Report: Aoun Wants UNHCR to Reconsider Aid Halt for Returning Refugees

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has reportedly promised President Michel Aoun during their meeting in New York last week, to reconsider a UNHCR decision halting aid to displaced Syrian refugees returning back to their country, since it is reserved for them in host countries, the pan-Arab al-Hayat daily reported on Tuesday.

Sources close to the President said a “major progress has been recorded regarding aid for refugees during Aoun’s presence at the UN General Assembly where he delivered a speech.”

Aoun asked Guterres that the UNHCR keeps providing assistance for refugees even after they return back to their country “to help them settle in,” said the sources. They noted that the rules of international organization require that assistance be halted when the refugees return back to their country.

In his talks with Guterres, the President reportedly argued that providing assistance for refugees when they return to Syria helps them face the difficult conditions.

“They have lived in tents in Lebanon, and are going to live in tents in Syria. Why not keep helping them to be able to confront the difficult conditions (either because their homes are destroyed or damaged, or because of the lack of infrastructure and services ...),” the sources quoted Aoun.

Guterres has promised Aoun to reconsider the UN resolution in this regard, they added.

Early in September, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Lebanon suspended food rations and aid for 8,000 Syrian families. The measure will reportedly take effect starting the month of November.

UNHCR stated that its mandate extended only to the most vulnerable families that were unable to afford their basic needs of food, shelter and healthcare.