week a freeze on applications for residency permits by UNHCR staff members in Lebanon.
Source: Press TV
Your Comment